BRAVEHEART....FACT AND FICTION PAGE

Mel Gibson as William

Wallace in "Braveheart". Sir William Wallace

The Man, The Legend, The Movie, The Facts

The movie "Braveheart was, let's face it, one of the all time greatest movies ever made. What I want to do is explore into history and fiction with a few examples of how Hollywood takes liberities with history. I am by no means a critic, just a history buff.

Pro Libertate--For Freedom. The cry and the word that is

synonymous with the name Sir William Wallace . Who was this man, really, and how accuratly was he portrayed?

Don't get me wrong, the passion was there, as was some of the truth. It is bound to be a classic. I know I drive Mr Tt crazy sometimes watching it, over and over and over. But, sigh, there are myths in it and i would like to , briefly, dispell the myths. So lets hit the road to history vs Hollywood.

Braveheart opens with the telling of how Scotland was without a king. Well this much is true, but let me tell you, briefly, why.

Alexander, King to Scotland and ally of Edward I (Longshanks) married Margaret.

She had 2 sons and a daughter, Alexander, David and Margaret. All died before King Alexander. So, as any good king without an heir would do, he remarried.

I should tell you here that his daughter married the very young king of Norway. By young, I mean he was about 13 years of age when their daughter was born.

Yolande, daughter of Count Dreux, married King Alexander. One night, after a routine council meeting, Alexander rode off to see his new bride. Of course, he had had too much wine and a strong wind blew. Well, I guess he just could not stay on his horse and , subsequently, fell down a cliff.

On the announcement of his death, the new Queen said she was pregnant. Time told the truth of the claim and all Scotland had was the 3 yr.old granddaughter of King Alexander, who was living with her 16 yr old father in Norway. Hmmmmmm This is the part where the Guardians of Scotland ride in to claim the throne.

Both the families Bruce and Balliol claimed right to the throne thru decension from the line of David I (1124-1153). Civil war was eminent.

In comes King Edward I of England, never missing a chance to exploit a country in hardship.

Ok, so now we have John Balliol as king of Scotland, Longshanks breathing down his neck to pay homeage,( which he did by the way) and imminent war with France, ruled by King Philip IV. This is where history starts getting fun.

It seems as though King John has had about all he can take from King Edward I and forges a treaty with King Philip IV. Enraged, Longshanks, who has just been waiting for a reason to pick a fight with Scotland, advances on Edinburgh castle, took that and the scepter, crown, sword, ring, and royal insignia from John as he surrendered on July 11, 1296, and headed north for further conquests, sending John Balliol to London to be a "guest" there in the tower untill 1299.

Longshanks left Scotland before winter hit, leaving matters to his trusted leaders. As the winter hit, most of the English troops went south or home. Things in Scotland seemed quiet and the King of England thought he had done well. Boy, was he about to get the surprise of his life!!

I really do not believe Longshanks bargained on Wallace and all who were of like mind. What was to be a cake walk turned into a bloody and costly war!

On the next page, I will compare, chronilogically by the movie, fictional vs. factual events.

At this time, I would like to thank the author of the page William WallaceThe Truth Behind The Man for being one of the most complete and interesting sites for the historical accounts of this time in Scotland's history. Go visit for more, and I mean more, information on all the main characters.

Continue by clicking on Stephen, the mad Irishman!!!

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