The Battle of Bannockburn 1314

By Leonard James

A book about the historic Battle of Bannockburn, the great triumph by Robert Bruce of Edward II of England that won independence for Scotland. The book is being released to mark the 700th anniversary of the battle and to coincide with the Scottish referendum on independence.
With most of Scotland in his hands, Robert Bruce looked set to become undisputed King of Scotland - only the castle at Stirling still held out. But then King Edward II of England came north with perhaps the largest army ever fielded in Scotland by the English. Proud Edward and his army advanced like some unstoppable monster, destroying everything in their path. But Robert Bruce was waiting for them at Bannockburn. The resulting battle would change history.
This book brings an exciting new look to the Wars of Scottish Independence. The course of the campaign is given, but the emphasis is on the Battle itself and the men who fought there. There are detailed analyses of weapons, tactics and strategies, tactical diagrams explain how the troops formed up and moved, and a study of the commanders. The course of the battle is followed with the aid of maps, relating to the ground today. The aftermath of the battle, its effects and importance to the progress of the war are then described.
The “Bretwalda Battles” series has been running with increasing success as printed books and as ebooks for five years.

Contents
Chapter 1 The Scottish Wars of Independence
Chapter 2 Leaders at Bannockburn
Chapter 3 Men, Weapons and Tactics
Chapter 4 The Battle of Bannockburn First Day
Chapter 5 The Battle of Bannockburn Second Day
Chapter 6 Aftermath

About the Author
Leonard James is an author of military books. He comes from a military family that has fought in every major war since at least the Crimean War, and probably before that. His forebears were mostly cavalrymen, though his father served in the RAF. Leonard has made a particular study of battlefields in Britain, walking over dozens of them to get an eye for ground. He has also handled genuine and replica weapons to better understand the use of pre-modern weapons and the men who wielded them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bretwalda Books
• Release date: Aug 5, 2014
• ISBN: 9781910440209

Leonard James

About the AuthorLeonard James is the son of an RAF veteran who fought in the Battle of Britain until wounded. Leonard grew up in a household dominated the RAF, and later married the daughter of an RAF squadron leader.

Book preview

Bretwalda Battles

The Scottish Wars of Independence

The Battle of Bannockburn 1314

by Leonard James

Published by Bretwalda Books at Smashwords

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This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

First Published 2014

Copyright © Leonard James

Leonard James asserts his moral rights to be regarded as the author of this work.

ISBN 978-1-910440-20-9

Contents

Chapter 1 The Scottish Wars of Independence

Chapter 2 Leaders at Bannockburn

Chapter 3 Men, Weapons and Tactics

Chapter 4 The Battle of Bannockburn First Day

Chapter 5 The Battle of Bannockburn Second Day

Chapter 6 Aftermath

Chapter 1

The Scottish Wars of Independence

The war that climaxed with the stunning Scottish victory at Bannockburn in 1314 had it origins in 1290 when Queen Margaret of Scotland died leaving no close relatives to inherit the crown. No fewer than 13 Scottish nobles announced that they were the rightful King of Scotland and for a while it looked as if civil war might break out. To avoid this catastrophe the Scottish nobles made a decision that would plunge Scotland into an even worse series of wars: they asked King Edward I of England to study the competing claims and decide who should be the next King of Scotland.

Edward I was not the sort of man to allow an opportunity to pass him by. He chose John Balliol to be king, but only after extracting from Balliol a promise that he would recognise Edward as his overlord. Balliol agreed readily enough, such agreements being not uncommon in medieval Europe. He expected his duties to England to be relatively light, but Edward chose to treat King John of Scotland as if he were a subject who had no more power or rights than an English farmer. Edward issued orders, sent instructions and appointed officials, ignoring King John’s views or wishes.

In July 1295 the Scots agreed a treaty with France without consulting Edward, who promptly invaded. John Balliol was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London. Edward declared that he was now ruling Scotland himself and set about installing his own men in positions of power. The Englishmen did not behave well and several atrocities were committed.

Unsurprisingly an uprising against English rule quickly broke out. Led by a relatively obscure knight named William Wallace the rising achieved success at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297, but Edward struck back at the Battle of Falkirk the following year. Thereafter the fighting raged back and forth with neither side managing to secure a final victory. Wallace was captured in 1305 and Edward had him charged with treason. I could not be a traitor to Edward, for I was never his subject, responded Wallace, but Edward had him executed in the most painful and barbarous manner anyway. If Edward hoped Wallace’s death would end the Scottish uprising he was wrong. Scottish leadership merely passed into other hands.

The statue of William wallace at Aberdeen. The statue was erected in 1888 and bears this inscription: I tell you a truth, liberty is the best of all things, my son, never live under any slavish bond.

A turning point came in 1306 when two of the leading claimants to the Scottish throne met at Dumfries. In circumstances that remain unclear Robert Bruce stabbed John Comyn to death. Bruce then openly declared that he was King of Scotland and summoned all true Scots to join him in a war of liberation against the English. The Comyns and their allies denounced Bruce as a murderer and joined the English cause. Other Scottish families were at first equally ambivalent, but over time most came to support Robert Bruce. The death of Edward I of England was a boost to Bruce. Many Scottish knights and nobles who had sworn oaths to Edward now felt that they were free to act as they wished. Moreover, Edward’s successor as King of England, his son Edward II, turned out to be interested in neither Scotland nor in warfare.

By the spring of 1314 Bruce had managed to defeat the English in Scotland. Through a carefully planned and brilliantly executed guerrilla campaign he had worn