Andrew de Moray

Andrew Moray
Andrew Moray in mail. His surcoat displays the Arms of the Morays of Petty.
Died	c. September 1297 in or in the vicinity of Stirling
Cause of death	due to wounds received in Battle of Stirling Bridge
Residence	Avoch and Bothwell castles
Nationality	Scots
Known for	jointly leading the Scots to victory with William Wallace at the Battle of Stirling Bridge
Children	Andrew, born 1298, later lord of Petty and Bothwell, and Guardian of Scotland. d.1338.
Parents	Father: Sir Andrew Moray of Petty, d.1300; Mother: not known.
Relatives	Uncle: Sir William Moray of Bothwell, d.1300; Uncle: David Moray, bishop of Moray, d.1326.

Andrew Moray (La: Andreas de Moravia), (died c. September 1297), also known as Andrew de Moray, Andrew of Moray, or Andrew Murray, was a military leader during the Anglo-Scottish conflict of the late 1290s, known as the Scottish Wars of Independence. He was responsible for leading the rising in northern Scotland in the summer of 1297 against the rule of King Edward I of England, successfully regaining control of this area for Scotland's king, King John. In the late summer. he merged his forces with those of William Wallace and jointly led the combined army to victory at the Battle of Stirling Bridge, where he was mortally wounded.

Origins of the Morays of Petty

Andrew Moray was born into the Morays of Petty late in the second half of the thirteenth century.^[1] The exact date and place of his birth is unknown as is whether he had any siblings. The Morays of Petty were a wealthy and politically-influential baronial family whose powerbase was in the province of Moray in north-eastern Scotland. They traced their origins in the area to Freskin, a man believed to have Flemish origins. He was granted lands in Duffus in the Laich of Moray during the twelfth-century reign of King David I of Scotland.^[2] Freskin subsequently built a motte-and-bailey castle at Duffus on the northern shore of Loch Spynie (this sea-loch has subsequently been significantly reduced in size and almost erased from the landscape when it was successfully drained to release many hundreds of acres of land for farming during the agricultural improvements of the 1700s and 1800s).

The province of Moray long struggled against subsumption within the Scottish king's realm. Several royal armies were defeated in there, including one under the command of King Dub who was killed when he was defeated at Forres in 967. Resistance in Moray was problematic for the mac Malcolm kings of Scots (whose dynasty sprung from King Malcolm III, who reigned from 1058 to 1093) as it was the heartland of the rival royal line, whose last king had been the stepson of MacBeth, Lulach.

Refusal to accept Scottish royal rule lingered into the 12th-century amogst elemets of Moravian society. In 1130 a rebellion was led by Mormaer Óengus of Moray, a descendant of Lulach, whose army was defeated at Stracathro. Moray was now taken under direct royal control; its independence would not be restored until 1312 when King Robert I granted the lands and title of earl of Moray to his nephew, Thomas Randolph. King David's response to this entrenched refusal to accept his authority was the ‘planting’ of Flemish and other Anglo-Norman loyalists in the area. In the aftermath of Óengus' rising, many rebels were forced from their lands. Consequently, the subsequent settlers occupied the same military, political and administrative rôle as the Old English along the Gaelic frontiers of Ireland and like the Old English in Ireland, time gradually wore away any cultural and linguistic difference between them and the remaining native people.

Duffus Castle. The stone-built bailey is a 14th-century addition to the site of Freskin's castle.

Although King David and his successors worked hard to impose their authority on Moray, it long remained restless. King Malcolm IV, David's grandson and successor, also resorted to uprooting the local populace and expelling them from their homes. In 1163, according to the Chronicle of Holyrood, “King Malcolm transferred men of Moray”.^[3] It was not until 1229, when William Comyn of Buchan, at the head of a royal army finally, and brutally, pacified the province for King Alexander II. He was subsequently rewarded by a grateful king with the lordship of Badenoch.

The final, and most unmerciful, action of mac Malcolm kings' long campaign against the Celtic royal dynasty was perpetrated against the infant in whom the its claim to the Scottish Crown resided: the three-year-old girl was publicly murdered by the king's men, who, after the reading of a proclamation, smashed her head against the market-cross in the burgh of Forfar. Only now did the province of Moray finally accept Scottish royal rule.

The Morays' place in Scottish society

Elgin Cathedral, from the west. Construction of it was begun under the supervision of Bishop Andrew Moray.

At the outbreak of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the late thirteenth century (popularly known as the Scottish Wars of Independence) the Moray family was well-established in northern and southern Scotland. Sir Andrew Moray, the head of the Petty branch of the family, held extensive lands in the province of Moray, including the lordship of Petty,^[4] which was controlled from Hallhill castle on the southern bank of the Moray Firth, the lordship of Avoch in the Black Isle,^[4] which was controlled from Avoch Castle situated to the east of Inverness and overlooked the Moray Firth, and the lordship of Boharm,^[4] which was controlled from Gauldwell castle. Amongst Sir Andrew's estates at Petty were lands at Alturile, Brachlie and Croy, and at Boharm were lands at Arndilly and Botriphnie.^[5] Andrew Moray the younger was heir to these lands and castles.^[6]

Extensive landed wealth of this nature was accompanied by a significant degree of political influence. Sir Andrew had acted as the king's chief law-officer in northern Scotland (the Justiciar) and may have been co-opted to the guardianship following in the aftermath of the premature death of King Alexander III.^[7] Sir Andrew's personal connexions went to the top of most powerful family in Scottish society. In the 1280s he married his second wife - Andrew's stepmother - Euphemia Comyn,^[8] the sister of John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, nephew of King John Balliol and one of the most politically influential men in Scotland. The Morays of Petty also possessed connexions to the Douglases of Clydesdale.^[9]

The influence of the Moray family was not confined to north-eastern Scotland. Sir William Moray of Bothwell, Sir Andrew's elder brother, held extensive lands in Lanarkshire and at Lilleford in Lincolnshire.^[10] Sir William, who was known as le riche due to his extensive personal wealth, was constructing Bothwell Castle overlooking the River Clyde. Its design was influenced by the very latest trends in castle construction found in continental Europe and was clearly intended as an unequivocal statement of his personal power and influence. Moray the younger was also recognised heir to his uncle's wealth.^[6]

The Morays of Petty also possessed influence in the Scottish mediaeval church. A forebear of Andrew Moray, also named Andrew, had been bishop of Moray early in the thirteenth century and was responsible for the transfer of the seat of the bishopric to Elgin in 1224 and the establishment of the town’s fine cathedral. The Morays continued to have links with the church. A brother of Sir Andrew, David, was currently a rector of Bothwell church in central Scotland and a canon of Moray.^[11] He would subsequently be consecrated in the summer of 1299 as Bishop of Moray by Pope Boniface VIII,^[12] and would go on to be one of the most loyal supporters of King Robert Bruce's kingship.

A Kingdom in Turmoil

A depiction of a meeting of the English Parliament in 1278 in which King Alexander III is shown sitting at King Edward I's right.

The late thirteenth-century was a time of upheaval for Scotland. On 19th March 1286, King Alexander III, died after being thrown from his horse as he made his way Kinghorn, in Fife, from Edinburgh Castle to be with his young Flemish queen, Yolande.^[13] Although the king had been married previously to an English princess, his children from that marriage had predeceased him. At the time of the king's death, there was no issue from his latest marriage.^[14] In the aftermath of Alexander’s death, the Crown passed to his three-year-old granddaughter, Margaret, Maid of Norway. The child-queen was never enthroned, dying during the sea-passage to Scotland.^[15]

Scotland entered an uncertain period as the leading nobles vied for the vacant crown. The Bruces of Annandale made an early attempt to seize it in an armed coup. It was quickly suppressed by the Scottish political community. In this time of violence and confusion, Scotland's leaders understandably turned for support to their nearest neighbour and brother-in-law of their former king, King Edward I of England.

At this time, King Edward was a mature and widely-respected king. The relationship between him and recently-deceased King Alexander had been good. Only later would he become the notorious ‘Hammer of the Scots’. The power and influence that Edward possessed allowed him to preside over a court to assess the merits of the claims to the crown and the military might of his kingdom meant he could enforce its decision. King Edward's assistance came at a price: the claimants had to acknowledge him as Overlord of Scotland.The most serious claims, in what became known as 'The Great Cause', were advanced by John Balliol, the half-English lord of Galloway, and Robert Bruce, lord of Annandale and grandfather of the future king. After lengthy deliberation, King Edward's court found in favour of John Balliol.

The newly-enthroned king acknowledged King Edward as his feudal superior and thus sowed the seeds of his demise. Edward was determined to ensure his status as overlord was not ignored. He became a constant presence in Scottish legal and political affairs. This was a shock to the Scottish political community and by late 1295 King John had renounced his fealty and entered into a treaty with France. King Edward was enraged by such defiance, making hostilities between the kingdoms inevitable.

Invasion and Defeat

In the spring of 1296, Andrew Moray, together with his father and uncle, joined the Scottish feudal host assembling in preparation for the impending conflict. A small force, led by the earls of Atholl, Ross and Mar and John Comyn the younger of Badenoch, entered Cumberland and marched to Carlisle, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The St. Edmundsbury Chronicle records the destruction of 120 villages and townships . When the raiders reached Carlisle they found it held against them by their compatriot, Robert Bruce, lord of Annandale, the son of the recently-deceased Bruce-claimant the Crown. Bruce kept the gates of Carlisle firmly shut. More raiders crossed from Jedburgh and rampaged through Northumberland, burning homes and farms as they went. Pierre de Langtoft, an English chronicler, records:

King Edward I's statue at York Minster

King Edward, who assembled a large army on the Anglo-Scottish border for the invasion of Scotland, was able to depend on the support of a faction of Scottish lords. On 25th March, 1296, a number of the king's Scots supporters, including Robert Bruce of Annandale, and his son, Robert, the twenty-one-year-old earl of Carrick and the future king, swore fealty and solemnly pledged on “the Holy Gospels” that they would “be faithful and loyal ... to King Edward, King of England”.^[16]

The king's army initially marched on the prosperous Scottish port of Berwick, which then lay on the Anglo-Scottish border. By 30th March, it was camped outside the port. Berwick fell quickly, with the king personally leading the assault against its limited defences, and a bloody slaughter ensued. The king permitted the slaughter and rapine of the port's inhabitants to continue for three days before he finally called an end to it. The English Lanercost Chronicle condemned the slaughter as a “crime” and recorded that fifteen-thousand “of both sexes perished, some by the sword, others by fire, in the space of a day and a half”.^[17] The Scottish army was overmached by this English host. It had been many years since Scottish society had been mobilized for war, and at the Battle of Dunbar the Scots were overwhelmed quickly by elements of King Edward's army led by John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey. The author of the Chronicle of Bury St. Edmunds records the death of eight-thousand Scottish soldiers at Dunbar.

In the aftermath of the defeat at Dunbar, the realm quickly capitulated. No further meaningful resistance was offered. Edward I deposed King John at Montrose Castle: the symbols of he Scotish kingship were stripped from him, including the ripping of the royal coat of arms from his surcoat (thereby earning him the enduring title Toom Tabard ('Empty Coat')). King Edward, having dealt with this treasonous vassal, rode north from Montrose on an extended march that took him all the way to Elgin, which he reached on 26 July, 1296. He remained in the town’s castle for a few days, taking the fealty of a number of Scots nobles, including Bishop Robert Wishart of Glasgow,^[18] before returning to England.

While King Edward marched through the subdued realm, the Scots nobles captured at Dunbar were taken south in chains. The most important prisoners, such as Sir Andrew Moray of Petty, were taken to the Tower of London.^[19] Andrew Moray the younger, a prisoner of much less significance, was imprisoned in Chester Castle,^[19] the northernmost stronghold to which the Dunbar captives were taken; he would not, however, long remain a captive.

Rebel

King Edward quickly imposed his will on Scotland. The earl of Surrey, was put in charge of Scotland^[20] and Sir Hugh de Cressingham, an efficient, if notoriously obnoxious, administrator, was appointed Treasurer of Scotland. English soldiers took control of Scottish castles. English tax-collectors followed in their wake, imposing heavy taxes to fill their king's coffers, and exploiting the Scots populace to enrich themselves. Cressingham, went about his task with energy. By the end of May 1297, had dispatched £5,188 6s. 8d. to King Edward.^[21] Cressingham's greed quickly created a sense of discontent ripe for exploitation. King Edward was also keen to exploit the Scots for manpower for the armies being raised to fight in Flanders. He began planning to conscript Scots to serve overseas, including the nobility of the defeated realm.^[22] News of this draft caused widespread alarm. A combination of these factors meant Scotland grew increasingly restless under English rule.

Bothwell Castle, construction of which was begun by Sir William Moray.

While the Scots suffered Engish occupation, Andrew Moray was enduring the humiliation of imprisonment. But sometime in the winter of 1296-97, he escaped. Eventually he returned to his father's lands, though it is not known how or by what means he made his escape. Although there is no way of knowing how the trauma of defeat and imprisonment affected him, it would quickly become clear that it was a determined man that returned to Scotland.

"In the month of May of the same year [1297]", the Hemingsburgh Chronicle notes, "the perfidious race of Scots began to rebel." This first act of this rebellion was marked by two events: Andrew Moray proclaiming his defiance of English rule at Avoch; and William Wallace marking his rebellion against English rule with the murder of the English Sheriff of Lanark. News of Moray's actions quickly drew supporters to him. Alexander Pilchie, a burgess from Inverness, and a number of other burgesses from the town were amongst his earliest supporters. Although Sir Andrew Moray of Petty remained imprisoned in the Tower of London - where he apparently died as King Edward's prisoner - many of his tenants willingly joined his son. Sir William fitz Warin, the English constable of Urquhart Castle on the shores of Loch Ness, wrote to King Edward in July 1297:

Attack on Castle Urquhart

Urquhart Castle, which Andrew Moray sought to capture by night-assault in late-May 1297

Although the Scottish kingdom had been easily conquered by King Edward, it lay restless under his rule. The early months of 1297 saw outbreaks of violence against the English occupiers and their Scottish allies, some of which were so serious officials on the ground sought assistance from the king. Argyll and Ross were both riven by violence. On the west coast, Lachlan and Ruarie MacRuarie of Garmoran were in rebellion, killing royal officials and destroying royal property.^[23] This violence was not limited to north Scotland. Rebellion gripped Galloway in south-western Scotland, with the rebels seizing castles held by King Edward's men.^[24] There was also strife in Fife, where MacDuff of Fife and his sons led the rising.^[25]

News of this violence began to reach the English Court. The king responded by ordering a firm response. Edward's loyal supporters in Argyll and Ross were to assist “his chosen and faithful subject Alexander of the Isles” to suppress the rebels.^[26] Donald mac Can and other chieftains were thanked by the king on 13th June for their work supressing the rising in Galloway.^[27] The English Sheriff of Aberdeen, Sir Henry de Latham, was ordered on 11th June to deal with rebels in the north-east.^[28] The situation was considered so serious that men were dispatched from England, including Henry Percy and Walter Clifford, to assist in the suppression of the rebellion.^[29]

Andrew Moray had plunged the province of Moray into chaos. King Edward's principal follower in the area was Sir Reginald Cheyne, the Scots sheriff of Elgin. The active support of some Scottish lords allowed King Edward to rule Scotland without deploying a large occupying force, but their ultimate loyalty was frequently questioned by English officials and chroniclers. Cheyne was alarmed by the growth of Moray's rebellion. He wrote to the king requesting assistance, who responded by instructing him to vigorously suppress the rebels.^[30] Sir Reginald ordered his principal lieutenants to a meeting at Inverness Castle on 25th May 1297 to discuss how to deal with Andrew Moray. One participant was Sir William fitz Warin, constable of Urquhart Castle standing on the western shore of Loch Ness.^[31]

After the meeting Sir William fitz Warin returned to Urquhart Castle accompanied his escort of men-at-arms. A few miles to the south of Inverness, Sir William was ambushed by Andrew Moray. He was fortunate to escape with his life to the safety of the loch-side stronghold. Next day, Sir William awoke to find his castle besieged by Moray, who demanded its surrender. The Countess of Ross unexpectedly arrived on the scene with her retinue. The countess, whose husband was held by King Edward in the Tower of London,^[19] advised him to surrender. She did not move against Moray. Although her advice was ignored, her actions were later commended to the king by Sir William. Moray, with no heavy siege equipment available to him, tried to take the castle in a night-attack and having failed, was forced to abandon seige. He left Sir William in possession of the castle to lick his wounds and send an account of this mêlee to his king.^[31]

King Edward fights back

The remnant of the stone keep at Duffus Castle, built in the early 1300s to replace the earlier structure on that site burned by Andrew Moray.

Although Andrew Moray was thwarted by the walls of Urquhart Castle, he continued to prosecute a vigorous campaign against his enemies in Moray. The fate of Sir Reginald Cheyne's lands was reported to King Edward^[32]

Moray's camapign during the summer of 1297 bore fruit as he drew new supporters to his banner and English-held castles across Moray and northern Scotland fell to him. Eventually, even Castle Urquhart fell.

Little of Moray's spectacularly successful campaign is recorded. Indeed, some of his deeds were apparently co-opted by 'Blind Hary' and attributed to William Wallace. One such event was Wallace's attack on the port of Aberdeen, in which, according to Hary, he burned English ships moored in the harbour. There is no evidence that Wallace actually ever attacked Aberdeen and it has been recognised that this deed is more likely to have been the work of Andrew Moray.^[33]

King Edward I of England, whose main concern was preparing for his impending campaign in Flanders, sought to deal with the threat posed by Andrew Moray by making use of loyal Scots nobles released from his prisons to serve in Flanders. The king, in response to Sir William fitz Warin's description of the assault on his castle, issued orders on 11th June, 1297 to a number of Scots lords to raise their retinues and march into Moray to relieve fitz Warin and to restore royal authority. Amongst in receipt of the king's orders were Henry Cheyne, Bishop of Aberdeen, Sir Gartnait of Mar, heir to the earldom of Mar and whose father was currently held in the Tower of London,^[19] and John Comyn, Earl of Buchan and Constable of Scotland, together with his brother, Alexander. The Comyn brothers were instructed to remain in Moray until all signs of the rebellion had been stamped out.

The column departed from Aberdeen in early July 1297. Andrew Moray responded to news of itsadvance by marching east to confront it. The two forces met on the banks of the Spey at Enzie, where the road from Aberdeen to Inverness forded the waters of the River Spey, the eastern edge of the province of Moray.^[34] There is no surviving account of the ensuing confrontation, but it appears that it replayed Moray's earlier 'dance' with the Countess of Ross. An extremely ambiguous account of events was subsequently sent from Inverness to King Edward by Bishop Cheyne on 25th August,^[35] relates that after some discussion, Moray and his rebel-army withdrew into

This was a highly uninventive explanation when one considers the Comyn-family pacified the province of Moray in the early thirteenth-century. It appears more likely that neither side wished to fight men that they did not consider their enemies and they simply went their separate ways.But if Cheyne thought he could save face with this letter, he failed to reckon with Hugh de Cressingham, who was the most able of the king's administrators. Cressingham, having seen this letter, wrote to the king on 5th August:

A statue of William Wallace in Aberdeen, a Scottish city with which he has no proven connexion

Cressingham clearly did not believe that the Scots lords tasked with dealing with Moray had done their duty to Edward. He was especially dismissive of the account of confrontation at the Spey:^[36]

Cressingham clearly recognised the obvious double-game that these nobles were trying to play.

While Andrew Moray seized control of northern Scotland and William Wallace rampaged through west-central Scotland, a rising led by Scotland's traditional feudal leaders was taking place in the south. Amongst its leaders were James, the High Steward of Scotland, and Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow. Robert Bruce of Carrick, the future king, was also a participant in this rising. This rising, in contrast with the vigour and aggression which characterised the risings of Moray and Wallace, was feeble. It quickly collapsed, the participants surrendering at Irvine in July when an English army arrived in its vicinity

King Edward, having failed to deal with Moray by force of arms, now resorted to more subtle methods. The king proposed to release Sir Andrew Moray of Petty from imprisonment in the Tower to serve in Flanders, if his son was prepared to take his father's place as a hostage. A safe-conduct allowing Andrew the younger to come to England was issued under the king's seal on 28 August 1297.^[37] It is not known if the letter and the accompanying safe-conduct ever reached Andrew the younger but, if it did, it was ignored and his father was forced to remain in the Tower.

The Battle of Stirling Bridge

The Old Bridge at Stirling in 2006. This bridge, which was built some time after the battle, is sited upstream from the location of the bridge that was fought over in the autumn of 1297.

By the late summer of 1297, King Edward possessed little authority over Scotland. The reality of the breakdown in royal control was described in a letter to the king from Cressingham:^[38]

Of the castles north of the River Forth, only Dundee remained in English hands and it was under siege in September 1297. King Edward could only reimpose his authority by a full-scale armed invasion, which would force Moray and Wallace to combine their individual forces into a single army. It is believed they did this sometime in the autumn of 1297.

King Edward's lieutenant in Scotland, the earl of Surrey, finally recognized the need to take decisive action late in the summer of 1297. He had taken little action against the rebels and was subsequently vilified for his indolence. One English chronicler, Walter of Guisborough, said:

Surrey mustered an army and marched into central Scotland. Moray and Wallace responded by marching to Stirling, where they waited for Srrey's arrival to the north of the River Forth close to the old bridge at Stirling and under the shadow of Stirling Castle.

The view over the battlefield from the castle. In the foreground in the mediaeval stone bridge and in the background is the National Wallace Monument, standing on the Abbey Craig on which Wallace is reputed to have stood before the battle.

Surrey's conduct of the ensuing battle, characterized by his arrogant and unimaginative adherence to chivalric convention, was inept and he was outmanoeuvred and outfought by Moray and Wallace. He sent the vanguard of his army across the narrow bridge under the Scots’ gaze, who, rather than wait myopically for the entire army to cross the bridge and deploy for battle, struck when it was only partially deployed. In the ensuing carnage of the Battle of Stirling Bridge, Surrey's isolated vanguard was hacked to pieces. The remainder of his army was isolated on the southern bank, which soon they began to flee the scene. The flight was apparently led by Surrey, whose “charger never once tasted food during the whole journey” according to Walter of Guisborough.

The defeat of Surrey’s army at Battle of Stirling Bridge on 11th September 1297 represented the crowning moment of Andrew Moray’s rebellion. But Moray was not, of course, a talented soldier by accident. It is likely that the training that he received in his youth as he embarked on the path to knighthood would have laid special emphasis on equipping him with the skills to fulfil a leading role in the command of Scotland's feudal-host, such was his place in thirteenth-century Scottish society. It is no accident that he possessed the ability to direct large groups of soldiers and it is to him that much of the credit for the victory at Stirling Bridge should be assigned.

It is estimated that Surrey lost one hundred knights and five-thousand infantrymen in the slaughter at Sirling.^[39] The most notable English casualty was Cressingham, whose corpse was mutilated by the Scots. The Lanercost Chronicle records that Wallace had:^[40]

Another account of its fate was recorded in the chronicle of Pierre de Langtoft:^[41]

Scottish casualties went largely unrecorded as the Scottish army was largely made up of humble infantry soldiers. There was, however, one irreplaceable loss on the Scottish side: Andrew Moray.

Death

The death of Andrew Moray robbed Scotland of a gifted military leader at the time of great need. Moray's achievement in the summer of 1297 was immense, the importance of which is finally being recognised. One historian recently described Moray's actions in 1297 as "the greatest threat to the English government".^[42] If Moray had lived it is likely that, his position in Scottish feudal-society and his contribution to the campaign of 1297 would have meant, he, like Wallace, would have been knighted and appointed to the guardianship of the realm, a belief all but confirmed by the documents issued in his name after his death.

The massive statue of William Wallace looks south at Dryburgh.

It is widely believed that Andrew Moray was only wounded in fighting at Stirling, dying sometime in the winter of 1297-98 of his wounds. This belief rests on circumstantial evidence drawn from the survival of two letters bearing his name. The first letter was sent from Haddington on 11 October to the mayors of Lübeck and Hamburg, two of the towns of the Hanseatic League, by:^[43] "Andrew de Moray and William Wallace, leaders of the kingdom of Scotland and the community of the realm." The second was issued to the prior of Hexham on 7 November by:^[44] "Andrew de Moray and William Wallace, the leaders of the army and of the realm of Scotland." The name of Andrew Moray does not appear on any other later document. It is, therefore, deduced that he must have succumbed to his wounds around this time. But this theory is undermined by the lack of any mention in English or Scottish chronicle-sources of Moray's presence at Hexham. Walter Guisborough's chronicle, which contains a detailed account of this invasion, makes it clear that it was led only by Wallace. It appears that these letters may have been issued in Moray's absence.

There is, however, firm evidence Andrew Moray was killed in the fighting or, at the very least, died in its aftermath. A formal inquisition into the affairs of Sir William Moray of Bothwell, who had died in poverty in England, was held in Berwick in November 1300.^[6] It was determined in these proceedings that Andrew Moray was: "slain at Stirling against the king." It seems unlikely that this was anything other than a reference to Moray's death at the battle.

Although Moray appears to have died in the battle, Wallace seems to have felt compelled to continue to issue documents jointly in the name of his deceased co-commander. Moray's death not only robbed him of a comrade, but also of a shield against the jealousies of the traditional Scottish feudal-elites. Moray was a blue-chip noble with connexions to the highest echelons of Scottish society; without him, Wallace, the former outlaw, was exposed to the political intrigues of nobles who felt he had usurped their right to exercise power. Wallace's continued association with the name of Andrew Moray, added a much-needed measure of political gravitas to his actions prior to his formal appointment to the guardianship of the realm. Only once Wallace was knighted and appointed as Guardian of Scotland some time prior to March 1298, did it become unnecessary to issue letters jointly with Moray.^[45]

A combination of Andrew Moray's early death in battle and his close association with Wallace, a man who has become a near mythical figure in Scottish history due to the embellishment of his deeds by Henry the Minstrel in the advancement of the political aims of his patrons, has meant that Moray's spectacular achievements are little known in Scotland today. This was only exacerbated when he was not featured in the largely historically inaccurate Academy Award-winning film Braveheart. While there are many statues to Wallace scattered across Scotland, from Aberdeen in the north-east to Dryburgh in the Scottish borders, there is nothing similar to commemorate the brief life and heroic exploits of Andrew Moray.

The name of Andrew Moray did not disappear from history. A few months after his death, his widow, whose identity is lost to us, bore him a son, also named Andrew.^[6] The child acceded to the lordships of Petty and Bothwell and played a decisive rôle in resisting the attempts of Edward III of England, grandson of the so-called 'Hammer of the Scots', to conquer Scotland in the 1330s. Sir Andrew would twice be regent for King David II, the son of King Robert I and would display a remarkably similar aptitude to that shown by his father for leading the armies of the kingdom of Scotland in the face of English aggression. And, like his father, he would also die prematurely in defence of the realm.

See also

• The First War of Scottish Independence (1296-1306)
• Clan Murray
• History of Scotland
• Timeline of Scottish history
• Kildrummy Castle

Notes

References

• Barron, E. M., "The Scottish War of Independence", Second Edition. 1934;
• Barrow, G.W.S. "Robert Bruce and the Community of the Realm", Second Edition, 1988;
• Barrow, G.W.S. "The Kingdom of the Scots", Second Edition, 2003;
• Brown, M., "The Wars of Scotland 1214-1371", 2004;
• "Calendar of Documents Relating to Scotland", Four Volumes, ed. J. Bain, 1881-1888;
• "A Source Book of Scottish History." Three Volumes. Second Edition, eds. W. C. Dickson, G. Donaldson and I. A. Milne, 1958;
• "Documents Illustrative of Scotland 1286-1306," ed. Rev.J.Stevenson, 2 vols.1870;
• Ferguson, J, "William Wallace", ed T. Rymer, 1938;
• Fisher, A, "William Wallace", 1992;
• "Foedera, Conventiones, Litterae", ed T. Rymer, 1816;
• Oram, Richard, Ed., "The Kings and Queens of Scotland", Stroud, 2001;
• Oram, Richard, "David I: The King who made Scotland", Stroud, 2004;
• Prestwich, M., "Edward I", 1990;
• "The Chronicle of Lanercost 1272 - 1346", ed. H. Maxwell, 1913;
• "The Chronicle of Pierre de Langtoft", ed. T Wright, Two volumes. (1866-8).
• "[[The Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough]]", ed. H. Rothwell, 1957;
• "Chronicle of Holyrood", ed. M. A. Anderson, 1938;
• "Anglo-Scottish Relations 1174-1328: Some Selected Documents", ed. E. L. G Stones, 1970;
• Taylor, J. G., "Fighting for the Lion: The Life of Andrew Moray", in History Scotland, Sept/October, 2005;
• Watson F. J., "Under the Hammer: Edward I and Scotland 1286-1306", 1998.

No comments have been added.

Your name:
City:
Country:	USA UK India Pakistan UAE Saudi Arabia Germany Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burma Burund Cambodia Cameroon Canada Central African Rep Chad Chile China Columbia Comoros Congo Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic DR Congo Denmark Djiboutil Dominica Dominican Rep Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Eq Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Fiji Finland France Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Grenadines Guatemala Guinea Bissau Guinea Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Ivory Coast Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Macau Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Morocco Mozambique Namibia Nauru Nepal Neth Antilles Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea Norway Oman Pakistan Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Rawanda Romania Russia Sao Tome Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Korea South Africa Spain Sri Lanka St Kitts_Nevis St Lucia Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvala UAE Uganda Ukraine Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Western Samoa Yemen Yugoslavia Zaire Zambia Zimbabwe
Your comments:
Security check * (Please enter the number into adjoining box)