The Wallace catalogs the sheer brutality of war. We are regaled with such detailed accounts of the sacking of towns and the burning down of buildings full of screaming inhabitants that the smells and sounds, as well as the terrible sights, of war are graphically conveyed in language which seems designed not only to express Wallace's rage and Hary's antipathy but also to incite hatred of the English in his readers.
William Wallace of Elderslie, younger son of a country knight, came to fame through his active opposition to the aggressive imperialism of England's King Edward I. This work cuts through the myths still perpetuated today to produce a biography of Wallace driven by contemporary medieval records rather than Victorian legends.
Through his personality, ingenuity and ability, he initiated a resistance movement which ultimately secured the nation's freedom and independence. Yet, Wallace was reviled, opposed and eventually betrayed by the nobility in his own day to re-surface in the epic poetry of the fifteenth century as a champion and liberator. Eventually, his legend overtook the historical reality, a process which has continued for centuries as manifested in modern media and film. A team of leading historians and critics from both Scotland and England investigate what is known of the medieval warrior's career from contemporary sources, most of which, unusually for a national hero, were created by his enemies. His reputation, from the time of his horrendous execution to the present, is examined to ascertain what the figure of Wallace meant to different generations of Scots. Too dangerous perhaps for his own era, he became the supreme Scottish hero of all time; the archetypal Scot who would teach kings and nobles where their duty lay, and who would live free or freely die for the liberty of his nation.
The film Braveheart was a great inspiration to people all over the world. This is the true story of Braveheart, William Wallace, Scotland's great liberator. Ross chronicles his effect on the landscape of Scotland as we know it today. This book will hold the attention of the casual reader and entice the more knowledgeable historian.
