Britain is NOT England.
Britain is England, Scotland, NI and Wales. Ireland and Wales, unlike Scotland, were conquered into the UK by England. Scotland joined in 1707.
Wallace and Bruce therefore for the purposes of this study, ARE British. As they are Scots, and Scotland is part of Great Britain.
Its a common mistake to think England means Britain and vice versa.
“Britain is NOT England.”
Thank you for that burst of nationalistic definition-ism. Speaking for myself, I am fully aware of the constituent parts that make up the United Kingdom. However, you are correct that many Americans use “England” and “Britian” interchangably. It used to drive my friend from Edinburgh insane. The poor Scot went on a Quixotic quest to educate EVERY American he ran across using “England” incorrectly. Luckily, he returned to Edinburgh with his sanity intact, having completely failed in his quest to educate us savage Americans.
Wallace and Bruce are fine examples of foes (British or not). Cromwell also comes to mind as a possibility (not sure if he was a ‘foe’). However, all were too early for purposes of the contest.
What a facinating historical exercise this is. Hopefully, people become curious and want to learn more.
“Britain is NOT England.”
I understand the difference; the Union Jack is the combined flag of England, Scotland, and the old St. Patrick’s cross (which wasn’t included in the original Union Jack).
It seems that the people of the UK didn't refer to themselves as British until after 1707. The word "British" only appears in two of Shakespeare's plays, Cymbeline and King Lear, and it apparently refers to Britonic Gauls, since the plays are set in the period before the Roman conquest.