After King Edward I of England took control of Scotland, Scottish resistance increased under the leadership of Andrew Murray and William Wallace. Murray led rebellions in the north of Scotland after escaping English capture, retaking castles like Urquhart. Wallace emerged as a leader after killing the Sheriff of Lanark and began attacking the English with a growing army. He laid siege to Dundee Castle before both he and Murray joined forces and marched toward Stirling to face the advancing English army.

2. LEARNING INTENTIONS
• Describe the role of Andrew Murray in leading Scottish
resistance to English rule
• Describe the role of William Wallace in leading Scottish
resistance to English rule
• Describe other examples of Scottish rebellion

3. After the abdication of John Balliol, King Edward took control
of Scotland. As increased his power, more and more rebellion
occurred, notably led by Andrew Murray and William Wallace.

4. Edward sought increase his control
of Scotland.
John de Warrene was made
Lieutenant of Scotland and put
in charge of maintaining order.
English judges and sheriffs were
appointed, many with no
knowledge of Scots law or an
ability to speak the language.

5. Hugh de Cressingham in
particular was hated by many
in Scotland.
de Cressingham was to
introduce an English style of
taxation, which was resented
by people across the country.
Many refused to pay, until
forced to do so.

6. A number of small Scottish
rebellions broke out in
response to English rule.
In the Western Isles the
McDougal and MacDonald
clans fought over control of the
area (after the MacDonalds
were chosen by Edward as his
representatives in the area).

7. Bishop Robert Wishart of
Glasgow, the Earl of Carrick
(Robert the Bruce) and James
Steward tried to launch a
rebellion.
Edward had taken control of the
south-west region from Bruce
and Steward, and given it to an
English lord, Henry Percy.

8. Bruce, Bishop Wishart and
Steward organised an army to
fight against the English.
However even before an
English army was assembled,
Lord Percy went with a small
group of soldiers to Irvine and
challenged the Scots, who gave
up without a fight.

9. Some historians believe the
rebellion was a gesture and that
Bruce withdrew because he
learned Wallace wanted to
restore King John to the throne.
Wallace was said to be very angry
when he learned about the
rebellion’s collapse and raided
Bishop Wishart’s treasury.

10. Rebellions took place
elsewhere in Scotland, notably
in the north led by Andrew
Murray.
His family were strong
supporters of King John
Balliol. Murray had been
captured after the Battle of
Dunbar but managed to
escape.

11. After Murray’s escape he
returned north to find
his father’s lands under
English control.
Murray attacked a series
of locations, starting at
Urquhart Castle, which
he took control of at the
second attempt.

12. Murray’s cousin, the Earl of
Buchan, was told to capture
him but claimed he could not
(although Edward believed he
had not tried).
During 1297, Murray took
control of various castles
including Inverness and
Aberdeen. He then travelled
to Dundee.

13. William Wallace is arguably
most famous nowadays because
of Braveheart. However it was
another piece of art which
helped create his legend.
Fifteenth-century poet Blind
Harry’s poem, ‘The Wallace’
described much of the story
which is now well known.

14. Historians are divided on the
full accuracy of Blind Harry’s
poem, including whether
Wallace had a wife and if she
was murdered or not.
The poem is a major part of
Wallace history because so
little is known of his early life.

15. Wallace was born sometime in
the 1270s, most likely in
Elderslie near Glasgow
(although some place claim
Ellerslie in Ayrshire).
Wallace’s family were small-scale
landowners. Some claim
his father was Alan Wallace,
who signed the Ragman’s Rolls.

16. Wallace certainly became a
prominent outlaw after he
killed William Heselrig, the
Sheriff of Lanark in May 1297.
Wallace began to attract an
army of followers who engaged
in small-scale attacks on the
English, with support from
some Scottish nobles.

17. Some historians claim that the
English army could have
captured Wallace but were
distracted by events at Irvine.
This leads to claims that
Wallace was always working
with more powerful Scottish
forces and men.

18. Ultimately Wallace headed
north towards Dundee, where
he laid siege to English-controlled
Dundee Castle. He
was then joined by Andrew
Murray.
Both armies marched to Perth
and then on to Stirling, to
meet the English forces. Dudhope Castle, home to the Scrymgeour family built on
lands gifted by William Wallace after Dundee’s siege