Robert the Bruce

Robert I of Scotland
King of the Scots
Reign	1306–1329
Coronation	25 March, 1306
Predecessor	John Balliol
Successor	David II
Burial	Dunfermline Abbey (Body) -- Melrose Abbey (Heart)
Issue	Marjorie Bruce with Isabella, David, John, Matilda and Margaret with Elizabeth and several illegitimate children
Names Robert de Brus
Gaelic	Roibert a Briuis
Middle English	Robert the Bruys
House	Bruce
Father	Robert de Brus, 6th Lord of Annandale
Mother	Marjorie of Carrick

Robert I, King of the Scots (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329) usually known in modern English as Robert the Bruce (Medieval Gaelic: Roibert a Briuis; modern Scottish Gaelic: Raibeart Bruis; Norman French: Robert de Brus or Robert de Bruys) was King of the Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329.

His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage (originating in Brieux, Normandy), and his maternal of Franco-Gaelic. He became one of Scotland's greatest kings, as well as one of the most famous warriors of his generation, eventually leading Scotland during the Wars of Scottish Independence against the Kingdom of England. He claimed the Scottish throne as a fourth great-grandson of David I of Scotland.

His body is buried in Dunfermline Abbey, while his heart is buried in Melrose Abbey. His embalmed heart was to be taken on crusade by his lieutenant and friend Sir James Douglas to the Holy Land, but only reached Moorish Granada, where it acted as a talisman for the Scottish contingent at the Battle of Teba.

Background and early life

Robert the Bruce and Isabella of Mar

Robert was the first son of Robert de Brus, 6th Lord of Annandale (d. 1304) and Marjorie, Countess of Carrick, (d. 1292) daughter of Niall, Earl of Carrick. His mother was by all accounts a formidable woman who, legend would have it, kept Robert Bruce's father captive until he agreed to marry her. From his mother, he inherited the Gaelic Earldom of Carrick, and through his father a royal lineage that would give him a claim to the Scottish throne. Although his date of birth is known, his place of birth is less certain, but it was probably Turnberry Castle in Ayrshire.

Very little is known of his youth. He could have been sent to be fostered with a local family, as was the custom. It can be presumed that Bruce was raised speaking all the languages of his lineage and nation and was almost certainly fluent in Galwegian Gaelic, Scots and Norman French, with literacy in Latin. Robert's first appearance in history is on a witness list of a charter issued by Alasdair MacDomhnaill, Lord of Islay. His name appears in the company of the Bishop of Argyll, the vicar of Arran, a Kintyre clerk, his father and a host of Gaelic notaries from Carrick.

He saw the outcome of the 'Great Cause' in 1292, which gave the Crown of Scotland to his distant relative, John Balliol, as unjust. As he saw it, it prevented his branch of the family from taking their rightful place on the Scottish throne. Soon afterwards, his grandfather, Robert de Brus, 5th Lord of Annandale—the unsuccessful claimant—resigned his lordship to Robert de Brus, Bruce's father. Robert de Brus had already resigned the Earldom of Carrick to Robert Bruce, his son, on the day of his wife's death in 1292, thus making Robert Bruce the Earl of Carrick. Both father and son sided with Edward I against John who they considered a usurper and to whom Robert had not sworn fealty.

In April 1294, the younger Bruce had permission to visit Ireland for a year and a half, and, as a further mark of King Edward's favour, he received a respite for all the debts owed by him to the English Exchequer.

In 1295, Robert married his first wife, Isabella of Mar (d. December 1296) the daughter of Domhnall I, Earl of Mar (d. after July 1297) by his wife Helen (b. 1246 d. after Feb 1295).

Some sources claim that Helen was the daughter of the Welsh ruler Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, Prince of North Wales, Llywelyn 'The Great' (1173–1240) and his spouse Joan, Lady of Wales, an illegitimate child of King John of England. However, as both Llywelyn and Joan were dead by 1246, that theory would most likely be incorrect. However, there are suggestions that Helen may have in fact been the daughter of Llywelyn's son Dafydd ap Llywelyn and his Norman wife Isabella de Braose, of the south Wales dynasty of Marcher Lords.

Beginning of the Wars of Independence

In August 1296, Bruce and his father swore fealty to Edward I of England at Berwick-upon-Tweed, but in breach of this oath, which had been renewed at Carlisle, the younger Robert supported the Scottish revolt against King Edward in the following year. Urgent letters were sent ordering Bruce to support Edward's commander, John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey (to whom Bruce was related) in the summer of 1297; but instead of complying, Bruce continued to support the revolt against Edward. On 7 July, Bruce and his friends made terms with Edward by a treaty called the Capitulation of Irvine. The Scottish lords were not to serve beyond the sea against their will, and were pardoned for their recent violence in return for swearing allegiance to King Edward. The Bishop of Glasgow, James the Steward, and Sir Alexander Lindsay became sureties for Bruce until he delivered his infant daughter Marjorie as a hostage.

Shortly after the Battle of Stirling Bridge, Bruce again defected to the Scots; Annandale was wasted and he burned the English-held castle of Ayr. Yet, when King Edward returned to England after his victory at the Battle of Falkirk, Annandale and Carrick were excepted from the Lordships and lands which he assigned to his followers; Bruce was seen as a waverer whose allegiance could be acquired.

After William Wallace resigned as Guardian of Scotland after the Battle of Falkirk, he was succeeded by Robert Bruce and John Comyn as joint Guardians, but they could not see past their personal differences. As a nephew and supporter of King John, and as someone with a serious claim to the Scottish throne, Comyn was Bruce's enemy. In 1299, William Lamberton, Bishop of St. Andrews, was appointed as a third, neutral Guardian to try to maintain order between Bruce and Comyn. The following year, Bruce finally resigned as joint Guardian and was replaced by Sir Gilbert, 1st Lord de Umfraville (d. before 13 October 1307), Earl of Angus (in right of his mother, Maud, Countess of Angus).

In May 1301, Umfraville, Comyn and Lamberton also resigned as joint Guardians and were replaced by Sir John de Soules as sole Guardian. Soules was appointed largely because he was part of neither the Bruce nor the Comyn camps and was a patriot. He was an active Guardian and made renewed efforts to have King John returned to the Scottish throne.

In July, King Edward I launched his sixth campaign into Scotland. Though he captured Bothwell and Turnberry Castle, he did little to damage the Scots' fighting ability and, in January 1302, agreed to a nine-month truce. It was around this time that Robert the Bruce submitted to Edward, along with other nobles, even though he had been on the side of the patriots until then.

There were rumours that King John would return as to regain the Scottish throne. Soules, who had probably been appointed by John, supported his return, as did most other nobles. But it was no more than a rumor and nothing came of it.

However, though recently pledged to support King Edward, it is interesting to note that Robert the Bruce sent a letter to the monks at Melrose Abbey in March 1302 which effectively weakened his usefulness to the English king. Apologising for having called the monks' tenants to service in his army when there had been no national call-up, Bruce pledged that, henceforth, he would "never again" require the monks to serve unless it was to "the common army of the whole realm", for national defence. Bruce also married his second wife that year, Elizabeth de Burgh (d. 26 October 1327), the daughter of Richard de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster, (d. 1326). By Elizabeth he had four children: David II, John (died in childhood), Matilda (who married Thomas Isaac and died at Aberdeen 20 July 1353), and Margaret (who married William de Moravia, 5th Earl of Sutherland in 1345).

In 1303, Edward invaded again, reaching Edinburgh, before marching to Perth. Edward stayed in Perth until July, then proceeded via Dundee, Brechin and Montrose, to Aberdeen, where he arrived in August. From there, he marched through Moray to Badenoch, before re-tracing his path back south to Dunfermline. With the country now under submission, all the leading Scots, except for William Wallace, surrendered to Edward in February 1304. John Comyn, who was by now Guardian, submitted to Edward.

The laws and liberties of Scotland were to be as they had been in the days of Alexander III, and any that needed alteration would be with the advice of King Edward and the advice and assent of the Scots nobles.

On 11 June 1304, with both of them having witnessed the heroic efforts of their countrymen during King Edward's siege of Stirling Castle, Bruce and William Lamberton made a pact that bound them, each to the other, in “friendship and alliance against all men.” If one should break the secret pact, he would forfeit to the other the sum of ten thousand pounds. The pact is often interpreted as a sign of their deep patriotism despite both having already surrendered to the English.

With Scotland defenceless, Edward set about destroying her as a realm. Homage was again obtained under force from the nobles and the burghs, and a parliament was held to elect those who would meet later in the year with the English parliament to establish rules for the governance of Scotland. For all the apparent participation by Scots in the government, however, the English held the real power. The Earl of Richmond, Edward's nephew, was to head up the subordinate government of Scotland.

While all this took place, William Wallace was finally captured near Glasgow and was hanged, drawn and quartered in London on 23 August 1305.

In September 1305, Edward ordered Robert Bruce to put his castle at Kildrummy, "in the keeping of such a man as he himself will be willing to answer for," suggesting that King Edward suspected Robert was not entirely trustworthy and may have been plotting behind his back. However, an identical phrase appears in an agreement between Edward and his lieutenant and life-long friend, Aymer de Valence. Even more sign of Edward's distrust occured when on October 10, 1305, Edward revoked his gift of Gilbert de Umfraville's lands to Bruce that he had made only six months before.

Bruce and William Lamberton had previously signed a pact of mutual aid on June 11, 1304.

Robert Bruce as Earl of Carrick and now 7th Lord of Annandale, held huge estates and property in Scotland and a barony and some minor properties in England and had a strong claim to the Scottish throne. He also had a large family to protect. If he claimed the throne, he would throw the country into yet another series of wars, and if he failed, he would be sacrificing everyone and everything he knew.

The killing of Comyn in Dumfries

Bruce, like all his family, had a complete belief in his right to the throne. However his actions of supporting alternately the English and Scottish armies had led to a great deal of distrust towards Bruce among the “Community of the Realm of Scotland”. His ambition was further thwarted by the person of John Comyn. Comyn had been much more resolute in his opposition to the English; he was the most powerful noble in Scotland and was related to many more powerful nobles both within Scotland and England. He also had a powerful claim to the Scottish throne through his descent from Donald III (20th King of Scots) on his father's side and David I (24th King of Scots) on his mother's side. He was also the nephew of John 30th King of Scots.

However, in the late summer of 1305 in a secret agreement sworn, signed and sealed, John Comyn agreed to forfeit his claim to the Scottish throne in favor of Robert Bruce upon receipt of the Bruce lands in Scotland should an uprising occur led by Bruce.

According to Barbour, Comyn betrayed his agreement with Bruce to King Edward I, and when Bruce arranged a meeting for February 10th 1306 with Comyn in the Church of Greyfriars in Dumfries and accused him of treachery, they came to blows. Bruce killed Comyn in Dumfries before the high altar of the church of the monastery and fled. On being told that Comyn had survived the attack and was being treated, two of Bruce's supporters, Roger de Kirkpatrick and John Lindsay, went back into the church and finished Bruce's work.

Bruce hurried from Dumfries to Glasgow, where, kneeling before Bishop Robert Wishart he made confession of his violence and sacriledge and was granted absolution by the Bishop. The clergy throughout the land was adjured to rally to Bruce by Wishart. In spite of this, Bruce was excommunicated for this crime, which eventually led to the excommunication first of the barons who supported him and then the entire country. Realising that the 'die had been cast' and he had no alternative except to become king or a fugitive, Bruce asserted his claim to the Scottish crown.

Coronation at Scone - King Robert I

Barely seven weeks after Comyn was slain in Dumfries, Bruce was crowned King of Scots at Scone, near Perth on 25 March with all formality and solemnity. The kingly robes and vestments which Robert Wishart had hidden from the English were brought out by the Bishop and set upon King Robert. The bishops of St. Andrews, Moray and Glasgow were in attendance as well as the earls of Atholl, Menteith, Lennox, and Mar. The great banner of the kings of Scotland was planted behind his throne.

Isabella MacDuff, Countess of Buchan and wife of John Comyn, who claimed the right of her family, the Macduff Earl of Fife, to crown the Scottish king for her brother, who was a minor and in English hands, arrived the next day, too late for the coronation, so a second coronation was held and once more the crown was placed on the brow of Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, Lord of Annandale, King of the Scots.

From Scone to Bannockburn

In June 1306, he was defeated at the Battle of Methven and in August, he was surprised in Strathfillan, where he had taken refuge. His wife and daughters and other women of the party were sent to Kildrummy in January 1307 under the protection of Bruce's brother Nigel Bruce and the Earl of Atholl and most of his remaining men. Bruce, with a small following of his most faithful men, including James Douglas, Lord of Douglas, Bruce's brothers Thomas, Alexander and Edward, as well as Sir Neil Campbell and the Earl of Lennox, fled to Rathlin Island off the northern coast of Ireland.

Edward I marched north again in the spring. On his way, he granted the Scottish estates of Bruce and his adherents to his own followers and published a bill excommunicating Bruce. Bruce's queen, Elizabeth, his daughter Marjorie, and his sister Mary were captured in a sanctuary at Tain, and sent to harsh imprisonment, Princess Marjorie hung in a cage outside the wall of the Tower of London and Bruce's brother, Nigel was hanged, drawn and quartered. But, on 7 July, King Edward I died, leaving Bruce opposed by his son, Edward II.

Bruce and his followers returned to the Scottish mainland in February in two groups. One, led by Bruce and his brother Edward landed at Turnberry Castle and began a guerrilla war in southwest Scotland. The other, led by his brothers Thomas and Alexander, landed slightly further south in Loch Ryan; but they were soon captured and like his brother Nigel shared the fate of Wallace in being hanged, drawn and quartered.

In April, Bruce won a small victory over the English at the Battle of Glen Trool, before defeating Aymer de Valence, 2nd Earl of Pembroke at the Battle of Loudoun Hill. At the same time, James Douglas made his first foray for Bruce into south-western Scotland, attacking and burning his own castle in Douglasdale. Leaving his brother Edward in command in Galloway, Bruce travelled north, capturing Inverlochy and Urquhart Castles, burning Inverness Castle and Nairn to the ground, then unsuccessfully threatening Elgin.

Transferring operations to Aberdeenshire in late 1307, he threatened Banff before falling seriously ill, probably owing to the hardships of the lengthy campaign. Recovering, leaving John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan unsubdued at his rear, Bruce returned west to take Balvenie and Duffus Castles, then Tarradale Castle on the Black Isle. Looping back via the hinterlands of Inverness and a second failed attempt to take Elgin, Bruce finally achieved his landmark defeat of Comyn at the Battle of Inverurie in May 1308, then overran Buchan and defeating the English garrison at Aberdeen.

He then crossed to Argyll and defeated another body of his enemies at the Battle of Pass of Brander and took Dunstaffnage Castle, the last major stronghold of the Comyns.

Bruce reviewing troops before the Battle of Bannockburn.

In March 1309, he held his first Parliament at St. Andrews, and by August, he controlled all of Scotland north of the River Tay. The following year, the clergy of Scotland recognised Bruce as king at a general council. The support given to him by the church in spite of his excommunication was of great political importance.

The next three years saw the capture and reduction of one English-held castle or outpost after another: Linlithgow in 1310, Dumbarton in 1311, and Perth, by Bruce himself, in January 1312. Bruce also made raids into northern England and, landing at Ramsey in the Isle of Man, then laid siege to Castle Rushen in Castletown capturing it on 21 June 1313 to deny the island's strategic importance to the English. In the spring of 1314, Edward Bruce laid siege to Stirling Castle, whose governor, Philip de Mowbray, agreed to capitulate if not relieved before 24 June 1314. In March 1314, James Douglas captured Roxburgh, and Randolph captured Edinburgh Castle. In May, Bruce again raided England and subdued the Isle of Man.

The eight years of exhausting but deliberate refusal to meet the English on even ground have caused many to consider Bruce as one of the great guerrilla leaders of any age. This represented a transformation for one raised as a feudal knight. Bruce secured Scottish independence from England militarily — if not diplomatically — at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.

Freed from English threats, Scotland's armies could now invade northern England. Bruce also drove back a subsequent English expedition north of the border and launched raids into Yorkshire and Lancashire.

Ireland

Buoyed by his military successes, Bruce's forces also invaded Ireland in 1315, to free the country from English rule, and to open a second front in the continuing wars with England. The Irish even crowned Edward Bruce as High King of Ireland in 1316. Robert later went there with another army to assist his brother.

To go with the invasion, Bruce popularised an ideological vision of a "Pan-Gaelic Greater Scotia" with his lineage ruling over both Ireland and Scotland. This propaganda campaign was aided by two factors. The first was his marriage alliance from 1302 with the de Burgh family of the Earldom of Ulster in Ireland; second, Bruce himself on his mother's side of Carrick, was descended from Gaelic royalty - in Scotland. Thus, lineally and geopolitically, Bruce attempted to support his anticipated notion of a pan-Gaelic alliance between Scottish-Irish Gaelic populations, under his kingship.

This is revealed by a letter he sent to the Irish chiefs, where he calls the Scots and Irish collectively nostra nacio (our nation), stressing the common language, customs and heritage of the two peoples:

Whereas we and you and our people and your people, free since ancient times, share the same national ancestry and are urged to come together more eagerly and joyfully in friendship by a common language and by common custom, we have sent you our beloved kinsman, the bearers of this letter, to negotiate with you in our name about permanently strengthening and maintaining inviolate the special friendship between us and you, so that with God's will our nation (nostra nacio) may be able to recover her ancient liberty.

The diplomacy worked to a certain extent, at least in Ulster, where the Scots had some support. The Irish chief, Donal O'Neil, for instance, later justified his support for the Scots to Pope John XXII by saying "the Kings of Lesser Scotia all trace their blood to our Greater Scotia and retain to some degree our language and customs."

The Bruce campaign to Ireland was characterised by some initial military success. However, the Scots failed to win over the non-Ulster chiefs, or to make any other significant gains in the south of the island, where people couldn't see the difference between English and Scottish occupation. Eventually it was defeated when Edward Bruce was killed at the Battle of Faughart. The Irish Annals of the period described the defeat of the Bruces by the English as one of the greatest things ever done for the Irish nation due to the fact it brought an end to the famine and pillaging brought on the Irish by both the Scots and the English.

Diplomacy

Robert Bruce's reign also witnessed some diplomatic achievements. The Declaration of Arbroath of 1320 strengthened his position, particularly vis-à-vis the Papacy. Pope John XXII eventually lifted Bruce's excommunication. In May 1328 King Edward III of England signed the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton, which recognised Scotland as an independent kingdom, and Bruce as its king.

Death

Robert is buried in Dunfermline Abbey.

The alleged death mask of Robert Bruce, Rosslyn Chapel (1446), Scotland

Robert the Bruce died on 7 June 1329, at the Manor of Cardross, near Dumbarton He had suffered for some years from what some contemporary accounts describe as an "unclean ailment"; the traditional view is that he died of leprosy, but this is now disputed[5] with syphilis, psoriasis, motor neurone disease and a series of strokes all proposed as possible alternatives.

His body lies buried in Dunfermline Abbey, but according to a death bed decree Sir James Douglas removed and carried his heart 'against the enemies of the name of Christ' , in Moorish Granada, Spain to atone for his murder of John Comyn in the church of Greyfriars in Dumfries. Douglas carried the King’s heart in a casket of which Sir Symon of Locard (Lockhart) carried the key. The decree overrode an earlier written request, dated 13 May 1329 Cardross, that his heart be buried in the monastery at Melrose. Douglas was killed in an ambush whilst carrying out the decree. On realising his imminent death Douglas is said to have thrown the casket containing Bruce's heart ahead of him and shouted "Onward braveheart, Douglas shall follow thee or die." According to legend (Fordun Annals), the heart was later recovered by Sir William Keith and taken back to Scotland to be buried at Melrose Abbey, in Roxburghshire, following his earlier decree. In 1920 the heart was discovered by archeologists and was reburied, but the location was not marked. In 1996, a casket, thought to contain the heart, was unearthed during construction work. It was reburied in Melrose Abbey in 1998, pursuant to the dying wishes of the King.

Family and descendants

Robert Bruce had a large family in addition to his wife, Elizabeth, and his children. There were his brothers, Edward, Alexander, Thomas, and Neil, his sisters Christina, Isabel (Queen of Norway), Margaret, Matilda, and Mary, and his nephews Donald II, Earl of Mar and Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray.

In addition to his legitimate offspring, Robert Bruce had several illegitimate children by unknown mothers. His sons were Sir Robert (died 12 August 1332 at the Battle of Dupplin Moor); Walter, of Odistoun on the Clyde, who predeceased his father; and Niall, of Carrick, (died 17 October 1346 at the Battle of Neville's Cross). His daughters were Elizabeth (married Walter Oliphant of Gask); Margaret (married Robert Glen), alive as of 29 February 1364; and Christian of Carrick, who died after 1329, when she was in receipt of a pension.

Robert was succeeded by his only legitimate son, the infant David II.

Robert's only child by his first marriage, Marjorie Bruce, married Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland (1293–1326). She died on 2 March 1316, near Paisley, Renfrewshire, after being thrown from her horse while heavily pregnant, but the child survived. He was Robert II, who succeeded David II and founded the Stewart dynasty.

Bruce's descendants include all later Scottish monarchs (except Edward Balliol whose claim to be a Scottish monarch is debatable) and all British monarchs since the Union of the Crowns in 1603. A large number of families definitely are descended from him but there is some controversy about some claims.

Ancestry

64. Robert de Brus

32. Robert de Brus

65. Agnes

16. William de Brus

66. William le Gros, Earl of Albemarle & Yorkshire

33. Euphemia of Albemarle

67. Cicely, Lady of Skipton

8. Robert de Brus

17. Christina

4. Robert de Brus

72. David I of Scotland

36/62. Henry of Scotland

73. Maud of Huntingdon

18. David of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon

37/63. Ada de Warenne

9. Isobel of Huntingdon

76. Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester

38. Hugh de Kevelioc, 3rd Earl of Chester

77. Maud of Gloucester

19. Maud of Chester

39. Bertrade de Montfort of Evreux

2. Robert de Brus

80. Richard de Clare, 1st Earl of Hertford

40. Roger de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford

81. Alice de Gernon

20. Richard de Clare, 4th Earl of Hertford

41. Maud de St. Hilary

10. Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford and Gloucester

21. Amice Fitz Robert

5. Isobel of Gloucester and Hertford

44. John Marshal

22. William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke

45. Sibyl of Salisbury

11. Isabel Marshal

92. Gilbert de Clare, 1st Earl of Pembroke

46. Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke

93. Isabel de Beaumont

23. Isabel de Clare

94. Dermot MacMurrough

47. Aoife MacMurrough

95. More O'Toole

1. Robert I of Scotland

48. Fergus of Galloway

24. Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick

12 Cailean (Nicol) mac Donnchaidh

102. Alan fitzFlaad

103. Ada or Adeline

6. Níall of Carrick

26. Niall Ruadh Ó Néill

13. daughter

3. Marjorie of Carrick

56. Walter fitz Alan

28. Alan fitz Walter, 2nd High Steward of Scotland

57. Eschyna de Londoniis

14. Walter Steward of Dundonald

29. Alesta of Morggán

7. Margaret Stewart

60. Gille Brigte, Earl of Angus

30. Gille Críst, Earl of Angus

15. Bethóc of Angus

36/62. Henry of Scotland

31. Marjorie of Huntingdon

72/126. David I of Scotland

37/63. Ada de Warenne

73/127. Maud of Huntingdon

Monuments and commemoration

Statues

Statue of Robert the Bruce.

File:Robert The Bruce.jpg

Robert The Bruce at the entrance to Edinburgh Castle

The tomb of Robert I in Dunfermline Abbey was marked by the addition of large carved stone letters spelling out "King Robert the Bruce" around the perimeter of the bell tower. In 1974 the Bruce Memorial Window was installed in the north transept, commemorating the 700th anniversary the year of his birth. It depicts stained glass images of the Bruce flanked by his chief men, Christ, and saints associated with Scotland.

A 1929 statue of Robert the Bruce is set in the wall of Edinburgh Castle at the entrance, along with one of William Wallace.

A statue of the Bruces stands outside Stirling Castle.

Banknotes

From 1981 to 1989, Robert the Bruce was portrayed on £1 notes issued by the Clydesdale Bank, one of the three Scottish banks with right to issue banknotes. He was shown on the obverse crowned in battle dress, surrounded by thistles, and on the reverse in full battle armour in a scene from the Battle of Bannockburn. When the Clydesdale Bank discontinued £1 banknotes, Robert The Bruce's portrait was moved onto the bank's £20 banknote in 1990 and it has remained there to date.

Aircraft

The airline British Caledonian, named a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 (G-BHDI) after Robert the Bruce.

Legends

According to legend, at some point while he was on the run during the winter of 1305-06, Bruce hid himself in a cave on Rathlin Island off the north coast of Ireland, where he observed a spider spinning a web, trying to make a connection from one area of the cave's roof to another. Each time the spider failed, it simply started all over again until it succeeded. Inspired by this, Bruce returned to inflict a series of defeats on the English, thus winning him more supporters and eventual victory. The story serves to explain the maxim: "if at first you don't succeed, try try again." Other versions have Bruce in a small house watching the spider try to make its connection between two roof beams [6]; or, defeated for the seventh time by the English, watching the spider make its attempt seven times, succeeding on the eighth try.

But this legend appears for the first time in only a much later account, "Tales of a Grandfather" by Sir Walter Scott, and may have originally been told about his companion-in-arms Sir James Douglas (the "Black Douglas"). The entire account may in fact be a version of a literary trope used in royal biographical writing. A similar story is told, for example, in Jewish sources about King David, and in Persian folklore about the Mongolian warlord Tamerlane and an ant.

The Bruce in fiction

• The revolt of Robert the Bruce is the topic of Mollie Hunter's 1998 book The King's Swift Rider, written from the point of view of a bold young Scot and future monk who joins the rebellion as a noncombatant.
• In the 1995 film Braveheart, Robert the Bruce is portrayed by Scottish actor Angus Macfadyen. The film incorrectly showed him taking the field at Falkirk as part of the English army, he never betrayed William Wallace (despite having changed sides). Wallace is also alleged to have been a complete supporter of Robert the Bruce, but Wallace was a supporter of the Balliol claim to the throne which Bruce consistently opposed.
• Scottish author Nigel Tranter wrote a trilogy, considered highly accurate, based on the life of King Robert: Robert the Bruce: The Steps to the Empty Throne; Robert the Bruce: The Path of the Hero King; and Robert the Bruce: The Price of the King's Peace. This has also been published in one volume as The Bruce Trilogy.
• Chronicles of the reign of Robert the Bruce (or Robert de Brus) are published in a series titled Rebel King, Hammer of the Scots (2002); Rebel King, The Har'ships (2004); and Rebel King, Bannok Burn (2006). Two more volumes are planned. Historical fiction, but very close to Scottish history, this most comprehensive series on Robert's reign starts in January 1306 and will carry through Robert's death in 1329.
• A romanticised version of the life of Robert the Bruce is presented in "The Days of Bruce: A Story from Scottish History," by Grace Aguilar, with a preface dated May, 1852.

References

• Barrow, G.W.S., Robert Bruce & the Community of the Realm of Scotland
• Bartlett, Robert, The Making of Europe, Conquest, Colonization and Cultural Change: 950-1350
• Bingham, Charlotte. Robert the Bruce (1998)
• Brown, Christian, Robert the Bruce. A Life Chronicled
• Dunbar, Bt., Sir Archibald H., Scottish Kings 1005-1625, Edinburgh, 1899, pps: 126 -141, with copious original source materiéls.
• Loudoun, Darren. Scotlands Brave 2007.
• Macnamee, C., "The Wars of the Bruces"
• Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
• Ó Néill, Domhnall, Remonstrance of the Irish Chiefs to Pope John XXII, (1317) at the CELT archive.
• Nicholson, R., Scotland in the Later Middle Ages.
• Geoffrey the Baker's: Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke, ed. Edward Maunde Thompson (Oxford, 1889)Adam Aird 2K8 mon the Airds