William Wallace's Loyalty During The Scottish Civil War

Murderer; Traitor; Perpetrator of Atrocities; These were all things that England associated Scotland’s own William Wallace with, so why is he considered a hero? But to really delve into the specifics of why Wallace is classified as a hero, we have to look at his history as a guideline for the reasons he did these things, and how he was qualified enough to be the one to do them. Wallace’s superintendency of his people didn’t just happen, it was invented out of necessity. Wallace presents several tendencies throughout the Scottish Civil War, most of which lead his underdog team to a few victories along the way. But above all, William Wallace shows Leadership, Cunning, and Loyalty during the Scottish Civil War, and that makes him a successful

Wallace has humble beginnings in a small Scottish town, but still holds a great Loyalty to his country (Axelrod and Phillips). As Axelrod and Phillips mentions, "In 1296, Edward I of England, attempting to impose direct rule over Scotland, deposited John de Balliol, the Scottish King, and had him imprisoned. Scottish nationalists had sporadic encounters with Edward's army when, in May 1297, William Wallace, a small landowner from Renfrew, led a band of 30 rebels in an attack on Lanark. The town was burned, the English Sheriff murdered, and Wallace was on his way to becoming one of Scotland's greatest heroes." Wallace’s humble beginnings can even be referenced as a focal point for his lasting loyalty throughout his life, and Wallace has shown great Loyalty to those close to him during the war as well. Wallace showed great Loyalty to his friends at the battle of Falkirk (“William Wallace, Sir”). After another failure of Surrey to put down the Scottish Rebellion and kill William Wallace, King Edward decided it was best to get the job done himself, and saw a chance to take down Wallace as he marched to Falkirk (“William Wallace, Sir”). His army was vastly superior to the Scots militia, and managed to kill dozens of Scottish soldiers that day, including Wallace's friend and advisor Sir John de Graham (“William Wallace, Sir”). Wallace was left grieving, and even Blind

Wallace was the only general that could outplay the entirety of the English armies forced matched ten to one (“William Wallace, Sir”). After Wallace brought forward a formidable Scottish resistance army in the Rising of 1297, King Edward was outraged (“William Wallace, Sir”). Edward then decided to flush out the Scottish Army with the brute strength of numbers (“William Wallace, Sir”). The armies met at the River Forth, and Wallace used his favorable position and great leadership of his army to out wait the English army (“William Wallace, Sir”). It was a slaughter of the English army, and Wallace moved on to take over all of the fortresses and castles in Scotland while England was on the run (“William Wallace, Sir”). Wallace shows he can lead his army effectively despite their challenges.Even when Wallace was fighting England, he wasn't afraid to take up the offensive on England during the war. He professionally led his army to raid England all the way up to Northumberland, which got him the title of "guardian of the realm" in March 1298 (“William Wallace, Sir”). He the leader of all of Scotland (“William Wallace, Sir”). Wallace tarnished the integrity of the English army with his overbearing victories."So devastating was Wallace's work that Edward made a truce in his war with France so as to be free to face the threat from