Barnett Vicarious Adventures: July 11, 2013 continuation

The home of Robert Burns, one of the great Scottish poets and a great poet in English literature.

Back to Mary Queen of Scots house. Not sure how these got out of order.

The Smallholm Tower is an fine example of the towers built on both sides of the England/Scotland border as a “safe house” for the innocents living in the countryside. When one side decided to attach the other, the people living in the area who just wanted to live their lives and not be involved in the various wars went to these fortress towers and stayed there until the fighting ended. As is always the case, the ones who call the shots are never among the dead and lame.

Not sure, but Elaine may be playing the role of Joan of Arc, but she is in the wrong country.

Marking the beginning of the Stewart Dynasty having taken the crown from the Tudors.

Now this is crazy. Long before the movie “Braveheart” an eccentric Scottish nobleman commissioned a statue of William Wallace. But, he was enthralled with Greek history particularly Apollo. As you will see, the William Wallace statue bears a striking resemblance to Apollo with his cape and all. You saw in our earlier posts the official Wallace Monument, but when the movie came out, it was remembered that there was also another Wallace monument. The foliage was trimmed and it reappeared on the hillside.

You can count the number of things wrong with this statue. (1) he is wearing a kilt (Wallace was a lowlander and would never have worn a kilt), (2) the kilt has pleats in the front (a kilt has pleats only in the back), (3) he is wearing a cape (what Scotsman ever wore a cape?), and (4) he is wearing the winged brown of Apollo! A little hokey, but fun.

We arrive at Melrose Abbey, the true home of “Braveheart.” Robert Bruce, a great Scottish leader, created the overblown legend of William Wallace to rally the Scots to fight for freedom against the English. He fought several battles against the English and in his final battle he was severely wounded and knew he would die. He asked his faithful aide to remove his heart after death and carry it to lead the Scots. England and Scotland were united in the interim to form the United Kingdom and James VI of Scotland became James I of the United Kingdom. Did you note that a Scottish king took the English throne after all the years of fighting? In any event, what followed next in history was the Crusades (the attempt by western Europe to retake the Holy Lands from the Muslim [Ottoman] Empire. Robert Bruce’s heart was carried before the Scottish legion who attacked the Moorish city of Granada, Spain. When the Scots found themselves outnumbered, the leader threw down the urn containing the heart of Robert Bruce and asked, “Who will follow this Braveheart?” That was the origin of Braveheart: Robert Bruce, not William Wallace. The Scots won the battle and Robert Bruce’s heart was taken to Melrose Abbey and buried there. Now you know the true history of Braveheart. Ah to be back in Scotland and hear the great stories of Scottish history.