drwaing of man on hourse looking down on soldiers“SEE! I HAVE SPOILED MY GOOD BATTLE-AXE.”
“SEE! I HAVE SPOILED MY GOOD BATTLE-AXE.”
The battle was commenced by the English at the order of King Edward. The shock of the first charge of the English cavalry was terrible; and as they were received on the spears of the Scottish infantry, the crash was heard at a great distance, and many English knights were dashed from their saddles by their furious steeds, which had been stabbed by the invincible spears of the Scots. The centre division, under the gallant Randolph, stood in a steady body to receive the charge of the English. These compact squares of the Scottish army were well calculated to break the masses which were opposed to them, and they suffered only from the arrows of the archers. The English cavalry charged with the greatest impetuosity, and endeavored to pierce through the phalanx of the Scottish spearmen; but they received them like a wall of iron, while the English receded from the shock like broken waves which had spent their fury on the rocks. When both armies joined battle, the great horses of England rushed upon the Scottish lances as if upon a thick wood, and one mighty sound arose from the breaking of the lances, the shock of falling horsemen, and the shrieks ofthe dying. The knights sang their war-cries, and rushed on to the charge. Groom fought like squire, and squire like knight, and yet Scotland’s lion waved proudly over her bands, while the English banners rose and fell, and many of them were dyed in blood. At last the English began to hesitate. “They fly! they fly!” cried the Scots. Just then the camp followers of the Scottish army, who had been posted on an adjacent hill, excited by the ardor of the struggle, began to descend in a mass towards the field of battle. The English imagined themselves about to be attacked by a fresh army, and began a disorderly retreat. Upon which Robert Bruce charged valiantly with his reserves, and quickly decided the fate of the day. The earl of Pembroke seized the bridle of King Edward’s horse and dragged him away from the battle-field. Sir Giles d’Argentine accompanied his king out of danger, and then rode back fearlessly amidst the conflict, exclaiming, “It is not my custom to fly!” This brave knight was cut down by the Scots. The victory was complete. The fortress of Stirling surrendered immediately. The earl of Hereford, who had shut himself up in Bothwell castle, offered to capitulate, and was exchanged for the wife, daughter, and sister of the king of Scotland, who had been imprisoned in England for several years. Thus had the independence and freedom of Scotland been obtained by the brave Bruce and his dauntless little band of patriot warriors. The swords of those who fought at Bannockburn were hung up in the halls of their descendants, and handed down to modern times as trophies of the liberty and independence which they achieved. The beneficial effects of this signal victory secured forever the independence of Scotland; and when the two kingdoms were afterwards united, Scotland received equal rightswith England, and the national church of Scotland, with her universities and schools, were guaranteed to the people of Scotland forever. This famous battle taught the Scottish nation a lesson which it never forgot: that a phalanx of Caledonian spears, wielded by brave and disciplined men on foot, was superior to all the vaunted chivalry of the most renowned cavaliers. In 1327 King Edward II. of England was dethroned, and his young son was crowned in his place. The young prince was but fifteen years of age. Scotland had been recovering from her misfortunes under the firm and wise government of Robert Bruce. The independence of that kingdom had been acknowledged by England. The crown jewels, which had been formerly seized by Edward I., had been returned, and the little princess Joan, who was betrothed to David, the young son of Robert Bruce, had been taken to Berwick, accompanied by the queen-dowager of England and a splendid retinue of attendants. The marriage was soon after celebrated with great magnificence. Englishmen and Scots, who for half a century had met only as foes upon the field of battle, were now joined in friendly courtesies through this marriage. King Robert’s wife Elizabeth had died before she saw this happy termination of the long hostilities.
The Scottish king did not long survive these events. He was seized with a severe complaint, then supposed to have been leprosy, which at length proved fatal. When upon his death-bed he called around him his earls and barons, and commended to their care his young son David; and the prince was thereupon crowned king of Scotland. Robert Bruce, having settled the affairs of his kingdom and throne, summoned to his bedside his brave and faithful friend and gallant knight, Sir James Douglas,and entreated him to take his heart from his body after death, and have it embalmed, and carry it to the Holy Land, and leave it there in the Holy Sepulchre, in obedience to a vow he had made. “When I was hard beset,” said the dying king, “I vowed to God that if I should live to see an end of my wars and Scotland free, I would raise the sacred standard against the enemies of my Lord and Saviour. But as I cannot myself accomplish this vow, I know no knight more worthy for the mission of bearing the heart of King Robert of Scotland to the Holy Land.” To this affecting request Lord Douglas replied, with tears in his eyes, “Ah, most gentle and noble king! A thousand times I thank you for the great honor you have done me in making me the bearer of so great and precious a treasure. Most faithfully and willingly, to the best of my power, shall I obey your commands.” Then the dying king answered,—
“Now praised be God! for I shall die in peace, since I am assured, by the faith you owe to your God and the order of knighthood, that the best and most valiant knight of my kingdom has promised to achieve for me that which I myself could never accomplish.”
Thus died Robert Bruce, king of Scotland, in the fifty-fifth year of his age and the twenty-fourth of his reign. His remains were deposited in the church of Dumfermline, where he was enshrined under a rich marble monument from Paris. The censures of excommunication pronounced by the Pope having been removed some time before, the religious services at his burial were performed by many prelates and bishops.
Many years afterwards his tomb was opened, and the lead in which his body had been wrapped was found twisted into the shape of a rude crown, covered with arich cloth of gold, which had been thrown over it. It was ascertained that the breast-bone had been sawn asunder in order to fulfil his request of taking out his heart; but that proud form, before which the king of England had trembled on his throne, had crumbled into dust. Robert Bruce, king of Scotland, is one of the most exalted warriors to be found in those early times. The virtues of his character were formed, and acquired their bright polish, in the school of adversity. One of the early writers says of him, “If any one should undertake to describe his individual conflicts and personal success, those courageous and single-handed combats in which, by the favor of God and his own great strength and courage, he would often penetrate into the thickest of the enemy, now becoming the assailant and cutting down all who opposed him, at another time acting on the defensive, and escaping from inevitable death,—if any writer shall do this, he will prove, if I am not mistaken, that he had no equal in his own time either in knightly prowess or in strength and vigor of body.” The true greatness of Robert Bruce appeared in his humanity, moderation, and pity for the sufferings of others, which led him in the hour of victory to be generous to his prisoners even though he had suffered such bitter wrongs at the hands of his English foes. His manners were kingly and engaging, his disposition singularly gentle, courteous, and without selfishness. Yet he was high-spirited, and full of noble energy and enthusiasm. In person he was tall and well proportioned, being five feet ten inches high. His shoulders were broad, his chest capacious, and his limbs powerful and possessing marvellous strength. He possessed an open and cheerful countenance, shaded by short curled hair. His forehead was low, his cheek-bones strong and prominent,with a wound on his lower jaw. Though the expression of his face was usually pleasing and kindly, he could assume a look of stern, kingly dignity, which awed his enemies, and gained him the necessary respect due to his rank and commanding position as Scotland’s king, and also her bravest and most valiant knight. He was one of the most successful military leaders of the age. Well may Scotland boast of her brave Robert Bruce, the most famous of all her rulers, the deliverer of her enslaved people, the upholder of her liberty, her hero-king and most chivalrous knight!