Posted on 08/24/2005 3:10:49 AM PDT by ajolympian2004
By Gideon Long Tue Aug 23,11:52 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Seven hundred years to the day after Scottish hero William "Braveheart" Wallace was executed by his English foes, a historian has retraced his final journey to promote his dream of independence for Scotland.
David Ross, who has written books on Wallace and other Scottish national heroes, strode from Westminster through the old City of London on Tuesday wearing a kilt and carrying a sword.
Accompanied by around 100 supporters, many playing bagpipes and waving the blue-and-white Scottish flag, Ross ended his journey at Smithfield, where Wallace was butchered by his English captors on August 23, 1305.
There, Ross led a ceremony inside the 12th century church of St Bartholomew's in honor of the man immortalized by Mel Gibson in the 1995 Hollywood blockbuster "Braveheart."
"It's been a great day and long overdue," Ross told Reuters as he marched through London past bemused onlookers. "In 700 years no one has ever done anything to recognize the man."
Over the past three weeks, Ross has walked 450 miles (725 km) from Scotland to London in a bid to reconstruct Wallace's last fateful journey from his homeland.
The warrior, lauded in Scotland for uniting his compatriots to fight English rule, was captured in the village of Robroyston on August 3, 1305, and hauled to London over the next 20 days to be tried for treason.
Found guilty, he was tied to a horse and dragged through the streets of the capital in front of crowds of baying Londoners.
After being hanged and disemboweled, the 35-year-old's body was hacked to pieces and his head was impaled on a spike near London Bridge as a warning to other rebels.
The killing helped King Edward I of England, known as the "Hammer of the Scots" for his brutal campaigns north of the border, retain a grip on power in Scotland.
Wallace was never given a proper burial and Ross says he wanted Tuesday's event to be primarily a solemn funeral service, although he said it had political significance too.
"Our country is still ruled from somewhere else," he said, referring to the British parliament. "It's time the leaders in Scotland woke up and listened to what the people want."
Opinion polls in recent years suggest between a quarter and a half of Scotland's 5 million people want the same independence from London which Wallace fought for seven centuries ago.
Scotland and England were rival feudal nations for years until first their monarchies and then their political systems were melded together between the 17th and 18th centuries.
A Scottish parliament was established in Edinburgh in 1999 but the nation remains within the United Kingdom.
LOL, I bet that was a great experience. Congratulations.
Back to work...; )
With Mel??
Good grief, I'm sure that made the groom feel just grand on his wedding day.
I hope this maid of "honor" didn't catch the bouquet this time around.
BFLR = Bump for later reading.
If they declare their independence from London, it is plainly speaking just switching their alliegance from London to Brussels. These Scottish independents are all pro-EU federalists - the historic pro-freedom Scots have all migrated to the US ages ago.
They want to get out of the frying pan that is the United Kingdom, into the naked fire aka the United States of Europe.
A slight exaggeration, Mr Ross. The Wallace Monument in Stirling - along with the castle - dominates the landscape.
Scotland bump!
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