Robert the Bruce

In 1274, Robert Bruce was born into a Scottish aristocratic family. His patrilineal ancestors had Scottish-Norman (French-speaking descendants of the Vikings). He followed William the French "Conqueror" to Britain from Normandy. In 1292, after failing to compete with the Bariol family for the Scottish throne, Robert Bruce became angry and swore allegiance to King Edward I of England, hoping to use the latter to regain the throne. However, after Edward I sent troops to expel Barrio, he did not hand over the throne to Robert. Instead, he declared that he had jurisdiction over the Scottish territory and even once moved the Scone Stone, a symbol of Scottish kingship, to London.

In 1305, it was speculated that John Mantis, a "double agent" hired by Robert, discovered Wallace's hiding place and then assisted the English army in arresting him at Fort Grasse. Later, Edward I granted Robert a large amount of land and made Mantis governor of Dembadon. On August 3, Wallace was beheaded in Westminster Square, London, and his body was dismembered into four pieces and sent to Scotland and England to warn people not to resist.

After Wallace's death, Robert deservedly became the "co-lord" of Scotland. On March 25, 1306, he sat on the Scone Rock and crowned himself King of Scotland, as Robert I. Edward I quickly sent troops to suppress it, and Robert suffered repeated defeats, so he had to organize a large number of guerrillas, making it difficult for the English to stabilize their rule.

The Battle of Bannockburn was the decisive battle of the Scottish War of Independence. For more than 10 years after that, England was no longer able to make an expedition to Scotland. In November 1314, Robert convened a parliament at Kenneth Cambs Abbey near Stirling and passed a bill requiring landowners whose positions were not yet clear to express their loyalty to themselves or England. Almost everyone expressed loyalty to him, marking the establishment of Robert's rule in Scotland. In 1328, Edward III, the successor of Edward II, signed the Treaty of Northampton with Robert, formally recognizing the independent sovereignty of the Kingdom of Scotland.

In 1329, Robert died of illness and was respectfully called a national hero by the Scots.