By Nik Hoyt
Hry 100
T/R 11:00
Brave heart is one of my favorite movies of all times. Mel Gibson did a great job making this film. While it did have many fallacies, I believe he did a good job depicting Wallace’s great accomplishments and feats within a 3-hour time restraint. Only recently I have come across new knowledge about William Wallace which makes me feel a better more true to life beginning of the movie could have taken place.
Braveheart begins with William Wallace as a boy with his father Malcolm Wallace and older brother John. His father is a commoner with lands who is rebelling against King Edward I of England. Very little is told why Edward I is in his position or why noble families, mainly the Bailol family and the Bruce family, are competing for control of Scotland. Shortly into the movie Malcolm Wallace is killed and after a graveside meeting with his future wife Murron, William is sent to live with his Uncle Argyle to be trained and educated in France and Italy. This introduction to the movie while making for a great Hollywood blockbuster is quite flawed and very far from the true story of one of the world’s greatest heroes, William Wallace.
In order to understand the complexity of the situation between England and Scotland, it is crucial to know why Scotland was left without a king or an heir to the throne. It was a very prosperous time for Scotland under the reign of King Alexander III. Many grandiose monasteries, cathedrals and castles were erected under his reign and there was peace in Scotland. In 1275 a.d., Alexander’s wife and mother of their three children died at the age of 35, this was not uncommon for this period. However, in 1281 he lost his younger son, followed by the loss of his eldest son and heir to the throne of Scotland in 1284. As if Lady Luck had not been cruel enough he then lost his final child, his only daughter, in 1286. This left the King without an heir so he quickly wed his new wife Yolande in 1284 in hopes of producing a new heir.
In 1286 after a routine meeting and a few goblets of French wine the King felt fired up and decided to visit his young wife during a large storm. He was blown from his horse by a large wind on the side of the mountain and fell to his death. This fell the crown of Scotland to the 3-year old Margaret “the maid of Norway”, Alexander’s Granddaughter. On the voyage to Scotland the young queen’s weak body and constitution cost her life on the stormy seas of September 26 1290.
Fifteen groups and families fought for Scotland’s crown including the two leading families, the bailol family and the Bruce family and even the King of Norway contested for the crown. The feuding families asked for the aid of Edward I “Longshanks” to mediate the court hearings. His terms seemed simple, all families must accept the court’s ruling and the winner must accept him as feudal superior and pay him homage. He was also given the title of Overlord of the land of Scotland. When the rulings were in, John Bailol was crowned King of Scotland 2 years after his proposed agreement with Longshanks.
King John Bailol’s reign was short and mostly pointless. After paying homage to Longshanks he received no aid from him as promised. Caught between the other angry families and a ruthless dictator, King Bailol commanded little power. Longshanks then demanded King Bailol supply troops for his battles with France. When he refused Longshanks attacked, King Bailol’s under funded and ill-trained troops were crushed by Longshanks well trained, battle hardened soldiers. Shortly after, Longshank’s armies forced King Bailol to surrender where he was publicly stripped of his crown, scepter, ring, and royal insignia and jailed in the tower of London. This paves the way for our hero William Wallace and his greatest enemy King Edward “Longshanks” story to begin.
Born in the small town of Elerslie, Scotland, William Wallace was the middle child of three boys; Malcolm, William and John. The movie depicts this portion wrong, showing only two children and not naming the eldest son correctly. Despite the movies depictions his mother was not dead nor did his father die at this age of his life, rather it happened like this.
William Wallace was a very tall man, towering at 6’7” in a time when the average man’s height was just over 5 feet. His father Malcolm was a knight with very little political influence and his older brother, also named Malcolm, was his squire. William and John were studying at cathedral school, a very common practice for younger sons at the time. This is where it is believed William was instilled with his beliefs of freedom, from an uncle who taught at the cathedral. While in his studies at the age of 17, William returned home. His father and elder brother were retreating into hiding with Longshank’s men coming to punish all knights and nobles who did not pay homage to him. Williams grandfather on his mother’s side was in charge of this for his region and looked after his daughter, William and John when they fled. He sent William and John to live with another uncle to continue their studies. With his father still alive at age 17 this rules out the graveside meeting with his “future wife” Murron or his leaving with “Uncle Argyle”. “Uncle Argyle” is believed to be a composite of the three uncles William lived with in his childhood.
Two years later his father and older brother returned south to reside with their family. It was a troubled time for Scotland with small skirmishes and battles that broke out all over Scotland. One such battle occurred when William was 19 years old. The Battle of Loudoun Hill in the town of Irvine claimed the life of his father. With the passing of William’s father brought many changes to his family. His older brother Malcolm was left to run the household, his mother was forced into hiding and William’s deep hatred of the English led him to break the shackles of the church and turn to his sword for the first time in his life. Wallace’s first time striking back was just around the corner.
In December 1291, a local constable named Selby ruled; a man who it was said loved blood especially the blood of Scots. Selby had a son who was a little older than William. One day the young Selby spotted William sticking out of the crowd with his enormous height and brightly colored clothes. He decided he was worth picking a fight with along with three of his friends. Selby and his friends made fun of William, he reached for his dirk and ran it into young Selby’s heart killing him. His friends tried to draw their swords but were surrounded by a crowd and Wallace quickly dispatched them. Knowing the English would be looking for him he fled to his uncle’s house nearby. The housekeeper greeted him and hearing his story quickly disguised him as an old woman at a spinning wheel. The ruse worked and the guards left and William returned home. Once home he decided not to endanger his family and fled for another uncle’s house.
Shortly after arriving he fled to a house in the woods. This is where he and his companions staged many of his assaults on all things English. Attacking at will and without provocation, I found several accounts of his feats. One tells of an English Churl who frequently lifted weights. For fourpence he would let anyone to hit him over the back with a pole he carried. William paid him three times this for the honor. When he struck him he shattered his back, the other guards lunged for William. He dispatched one with a cudgel to the head, broke another’s neck, then drew his sword, killed another and ran it through the armpit armor of another. Then he fled on horseback to the highlands.
Another account involved William trying to help a youth troubled by English soldiers. He was outnumbered, overpowered and thrown into jail to die. He was fed only bread and rotting herring until he passed into a coma. Mistaken for dead he was thrown into a dung heap. Rumors of his death spread, his first nurse heard the rumors and requested his body for a proper burial. She discovered he was alive and nursed him back to health. Rumors of him defeating death spread far and wide even as far as London. A well-known prophet at the time foretold of Wallace bringing peace to Scotland. William must have felt immortal with the prophets foretelling and staring death in the face and surviving. Rumors sparked support from his kinsmen and Scots to rally behind him on his assaults in Scotland and into England. This is the true story to William Wallace’s childhood and the start to his fame and power of leading armies against England. Many different stories and versions exist because as is stated in Braveheart “History is written by those who have hanged heroes”.
Gibson, Mel. (1995). Braveheart [Film]. Paramount Pictures.
Highlander Web. (n.d.) Retrieved March 13, 2005 from www.highlanderweb.co.uk
Kyn Wai Chung. (n.d.) Retrieved March 13, 2005 from www.waichung.demon.co.uk