Today in Military History: September 11, 1297:Battle of Stirling Bridge: "We Are Ready to Meet Them Beard to Beard" as Scots Defeat English

 by Siggurdsson

This battle in the First Scottish War of Independence with England was the first major victory the Scots achieved under the command of the legendary William Wallace. [Anyone who has seen the movie Braveheart should be forewarned: this post will lay out the real, honest-to-goodness events of the battle, which was bloodily portrayed in Mel Gibson's epic, a-historical film. The beautiful, green fields used in the movie looked like a golf course, which was where it was filmed; it didn't even show a bridge!]

Background to the Battle
For the previous decade, Scotland had experienced a dynastic crisis, which ended with a Scottish puppet of the king of England being crowned. The English monarch, Edward I aka Longshanks  continued to pursue conquest of Scotland. After handpicking the new Scottish king, John Balliol in 1292, Edward did everything in his power to keep the Scots under his thumb. Because of his lack of real authority, King John acquired the nickname "Toom Tabard" (meaning "empty coat").
King John finally grew tired of being Longshanks' figurehead, and refused to provide the English tyrant with troops for another invasion of France. Edward invaded Scotland in 1296, captured the town of Berwick – massacring the citizens to force surrender of the castle garrison – then defeated the Scots at Dunbar in April of 1296. Three months later, King John officially abdicated his throne near the town of Montrose. Before a gathering of Scottish nobles, Edward tore the coat-of-arms of Scotland from John's surcoat, truly making him an "empty coat."

William Wallace statue by William Grant Stevenson, erected in 1888
On display at Aberdeen, Scotland

Without a monarch of their own, and having no desire to be ruled by the ruthless Longshanks, individual Scottish leaders began agitating to remove the English yoke from their country. Among those leaders were Andrew of Moray and William Wallace. Both men led separate uprisings, which quickly expanded throughout the country. Nearly every major city or castle occupied by the English surrendered to the Scots. Soon, the uprising came to the attention of King Edward, who was involved in fighting with France in Flanders. He directed his representatives in Scotland to raise troops and put down the rebellious locals.
Edward had appointed John de Warenne, the 6th Earl of Surrey to the post of "warden of the kingdom and land of Scotland." Surrey, at age 65, had experience fighting the Welsh, and had participated in the Second Barons' War in the 1260s. However, he claimed the Scottish climate was incompatible with his health, and returned to England. In the spring of 1297, Longshanks ordered Surrey to return north and deal with the troublesome natives.
English Army

Coat of arms of John de Warrene, 6th Earl of Surrey

Using the resources of Sir Hugh de Cressingham, who was the English tax collector in Scotland, the two men raised about 10,000 soldiers, consisting of archers and spearmen, mostly Welsh with some Englishmen. The reason that the army was mostly Welsh was because a severe famine had hit Wales. Given the choice between starving or fighting for Longshanks and receiving rations was apparently an easy one for most able-bodied Welshmen. In addition, some 2000 knights and mounted men-at-arms were part of the English force. Prior to moving into Scotland, some troops left and returned home, cutting the English army's strength to about 7000.
The English army then moved across the border heading for Dundee, one of the few English-occupied castles not taken by the Scots. Surrey and Cressingham received intelligence that the Scots under Wallace and Moray were lurking near Stirling Castle, on the eastern side of the River Forth. The only way to reach the rebels was a small wooden bridge near a bend in the river. For most of its length, the River Forth is deep and unfordable; there were also treacherous marshes and bogs near Stirling.
Scottish Army

Scottish spearmen, 13th century
Image courtesy of http://www.fanaticus.org/DBA/armies/IV16.html

The Scottish army was a smaller force of about 5-6000 men on some high ground northeast of the bridge. Most of these men were armed with 12-15' long spears and probably axes as secondary weapons. They wore leather armor – if any at all – and metal helmets with small shields called targes. Only about 300 Scots were knights or mounted men-at-arms.
Preliminary Moves
The wooden bridge over the stream was only wide enough to allow two or three mounted men to cross side-by-side. Sir Richard Lundie, a Scottish knight who had joined the English side, offered to show them a ford about a half-mile upstream where at least 60 men could cross abreast, allowing the English to outflank the Scots. However, Cressingham said that too many well-paid men would be wasted in such an effort, and recommended against the move to save money.
The English and Welsh troops took somewhat longer than usual to sort themselves out on the morning of September 11. [This is partly because earlier in the day, the English army had begun crossing the bridge, but was recalled to the west side of the river because…the earl of Surrey had overslept.] Trying to buy some more time, Surrey sent two Dominican friars across the river with a message: the Scots should lay down their arms and make peace. Surrey had participated in the battle of Dunbar the previous year. He regarded all the Scottish rebels as undisciplined rabble, and held them all in deep contempt. In a reply surely calculated to goad the English, Wallace said to the friars, "Return to thy friends and tell them we come here with no peaceful intent, but ready for battle, determined to avenge our wrongs and to set our country free. Let thy masters come and attack us; we are ready to meet them beard to beard."
The Battle of Stirling Bridge
Angered by Wallace's insolent reply, Surrey and Cressingham ordered the English and Welsh footmen to begin crossing the bridge. A small detachment of horsemen and spearmen crossed first, to establish a beachhead of sorts. Owing to the very narrow bridge, this exercise lasted several hours into the early afternoon. [In years past, the Scots would have begun to attack as soon as they saw any movement by the English. However, it is a tribute to the discipline that Wallace and Moray exercised over their men that the Scots held their action for a time.] When about 4-5000 English and Welsh infantrymen and about 100-200 knights and men-at-arms had crossed the bridge, Wallace judged that this was a force the Scots could comfortably handle. A single horn sounded, and the attack commenced. One chronicle claims that some of the supports to the bridge were tampered with the previous night, causing part of the structure to collapse at about the same time. In addition, a contingent of Scottish spearmen stealthily advanced along the riverbank. When they reached the bridgehead, they brushed aside the disorganized English/Welsh infantry and sealed off access to the bridge. As a result, the English advance force was trapped on the Scottish side of the river.

Battle of Stirling Bridge, artist unknown
Image courtesy of http://www.thesonsofscotland.co.uk/drossstirling.htm

The Scots, arrayed in one or possibly two schiltrons, swept down from the high ground, with a discipline that surprised their enemy. The formations were about 10 ranks deep, bristling with 12-15 foot-long spears, truly a fearsome sight to man and horse. An initial charge by the English heavy cavalry was met by the solid ranks of the Scots, with most of the English unhorsed and hacked to death in short order. The Scots were nursing a furious anger against the English tyrants, and badly wanted to pay back every coin squeezed out of Scotland over the past few years. The Scots then advanced and engaged the trapped English and Welsh infantrymen, who fought back desperately, realizing they were cut off from any aid. With the bridge partially collapsed and no immediate escape for their enemy, the Scots pushed the English and Welsh troops back into the nearby bend of the Forth, and slowly ground down the disordered foe.
Only one English knight, Sir Marmaduke Tweng of Yorkshire [Yes, that was his name; really; I am *not* making this up…] managed to cut his way through the surrounding Scottish pikemen, swim his horse across the Forth and escape back to the main English army. He is the only English knight recorded to have survived the fight on the east side of Stirling Bridge. Many of the Welsh infantry simply discarded their weapons and armor and attempted to swim the river Forth. Most of these men drowned, their bodies swept away by the swift current of the river.
Helpless to assist the trapped men, the Earl of Surrey watched the battle with growing horror. Despite still having a strong force, Surrey's confidence was destroyed. After seeing the annihilation of nearly half of his army, he ordered the remainder of Stirling Bridge burned. His army then began a disordered retreat back to England. The ford that Surrey and Cressingham scorned to use allowed the victorious Scots to cross the Forth and pursue the demoralized English army.
Aftermath
After witnessing Wallace's victory, the Earl of Lennox and James Stewart, the High Steward of Scotland – Scotsmen who had been supporting the English – withdrew with their men and joined the Scottish ranks. As Surrey pulled back, Stewart successfully attacked the English supply train, adding to the English casualty lists and hastening their retreat. By departing the area, Surrey abandoned the English garrison at Stirling Castle, which eventually surrendered to the Scots.
Total English casualties were estimated at 5000 infantry and 100 knights; Scottish loss are unrecorded but could be termed light, possibly a few hundred. The only major casualty for the Scots was Andrew de Moray (or Murray), Wallace's second-in-command. One chronicler states Moray was severely wounding during the battle and died two months later from his infected wounds. However, an inquisition into the affairs of his uncle, Sir William Moray of Bothwell, held at Berwick in late November 1300, records Andrew was "slain at Stirling against the king."
Among the English dead on the east side of the River Forth was Cressingham, who has been characterized by some chroniclers as "plump." His body was flayed – some chronicles state that the English nobleman was still alive – and a number of pieces of his skin were claimed as tokens of battle. According to the Lanercost Chronicle, William Wallace asked that "a broad strip of [Cressingham's skin be]…taken from the head to the heel" so that he could make a baldrick from which to hang his sword.
Footnote #1: As a result of his victory, William Wallace was knighted – possibly by Robert the Bruce – and awarded the title "Guardian of the realm of Scotland."  However, soon after the battle he launched a raid into northern England, seeking to demonstrate to the English that Scotland was fully capable of offensive actions of its own. This raid attracted the attention of Longshanks, who was still involved in continental fighting with France in Flanders. The following year, Edward led another army into Scotland, bent on avenging the loss at Stirling Bridge.

"Old" Stirling Bridge, built in late 1400s or early 1500s to replace the original bridge

Footnote #2: Today, about a half mile downstream from the original bridge site, there stands a stone edifice now referred to as "Old" Stirling Bridge. The vast majority of the battlefield site has been developed for housing, along with a railroad and highways, and would not be recognized by Wallace. The only somewhat untouched portion of the battlefield is the loop in the river -- where the final phase of the battle occurred – which is now the site of rugby fields.

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