Did you know...
that Sir William Wallace, the first of Scotland's fighters for her freedom, was, according to his ancestral name "le Waleys," of Welch descent rather than Scottish?
that Sir William Wallace made no claim to the Crown of Scotland after conquering the English Army of Invasion, hut declared himself "Guardian of Scotland" until her rightful King could claim the throne?
that when Sir William Wallace
was finally betrayed into the hands of the English in 1305, King Edward
I, personally devised a new punishment that of "hanging, drawing, and quartering"
especially for the great man who, though hero to Scotland, was considered
traitor to England? This torture-death method of punishment endured in
England into the 18th Century.
that upon his death, Sir William Wallace's head was displayed on London Bridge, and his limbs at Newcastle-on-Tyne, Berwick, Sterling, and Perth as a grim warning to all would-be Scottish heroes?
that the great two-handed Claymore
once wielded so bravely in defense of Scotland by Sir William Wallace is
still in existence after 700 years? Confiscated by his English captors
in 1305, it was kept at Dumbarton Castle until 1888, when it was transferred
to the Wallace Monument at Stirling where it is displayed. It is 5 feet
4 inches long, having been somewhat reduced in length when repairs necessitated
its being rewelded.