On June 24th 1314, The Battle of Bannockburn entered it's second day.
The first day had been a success for the Bruces army, the defensive ditches had broken up an English cavalry charge, while two of Edward's experienced commanders, Sir Henry Beaumont and Sir Robert Clifford, attempted to outflank the Scots, the Scots commanders had envisaged this and Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray had lay in wait, hidden in the woods ready to counter the English. This is where the schiltrons came into play, this time they were used in an offensive maneuver, not like the Battle of Falkirk where the Welsh bowmen picked them off from a distance as they stood waiting for the English, also the English commanders had left their archers behind to protect Edward, and thirdly and most crucially Cliffords troops may have been skilled, even brave fighters but common sense would have been to withdraw and rejoin the main body of troops the bold English knight thought the Scots were there for the taking, a grave mistake
Bruce's army spent weeks , if not months training the schiltrons to stay together fight as one, the English general ordered an attack as the Scots moved forward, the schiltrons adapted, as one soldier fell another moved forward to take their place, these schiltrons also differed from 1298 in that they were more fluid, as the English tried to move to their sides the Scots formed a more circular formation, they fought off waves of English attacks who came upon what was a wall of spears, but try as they might they couldn't break into the enemy ranks. Eventually, after an hour or so of struggle, the exhausted riders began to falter.
Already looking defeated, the final nail in the coffin of the English was the appearance of more Scots joined the battle, under the command of The Good Sir James Douglas, Bruce's most loyal lieutenant, The English tried to regroup as Moray urged his men on and the Douglas joined the fray. This wasn't meant to be, the highly trained English horsemen were never meant to lose against foot soldiers, they had thought they would merely ride over the Scots and take the prize of Stirling Castle, it was not to be, as the sun set on the first day, the English made camp for the night in the Carse of Balquhidderock, but it would be an uneasy night for the English, rattled at the tenacity of King Robert the Bruce's army and fearing a night attack.
At dawn the Scots ate their breakfast and advanced out of the wood to face the enemy
As the Scot’s knelt in prayer, in full sight of the English across the burn their King Edward II is reputed to have said: “Yon folk are kneeling to ask mercy.” Sir Ingram de Umfraville, a Balliol supporter fighting for Edward, is said to have replied: “They ask for mercy, but not from you. They ask God for mercy for their sins. I’ll tell you something for a fact, that yon men will win all or die. None will flee for fear of death.” “So be it”, retorted Edward.
Bruce himself is said to have made a speech invoking the power of St Andrew, John the Baptist and Thomas Beckett. Then, according to the chronicler Walter Bower: “At these words, the hammered horns resounded, and the standards of war were spread out in the golden dawn.”
A duel between the archers followed, but instead of standing firm and defensive like that fateful day near Falkirk, Edward Bruce’s schiltrom advanced on the English vanguard, felling the Earl of Gloucester and Sir Robert Clifford, while Randolph’s schiltrom closed up on their left. The Scots had learnt from Falkirk, a moving force was harder to hit by the archers if it was moving towards them.
Edward ordered a major cavalry assault, the full force of his horseback men came to bare down towards the Scots, and rode right into hidden spiked pits prepared over the weeks before as Bruce had awaited this day. Knight after knight disappeared, swallowed up by the earth, those who avoided the spiked pits and caltrops now smashed into the lowered schiltron pikes. Weeks of preparation reaped the rewards.
The English knights now found themselves hemmed in between the Scots schiltrons and the mass of their own army they could bring few of their archers into play for fear of bringing their arrows down on their own men, some broke out on the Scots flank and rained arrows into the Scots ranks, but Bruce had left his own cavalry in reserve and led by Sir Robert Keith the archers were easily dispersed. With the archers presence annulled hand to hand fighting broke out amongst the infantry of both sides, Bruce now played an ace and sent his own schiltrom into play, made up of the Gaelic ferocious warriors of the Highlands and Islands, a cry arose as the English were driven back into the burn.
The battle’s momentum was for the English over.
A reluctant Edward II was escorted away. As his royal standard departed, panic set in. The Scots schiltrons hacked their way into the disintegrating English army. Those that fled the field met their own men trying to make their way towards the battle, the arena Bruce had chosen worked well, too small for Edward to unleash his vast army at once, if you think back to Stirling Brig, where Longshanks army should do nothing as they were caught by the narrow passing, this was a similar effect.
The battle was over. English casualties were heavy, thousands of infantry, at least 100 knights and Earl of Gloucester with six barons lay dead on the field.
This was not the end of The First War of Independence and it was a major defeat for Edward II and he was never again to set foot in Scotland, he like his father before him must have cursed us Scots!!
It would be six more year before Scotland would issue The Declaration of Arbroath, a landmark event and another 6 year before the Treaty of Edinburgh–Northampton was a peace treaty signed in 1328, bringing to an end the first wars of Scottish Independence.
