Welcome to Roslin-WhatBattle.com

 

This article was written out of frustration. That such an important event should have been “disappeared” for our own, and English propaganda reasons, made my initial efforts to find the truth slow and difficult . As an adopted Leither , I have persevered and eventually accumulated a fair amount of information which has evolved into this humble offering as a way of passing on the story - on paper as required by the historians.

Our ancient ways of telling history , and learning it by heart, have meant that much of the evidence has gone. The problems , of people, soldiers, dying, unable to pass on their experiences, and of the written word destroyed by fire, etc, etc., means that the proof they require is gone - so often the case in Scottish history.

So the foreign academics cry: where is your evidence, but we know the truth , how things were , and continue to pass on our oral history - by heart.

Par Coeur, et avec la Coeur.

The Battle of Roslin, 23 rd February 1303

Has been weeded out of the history books - deliberately.

However, on this occasion the propaganda battle was mainly not by the usual bribery and corruption of The Auld Enemy , but by our ain folk, on behalf of The Bruce.

Prior to Roslin, Scotland had gone through great political unrest due to the leadership claims of Balliol, Comyn and Bruce, all whose “spin doctors” were desperate to show their favourite in the best light. Just like today! Balliol did what he thought right, or at least best for himself, and earned the nickname “TOOM TABARD” for his (lack of ) efforts. Wallace roused the nation, but the jealous nobles declined to support him and his defeat at Falkirk forced him into a subordinate position by 1303. The rise of the Comyn faction had come at the right time and much of the credit for the Scots victory should have gone to him.

And to Prior Abernethy.

Just a short time after the Battle, Comyn died - murdered by Bruce and/or his supporters near Dumfries, and the last thing the new King could allow , was for such a great victory by his rival , to shadow his coronation and attempts to take back control of Scotland from the English. Not surprisingly, the English did not chose to talk of their huge army being defeated so thoroughly by so few. Churchill's famous 2nd World War quote ”The Few” was outdated by 650 years. 30,000 invaders having been killed or sent home by about 6,000 Scots.

Since then, the “British” army has always been spearheaded by Scots to win their wars, not being concerned at Scots lives being lost as cannon fodder, but needing their bravery and fighting abilities. Let us not forget.