Sons of Scotland, I am William Wallace…

I love this part in Braveheart when William Wallace(played by Mel Gibson) shows up at the battle lines of Sterling Bridge and announce who he is. One would imagine that many who would fight in that battle had maybe never met him. Many of the combatants had likely answered the call to fight without ever having met him. “Sons of Scotland, I am William Wallace.”

Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you’ll live — at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom. ~ William Wallace, Braveheart(Battle of Sterling Bridge)

September 11, 1297. At the Battle of Sterling Bridge, Wallace of Scotland met the English on the battlefield. He was vastly outnumbered. As the English crossed a bridge so narrow that only two horses(width) could cross it at a time, Wallace cut the English army off with only half of the English army having crossed. For all intents and purposes, he cut the English army in two. (The bridge is the thumbnail photo for this article.) By the time the English realized they had walked into the trap, the trap itself had already been sprung. Wallace would wreck havoc on his occupiers that day.

Wallace sent spear men to occupy the bridge behind the first wave of the English. He thus cut off retreat for the English who had already crossed. He also cut off reinforcements from crossing. In one of the most stunning battlefield defeats in military history, the English were routed. It was tactical masterpiece, an exemplar of how smaller forces can move more quickly and outflank an enemy.

History does not remember fondly those who surrender their freedom nor does it remember fondly those who take it from them. But history does hold a special place in its heart for those who, despite the odds, stand and defend her.

Michael Brown in the Smithsonian writes:

Wallace is remembered as “the disinterested patriotic hero whose only concern was the liberty and protection of his fellow Scots.” Comparatively, “Bruce is a successful politician. He achieves more, but in some ways his hands are dirtier.”

Wallace is eventually captured by King Edward I. He dies a grisly death. I will spare you the details, but you can read them here. In life, he was a leader of free men. In death, he became a pillar of the freedom movement which would span millennia.

And I want all of you to read this very closely….

Men don’t follow titles, they follow courage. ~ William Wallace

Our students need to study interesting people who lived life with spice and flavor and added depth to western civilization. They need to study people who valued freedom and sought to expand its reach.

William Wallace is a great place to start.