Published in Scotland Magazine Issue 26 on 21/04/2006.

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In search of Braveheart (Sir William Wallace)

In the second part of our series looking at where you can find out more about great historical figures, Mark Nicholls sets off on the trail of Sir William Wallace

For many Scots, William Wallace is forever regarded as the true national hero.

Portrayed in the Hollywood-blockbuster Braveheart, a role that took his name to a wider audience and even triggered resurgence in Scottish national pride, he epitomises the spirit of a nation.

A sworn enemy of the English, he lost his life a fraction more than 700 years ago, and was brutally executed under the orders of King Edward I.

His body was dismembered, the intention being that there would be nothing of Wallace to bury, no tomb, shrine or final resting place for his followers to re-gather and re-group around.

Despite this, there remain numerous sites across Scotland that vividly recall the heroics of Sir William Wallace including the memorial that now towers 220 feet tall at Abbey Craig, his base for the decisive Battle of Stirling Bridge.

Wallace was the son of a Scottish knight and landowner, most likely born in the early 1270s at the family’s fortified site at Elderslie, Renfrewshire which is now marked by a memorial and the site of the famous Wallace Yew, which has recently suffered some storm damage.

Little is known about his earlier life apart from his marriage to Marion Braidfute in Lanark, at the time a major market town and site of strategic military importance.

The historic burgh was also the location of the first meeting of the Scots Parliament in 978 AD.

It was there that Wallace dramatically leapt onto the pages of Scottish history in 1297, a year after the country had b.....

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By Mark Nicholls

Section : Scottish Legends

Page number : 62