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Thomas Grey (of Heaton)
Sir Thomas Grey ( before March 1344) of Heaton Castle in the parish of Cornhill-on-Tweed, Northumberland, was a soldier who served throughout the wars of Scottish Independence. His experiences were recorded by his son Thomas Grey (chronicler), Thomas Grey in his chronicles, and provide a rare picture of the day-to-day realities of the wars. His career, blemished by his suicidal charge at the Battle of Bannockburn, a contributing factor to the devastating English defeat, is perhaps best known for his role in the tale of Sir William Marmion, the chivalric knight of Norham Castle. Career and life Early life Grey was serving under William de Hesilrig, Sheriff of Clydesdale (district), Clydesdale as early as 1297. Following William Wallace's nighttime Action at Lanark, assassination of the Sheriff at Lanark, Grey was left for dead, stripped naked in the snow. He only survived because of the heat from the houses burning around him and was rescued the next day and his wounds healed. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Knight Banneret
A knight banneret, sometimes known simply as banneret, was a medieval knight who led a company of troops during time of war under his own banner (which was square-shaped, in contrast to the tapering standard or the pennon flown by the lower-ranking knights) and was eligible to bear supporters in English heraldry. The military rank of a knight banneret was higher than a knight Bachelor (who fought under another's banner), but lower than an earl or duke. Under English custom the rank of knight banneret could only be conferred by the sovereign on the field of battle. There were some technical exceptions to this; when his standard was on the field of battle he could be regarded as physically present though he was not. His proxy could be regarded as a sufficient substitution for his presence. The wife of a banneret was styled as banneress. Origins There were no standing armies in the middle ages (except the military orders). Though modern scholarship has had a lot to say abou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Wallace
Sir William Wallace (, ; Norman French: ; 23 August 1305) was a Scottish knight who became one of the main leaders during the First War of Scottish Independence. Along with Andrew Moray, Wallace defeated an English army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in September 1297. He was appointed Guardian of Scotland and served until his defeat at the Battle of Falkirk in July 1298. In August 1305, Wallace was captured in Robroyston, near Glasgow, and handed over to King Edward I of England, who had him hanged, drawn and quartered for high treason and crimes against English civilians. Since his death, Wallace has obtained a legendary status beyond his homeland. He is the protagonist of Blind Harry's 15th-century epic poem '' The Wallace'' and the subject of literary works by Jane Porter and Sir Walter Scott, and of the Academy Award-winning film ''Braveheart''. Background William Wallace was a member of the lesser nobility, but little is definitely known of his family history ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Springald
A springald, or espringal, was a Torsion siege engine device for throwing bolts in medieval times. It is depicted in a diagram in an 11th-century Byzantine manuscript, but in Western Europe is more evident in the late 12th century and early 13th century. It was constructed on the same principles as an Ancient Greek or Roman ballista, but with inward swinging arms and threw bolts instead of stones. It was also known as a 'skein-bow', and was a torsion device using twisted skeins of silk or sinew to power two bow-arms. History The springald was a defensive bolt thrower based on the torsion mechanism of ancient ballistas, with two arms held in a skein of twisted sinew or hair. Unlike the ballista, it seems to have been housed in a rectangular box-like wooden structure and shot bolts instead of stones. According to digital models and projections, a springald could throw a bolt around 180 meters if mounted on a tower at an elevation of 15 degrees. It appears to have spread across Europe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry De Beaumont
Henry de Beaumont (before 1280 – 10 March 1340), ''jure uxoris'' 4th Earl of Buchan and ''suo jure'' 1st Baron Beaumont, was a key figure in the Anglo-Scots wars of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, known as the Wars of Scottish Independence. Henry de Beaumont was a veteran campaigner who participated in every major engagement, from the Battle of Falkirk in 1298 to the Battle of Halidon Hill in 1333. Although not now a widely known figure, he was, nevertheless, of considerable military and political importance. His long experience in the Scottish wars led him to develop a battle technique later used to great effect at Crécy and Agincourt. As one of a group of Anglo-Scots nobles later known as the 'disinherited'—Englishmen whose Scottish lands had been forfeited—he was to do much to overturn the peace between England and Scotland established by the Treaty of Northampton and bring about a Second War of Scottish Independence. By his marriage, shortly before ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warwolf
The Warwolf, also known as the ''Loup-de-Guerre'' or ''Ludgar'', is believed to have been the largest trebuchet ever made. It was created in Scotland by order of Edward I of England, during the siege of Stirling Castle in 1304, as part of the Wars of Scottish Independence. A contemporary chronicle refers to it as ''une engine orrible''. Warwolf at Stirling When disassembled, the weapon would fill 30 wagons in parts. It reportedly took five master carpenters and forty-nine other labourers at least three months to complete. The ''Flores Historiarum'' claims that the Warwolf sent a single stone through two of the castle's walls in the course of the siege, "like an arrow flying through cloth". Other sources, however, report that the weapon was only finished after the Scots had surrendered. Edward decided to use it anyway, refusing to let anyone enter or leave the castle until it had been tested. In the original records Some of the original parchment rolls of the accounts of King ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trebuchet
A trebuchet () is a type of catapult that uses a hinged arm with a sling attached to the tip to launch a projectile. It was a common powerful siege engine until the advent of gunpowder. The design of a trebuchet allows it to launch projectiles of greater weights and further distances than a traditional catapult. There are two main types of trebuchet. The first is the ''traction trebuchet'', or mangonel, which uses manpower to swing the arm. It first appeared in China by the 4th century BC. It spread westward, possibly via the Avars, and was adopted by the Byzantines, Persians, Arabs, and other neighboring peoples by the sixth to seventh centuries AD. The later, and often larger and more powerful, counterweight trebuchet, also known as the counterpoise trebuchet, uses a counterweight to swing the arm. It appeared in both Christian and Muslim lands around the Mediterranean in the 12th century, and was carried back to China by the Mongols in the 13th century. "Although this is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Engines
A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while others have wheels to enable advancing up to the enemy fortification. There are many distinct types, such as siege towers that allow foot soldiers to scale walls and attack the defenders, battering rams that damage walls or gates, and large ranged weapons (such as ballistas, catapults/ trebuchets and other similar constructions) that attack from a distance by launching heavy projectiles. Some complex siege engines were combinations of these types. Siege engines are fairly large constructions – from the size of a small house to a large building. From antiquity up to the development of gunpowder, they were made largely of wood, using rope or leather to help bind them, possibly with a few pieces of metal at key stress points. They could la ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland. The castle sits atop an Intrusive rock, intrusive Crag and tail, crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location, guarding what was, until the 1890s, the lowest bridging point, farthest downstream crossing of the River Forth, has made it an important fortification in the region from the earliest times. Most of the principal buildings of the castle date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. A few structures remain from the fourteenth century, while the outer defences fronting the town date from the early eighteenth century. Before the union with England, Stirling Castle was also one of the most used of the many Scottish royal residences, very much a palace as well as a fortress. Several List of Scottish monarchs, Sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edward I Of England
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 1254 to 1306 ruled Duchy of Gascony, Gascony as Duke of Aquitaine in his capacity as a vassal of the French king. Before his accession to the throne, he was commonly referred to as the Lord Edward. The eldest son of Henry III of England, Henry III, Edward was involved from an early age in the political intrigues of his father's reign. In 1259, he briefly sided with a baronial reform movement, supporting the Provisions of Oxford. After reconciling with his father, he remained loyal throughout the subsequent armed conflict, known as the Second Barons' War. After the Battle of Lewes, Edward was held hostage by the rebellious barons, but escaped after a few months and defeated the baronial leader Simon de Montfort at the Battle of Evesham in 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Springald
A springald, or espringal, was a Torsion siege engine device for throwing bolts in medieval times. It is depicted in a diagram in an 11th-century Byzantine manuscript, but in Western Europe is more evident in the late 12th century and early 13th century. It was constructed on the same principles as an Ancient Greek or Roman ballista, but with inward swinging arms and threw bolts instead of stones. It was also known as a 'skein-bow', and was a torsion device using twisted skeins of silk or sinew to power two bow-arms. History The springald was a defensive bolt thrower based on the torsion mechanism of ancient ballistas, with two arms held in a skein of twisted sinew or hair. Unlike the ballista, it seems to have been housed in a rectangular box-like wooden structure and shot bolts instead of stones. According to digital models and projections, a springald could throw a bolt around 180 meters if mounted on a tower at an elevation of 15 degrees. It appears to have spread across Europe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John III Comyn, Lord Of Badenoch
John Comyn III of Badenoch, nicknamed the Red ( 1274 – 10 February 1306), was a leading Scottish baron and magnate who played an important role in the First War of Scottish Independence. He served as Guardian of Scotland after the forced abdication of his uncle, King John Balliol (1292–1296), in 1296, and for a time commanded the defence of Scotland against English attacks. Comyn was stabbed to death by Robert the Bruce before the altar at the church of the Greyfriars at Dumfries. His father, John Comyn II, known as the Black Comyn, had been one of the competitors for the Crown of Scotland, claiming his descent from King Donald III. His mother was Eleanor Balliol, sister of King John Balliol. He had, moreover, links with the royal house of England: in the early 1290s, he married Joan de Valence, cousin of King Edward I. Comyn family On the eve of the Wars of Independence, the Comyns were one of the dominant families of Scotland, with extensive landholdings in both t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melrose Abbey
St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of that order in the country until the Reformation. It was headed by the abbot or commendator of Melrose. Today the abbey is maintained by Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument. The east end of the abbey was completed in 1146. Other buildings in the complex were added over the next 50 years. The abbey was built in the Gothic manner and in the form of a St. John's Cross. A considerable portion of the abbey is now in ruins. A structure dating from 1590 is maintained as a museum open to the public. Alexander II and other Scottish kings and nobles are buried at the abbey. A lead container believed to hold the embalmed heart of Robert the Bruce was found in 1921 below the Chapter House site; it was found again in a 1998 excavati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
