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Dynastic instability within Scotland often provided an excuse for outside interference but an exceptionally serious threat to Scottish independence came in the form of Edward I of England’s invasion of 1296. Championed first by William Wallace and then by Robert the Bruce, the struggle for Scottish independence lasted until one of the defining moments in Scotland’s history, the battle of Bannockburn in 1314.
Almost 200 years later, in 1512, Scotland’s involvement in European politics and its alliance with France – the Auld Alliance, so fondly remembered – brought disaster. At Flodden Field King James IV, many of his nobles and some 10,000 men were killed in battle against the English.
