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Week 48: Troublemaker #52Ancestorsin52Weeks

One man's 'troublemaker' can be another man's hero. One of my 20th great-grandfathers was such a man.  And a famous one at that!
Robert the Bruce, King Robert I of Scotland for the last two decades of his life, was certainly a troublemaker in the eyes of the English. An ardent proponent for Scottish Independence, he is best known for defeating the English Army at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. After Bannockburn, he was not content to just defend Scotland, but actively led incursions into the north of England. Nowadays he is still revered as one of Scotland's heroes.
Image from www.factinate.com

But this wasn't always the case. Many Scots had cause to see him as a troublemaker too - or  at times, even worse, a traitor.  When, in 1296,  the then King John Balliol required all able bodied Scots to fight against the English, Robert was one of several Scottish nobles to ignore the summons. Notably then the first city attacked by Balliol's troops was Carlisle, the Bruces' principal residence. His lands of Annandale had already been confiscated as a result of him 'disobeying' the King.

When Edward I of England then invaded Scotland, deposing Balliol and installing Englishmen to govern Scotland, Robert  then swore feality to the English king. However, less than a year later and still only a young man of 22, he joined the rebels fighting for Scottish Independence against the English.

After the Battle of Falkirk in 1298, Robert the Bruce and John Comyn were appointed as Joint Guardians of Scotland. This caused a problem for the country as John Comyn, nephew and supporter of John Balliol, had a serious claim to the Scottish throne and was thus Bruce's enemy. A third neutral Guardian had to be appointed, but eventually Bruce resigned.

In 1302,  he again swapped his allegiances, marrying the daughter of a close friend and ally of Edward I. Despite this, Bruce continued to believe he was the rightful heir to the Scottish throne, but John Comyn still stood in his way.  Comyn was one of the most powerful nobles in Scotland. According to some chroniclers, in 1305 the two swore a secret agreement where Comyn would agree to forfeit his claim in favour of Bruce in exchange for land, should Bruce lead an uprising. It then appears that Comyn betrayed Bruce to Edward I or some say they had a fight. Whatever happened, Bruce and his supporters  ended up stabbing Comyn to death in Greyfriars Monastery.  This was the start of Bruce's campaign for the Scottish throne and Scottish Independence. At the same time, the killing of Comyn resulted in his being ex-communicated by the Catholic Church. Nevertheless, Robert the Bruce, my 20th great-grandfather was crowned as King of Scotland six weeks later.
Statue of King Robert I of Scotland at Stirling Castle (own photo)

So, Grandpa Robert got himself into a lot of trouble with the English, with fellow Scots and the Catholic Church  before becoming king and ending up a hero!

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