Scotland’s Fight for Independence

In short, the Wars of Independence were two periods of war in which Scotland fought to gain her independence from England. However, things are not as simple as it sounds, otherwise this conflict would not have flared up twice and in total lasted over half a century. At the end of the Second War of Independence in 1357, Scotland had regained its independence and held it until it entered the Treaty of Union with England in 1707.

Robert Bruce and William Wallace were not the only well-known figures of these wars. Among other famous people who participated in the wars were John Balliol and his son Edward, King David II of Scotland, and the Kings Edward I-III of England. Some of the best-known Scottish battles from the wars include the Battle of Bannockburn, the Battle of Stirling Bridge, and the Battle of Falkirk.

As the name of the war suggests, Scotland was fighting for her independence, which she lost in a crisis of succession that followed King Alexander III’s death. He left no male heir behind and had named his granddaughter Margaret of Norway as his heir in such a case. Her father, the King of Norway, was unwilling to send her to Scotland, which at the time was experiencing unrest. The Treaty of Salisbury, signed by the King of Norway, Edward I of England and the Scottish guardians, secured English help Scotland to settle the unrest and ensure the safe passage of the Maid of Norway to Scotland. In return for English help, Edward I’s son was to marry Margaret, which would have brought Scotland into the possession of the Plantagenet line. But Margaret died on her way to Scotland in 1290 and the question of who would rule Scotland was raised again.

What followed were two years of uncertainty in which several people made claims to the throne, including Robert Bruce and John Balliol. Edward I was asked to moderate and judge who had the best claim to the Scottish throne. He did so under one condition: the new King had to pay homage to Edward I. This effectively placed Scotland under English overlordship. In 1292, John Balliol was pronounced and crowned King of Scots. His reign only lasted four years. In 1296 he was forced to resign his title after repeatedly failing to follow summons form Edward I. After the resignation, Edward I decided to take direct control over Scotland instead of naming a new King. Edward I’s leadership and expectations created tensions in Scotland and caused discontent and unrest. In 1296, King Edward I’s forces sacked Berwick, which effectively started the First War of Independence. Lower ranking Scots started to gather and revolt under the leadership of William Wallace, Andrew Murray and William Douglas. If you want to learn more about William Wallace, have a look at this article on our blog!

Just like the First War of Independence, the second one was caused by disputes over who got to rule Scotland. After the death of King Robert I, his son David became King of Scotland. Since he was still a child, a guardian ruled in his name until the end of David’s minority. Such regency periods are often times of instability and a perfect opportunity to attack the crown. And that is exactly what John Balliol’s son did! He believed that by the right of his father, he should be King of Scots.

He gathered his supporters and opponents of the Bruce dynasty on his side and attacked and defeated the disorganised forces of the Scottish guardian at Dupplin Moor. This started the Second War of Independence, since Edward Balliol, like his father before him, had promised to swear homage to King Edward III, if he received military support from England.

The early years of the First War of Independence mainly saw fights and revolts of lower ranking Scots who were secretly supported by several Scottish Lords. The first major clash of Scottish and English forces, following Edward I’s initial take over of control in 1296 was the Battle of Stirling Bridge. At this battle Andrew Murray and William Wallace were victorious over the English force that had been sent to crush the revolt, despite being outnumbered by the English forces.

Murray succumbed to wounds that he had received in Battle, which left Wallace as the leader of the revolting Scots and he was named sole guardian of the Scottish realm for his efforts to protect it from its enemies. Following a successful raid of northern England, Wallace was heavily defeated by English forces at Falkirk. In the aftermath of the battle Stirling Castle was occupied by the English. Wallace resigned his guardianship to Robert Bruce and John Comyn.

Together they besieged Stirling castle and managed to bring it under Scottish control in late 1299. Their main tactic lay in defending Scotland by frustrating Edward I’s military efforts in Scotland rather than meeting the English in a pitched battle. But they were defending a country without a King, that was divided by strong rivalries between claimants of the throne.

Edward I’s troops who repeatedly attacked in Scotland between 1301 and 1304 threatened the lands and people of Scottish Lords. The repeated attacks were part of Edward I’s plan to regain the allegiance of the Scottish Lords. Many swore their allegiance to him to gain his protection from such attacks. Thus, in 1304 most of Scotland had submitted to Edward I, who once more became Lord Superior of Scotland. But the peace that ensued was of short duration. Many had suffered great losses in the early years of the war and despite the sworn allegiance, hostility towards England was strong.

It was Robert Bruce who restarted the war in 1306 when he killed his rival John Comyn and made a move to recapture English garrisons in the south-west of Scotland. He was crowned King of Scots in March. After an initial defeat at Methven Robert had to flee to the isles and his supporters were captured or scattered. Opinions on his actions and his kingship were divided, but he was not so easily defeated.

He was victorious at Loudon Hill and this victory strengthened his support among the Scots. Edward I’s death caused the English to retreat, and Robert I used this time to fight his rivals in Scotland’s north-east. By the summer of 1308, Robert had defeated many of his enemies or persuaded them to support him. Edward II’s failure to send support to Bruce’s enemies, allowed Robert I to gain a significant hold in Scotland.

Edward II’s attempt to send troops to defeat Robert I in 1310 failed and allowed King Robert I to exploit the division among his enemies to gain further ground in Scotland in the years that followed. He sacked English garrisons at Edinburgh and Roxburgh in 1314 and besieged Stirling Castle once more to weaken the English position in Scotland. The attempt to relieve the garrison at Stirling with new English troops was thwarted by the army of King Robert I, where they were defeated. If you want to know more about the Battle of Bannockburn, check out the Battle of Bannockburn Visitor Centre.

Despite Bruce being widely accepted as king of Scotland, the War of Independence was not over. Edward II still did not recognise his rule. And so the war continued. In the years following Bannockburn, the battleground shifted away from Scotland to the north of England. Robert I led several raiding campaigns, plundering and securing payments for protection against attacks. This continued into the early 1320’s. In 1320, Robert I and his barons sent a letter to Pope John, in which they laid out Robert I’s right as king and justified their fight against English oppression. This letter is commonly better known as the Declaration of Arbroath.

Over in England, a new threat to King Robert I emerged, Edward Balliol, the son of the late King. Balliol had the support of Robert I’s opponents and that of Edward II. Peace negotiations held in 1321 failed and as a result, new fighting broke out between Scotland and England. Following a failed attempt of an invasion, Edward II saw the need for peace and entered a 13-year truce with Scotland. The question of Scotland’s independence, however, was not settled in the truce which caused the continuation of war action in the following years.

Edward II faced his own troubles at home. His subjects were discontent with his rule and deposed and replaced him with his son in 1327. The new King, Edward III, decided to lead an English force to Scotland but was defeated by the Scots. This quick fruitless campaign had taken its toll on England, which was still in need of peace, even if this meant giving up the claim of lordship over Scotland. Finally, in 1328 the treaty of Northampton and Edinburgh was signed, and Robert Bruce was officially recognised as King of Scotland. This marked the end of the First War of Independence, but once again, peace did not last long.

After only four years of peace, Edward Balliol saw his chance to overthrow King David II, who at the time was only a child. He and his followers, also known as the Disinherited seized the moment when the old guardian of Scotland died in 1332 and the leadership in Scotland was undecided. Balliol and the Disinherited defeated the Scottish troops at Dupplin Moor, and Balliol was crowned King of Scotland at Scone in September of the same year. Once king, he needed to gather more support, to gain control over the country. Military struggle between the camps of David II and Edward Balliol broke out.

To strengthen his position, Balliol promised to pay homage to Edward III in return for English support. All sides readied for war and their hosts clashed at Halidon Hill in 1333, where Bruce’s forces were heavily defeated. Balliol used the momentum of his victory and continued his conquest of Scotland, renouncing Bruce’s rights to the throne and reinstating the Disinherited to their previous positions.

As part of the agreement between Edward Balliol and Edward III, southern lands which were part of Scotland were given to Edward III. Therefore, in 1333 there were three kings who laid claim to Scotland, David II, the son of Robert I Bruce, Edward Balliol, son of John I Balliol and Edward III of England.

Balliol and Edward III failed to eliminate the threat posed by David II and his supporters after the Battle at Halidon Hill. Instead, distrust and conflict between the two monarchs allowed the Bruce party to regain its strength. In 1334 King David II and his wife were sent to the safety of the continent, whilst his supporters continued to fight for their King. Whilst the Bruce camp gained strength, Balliol was losing support because his followers were continuously under attack. He was forced to retreat to Berwick and asked for help from England.

Despite profiting from the discord of their enemy, the Bruce party was not immune to internal conflict either. Following a joint invasion led by Balliol and Edward III, several of David II’s supporters switched allegiance and defected to Balliol’s camp. Confident that more would submit, Edward III and Balliol returned south to let the Earl of Strathbogie fight their battles. He, however, was defeated by the forces of Bruce in 1335 at Culblean.

David II, who was still residing in France, refused to accept the terms of peace negotiations which would have recognised Edward Balliol as current King of Scotland and David II and his heir. Since the peace negotiations were unsuccessful, the fighting between the Bruce and Balliol parties continued. By this time Edward III and Balliol had adopted a more defensive line of strengthening their strongholds, while Bruce’s side was promised support by King Philip VI of France.

Murray, David II’s guardian led a forceful campaign across Scotland in 1336 and 1337 but was unable to defeat Balliol and the English. Instead, he laid destruction to the land, to prevent his enemies from using it. As cruel as this was to the Scots living in these lands, it made it impossible for Edward III to use southern Scotland as a stronghold. In 1339 Balliol’s seat in Perth was attacked and fell to the Bruce party. Despite still supporting Edward Balliol, the English king’s attention had shifted away from Scotland to a war with France, and yet the war continued.

1341 saw Edinburgh captured by Bruce’s forces and the young King David II finally returned to Scotland. He now had to show that he was capable of ruling the realm, as well as continuing the fight against his rival. This was made harder by court internal quarrels over lordship and power.

David II’s time in Scotland was of short duration. Following a call for help from his ally King Philip VI of France, David II led a large force into England with the intention to capture Durham. At the battle of Neville’s Cross, the King was wounded and captured by the English. The victory was that of his opponents.

David II’s capture was the perfect opportunity for Edward Balliol to invade Scotland and claim the throne once and for all. He intended to lead a campaign into Scotland in 1347 but his plan was foiled by the supporters of David II. His supporters were able to defend the realm from Balliol, who was without the support of Edward III. And yet many only fought in the name of David II because the personally profited from the King’s absence.

David II once again refused an offer made by the English. He was promised his freedom and return to Scotland if he agreed to reinstate the Disinherited who supported Balliol. He did however accept a later offer which included the following terms. Scotland had to pay a ransom of £40 000, the Disinherited had to be reinstated and Edward III’s son was to be David II’s heir if he died childless. The terms were acceptable to David II but not to his Lords. They refused to agree to terms that included a possibility of Scotland falling under English rule. So the Scottish King remained a captive of the English and his Lords continued to defend Scotland from Balliol, all the while competing for regional power among themselves.

In 1355, when Scottish troops attacked Edward III’s men and took Berwick, the war was nearly at a close. Following his troop’s defeat, Edward was spurred into action. He gathered his forces and led a raid into Lothian in 1356. He didn’t advance further than that and soon retreated from Scotland. It was to be his last raid in his neighbouring country.

When Edward Balliol resigned his claims to the Scottish throne to Edward III, negotiations for David II’s release were taken up again. The Treaty of Berwick, signed in 1357, saw David II released for a ransom. He returned to an independent Scotland as her King.

After sixty years of almost continuous fighting between Scotland and England, Scotland had a King who did not have to pay homage to the English King. The truce between the two kingdoms offered both sides much needed respite and an opportunity for the battle-worn land to recover. However, the Wars of Independence were by far not the last anglo-scottish conflict. Over the course of the centuries the two neighbouring countries would clash time and again.