The human heart can soar and be lifted or fall shattered and broken. It can be open or cold, trusting or wicked. Thanks to the film Braveheart we also know that a heart can be brave, but did you know that the historical reference never referred to Mel Gibson’s heroic character William Wallace? I’m no Milton, but if it’s poetry you seek, consider the tale of a heart taken from the chest of a fallen king only to journey for seven centuries before finally reaching its intended resting place. Legends are most amazing when they’re true, as this story is.
You see, today’s a big anniversary in my family; although none of us have ever really thought about it much. March 27th was a great day for my 27th great-grandfather. Yes, that’s a long time ago, over 700 years to be exact. On this date in 1306, Robert the Bruce was crowned King Robert I of Scotland.
This legendary figure came to international attention after the movie Braveheart was released in 1995. For as much as I love that film, the story is more fiction than fact. That’s good news for those upset at the thought of Robert the Bruce’s dastardly betrayal of William Wallace at Falkirk. In real history, no such treason ever took place. The Bruce was, however, a brutal warrior.
Like William Wallace, Robert’s rival was the powerful King Edward I “Longshanks” of England. Robert became king only a few months after Wallace was executed by Longshanks in 1305 (the movie actually watered that scene down. Seriously…). For the new Scottish king, the fight for Scottish independence would last years longer. Longshanks arrested and imprisoned Robert’s wife, daughter, and sisters. His brother Nigel was captured and executed in the same manner as Wallace.
Longshanks died in 1
307 and left the kingdom to his son, Edward II. Unfortunately for Scottish rebels, the son wasn’t quite as incompetent as the movie makes out. The fight for freedom lasted until 1314 when the Scottish warriors “fought like warrior poets and won their freedom” at Bannockburn.
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Robert I ruled until his death in 1329. His dying wish was requested of longtime companion Sir James Douglas–a supporter of William Wallace and the knight in charge of the army’s left-wing at Bannockburn. King Robert asked that his heart be removed and carried “against the enemies of the name of Christ.” The heart was placed in a casket and carried by Douglas, a legend in his own right, to Granada in Spain.
While carrying the chest, Douglas was ambushed as he tried to aid a fellow warrior. About to be slain, the courageous knight held out the casket and said, “Onward brave heart, Douglas shall follow thee or die.” He didn’t make it. 
The original brave heart was recovered and returned out of respect only to be lost for the ages. Then in 1920 archaeologists discov
ered the lost relic which they promptly reburied but failed to mark. The location slipped into obscurity once again. Finally in 1996, construction workers stumbled once more across the chest. Archaeologists in Edinburgh confirmed the artifact which was finally given appropriate burial at Melrose Abbey in 1998! The brave heart of Robert the Bruce had finally reached the resting place of his last request.
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After the death of King Robert, his son David II took the throne and built power through a healthy reign of around four decades. Fans of the movie might be interested (or frustrated) to learn that David married Joan of the Tower, the daughter of Longshanks son Edward II and Queen consort Isabella of France. That’s right, the same Isabella who, according to that fantastic film, fell in love with William Wallace. After the death of David II, the crown passed to his nephew Robert II, the last surviving male of the Bruce line. The famous Stuart dynasty of British rulers extends from this monarch.
If my claims of ancestral linkage are corroborated, that means I’m related to some serious heavyweights. The truth is never easy to fully track down. That’s why we have so much fun chasing after it. In our never ending quest to escape the challenges of life, we’ll continue to look to the past for hope and better times. These legends inspire us partly because we recreate them in our own way. Men and women willing to die for freedom and what they believe in will never cease to stagger our imaginations, especially as our world races so blindly towards compromise and futility.
Whether it’s William Wallace or King Robert, we want to be told about hearts so brave when ours might have betrayed us. Like Robert the Bruce in the movie, we don’t want to betray; we want to believe.
This is such a cool story! I know very little about my family ancestors — certainly nothing this exciting! I am most intrigued by the stories of my grandparents who escaped from Russia just before the revolution, and how they managed to do that. Just recently I’ve thought of learning more, so this is very timely. Very entertaining!
Thanks Julia. You should definitely see what you can find. The internet makes it all possible. If you have any leads the web will get you there eventually.
I love this. Good to read the real story, which is always messier than the Hollywood version. My own William is named after a combo of people, including William Wallace, William Shakespeare, and my grandfather (middle name).
My brother did some family tree research on the Shirtliffe branch of the family. We’re related to Madonna (yes, the recent one). I think he quit researching shortly after that. I’m not sure if he was disappointed or if found what he was looking for.
Happy writing blitz! And cheers for good posts from the archives.
Yeah, I thought you might appreciate a little William Wallace connection. Related to Madonna? Sounds like a post to me
Thanks for the archive nod. I considered writing something but pictured you on my shoulder saying “don’t!” At least I have a few good ones that no one’s seen.
I started researching my English/Scottish ancestors while still living in Canada, then had the fortune of moving to England for two years. I wasn’t really surprised to discover that most of my ancestors were simple labourers – fishermen or fishmongers. No mention of pirates or sea captains, which would have been a nice find…
Sure, the pirates would’ve been fun, but I think it’s great that you found what you did. Thanks for commenting about that Margie!
I’ll try not to write so much that you regret asking. My Duke family traces back to the Duke founder, Roger le Duc, Sheriff of London in 1190 and great-grandson of William, Duke of Normandy. The first Americans of my branch (14 generations back) settled on their holdings in Virginia in the mid-1600s. One branch went to North Carolina and started the American Tobacco Company, and my side went to Georgia to farm cotton. I also have Cherokee, Polish, Dutch, German, and Irish ancestors. One side of my family drove the Cherokees down the Trail of Tears, and the other side of my family married them when they reached their destination. So whenever anyone asks my “race” or my “ethnic background” I always answer “American.” There is no other logical answer for me.
Thanks for a fun post Clay. I definitely see your family resemblance with your ancestor.
I’ll never regret people taking time to write. Especially you! The background you have is fascinating, both in nature and in the amount of info you’ve found. You should do a post about all this (unless I’ve already missed it). Thanks for sharing.
No, you haven’t missed anything. I just assumed that people would rather suck broken glass through straws up their noses than listen to any geneology chart but their own.
I love your story about Robert the Bruce, though, and the multiple misplacements of the brave heart. It’s very pretty. I hope they can hang onto it this time. I may take your advice.
My mother used to tell us when I was little that she was a distant descendant of the House of Braganca, which ruled Portugal from 1640 to 1910. I used to joke about being a princess and one day returning to Portugal to re-establish the monarchy and claim my throne. I really have no evidence to support this, and if we are distantly related, we could very well be from a…shall we say…unsanctioned bloodline?
The Portuguese do have long memories, however, so who knows if there’s any grain of truth to this. I know when she was mad at my father, she would call him a Visigoth because he was from the mountainous region of Portugal near the Spanish border, which was indeed overrun by the Visigoths (her native region was originally settled by the Celts, though her hometown was founded by the Germanic Suevi, so she was clearly splitting hairs here
)
So going way back, all I know is that I seem to be half-Visigoth and half-Celt!
Ha! She called him a Visigoth. That’s great. I’m going to start using that on students and just random people in general. It won’t be historically accurate as in the case of your fam but will be fun. Thanks for this great rundown.
I feel like I just got to take that Professor Morgan class I’ve had on my bucket list. Awesome.
Cool, but the real thing includes many more antics and pop culture references.
Cool, Clay! I am distantly related to Harriet Beecher Stowe (and of course, her sister, Catherine Beecher, and brother, Henry Ward Beecher) on my maternal grandmother’s side. My maternal grandfather was related to Charles Kingsley. I don’t think there were any famous relatives in my dad’s family…they were farmers of German heritage, who landed in Pennsylvania in the 1750′s and later moved west to Ohio.
Wendy
That’s really neat Wendy! Abe Lincoln called HBS the little lady who wrote a book and started a war.
Yes, I’ve read the account of Abe and Harriet meeting…he must have towered over her…she was only about 5 feet tall! Paraphrasing the quote from the President: “So you’re the little lady who wrote the book that started this Great War!”
Awesome post! I loved it.
My mom had us read entire books on William Wallace and Robert the Bruce for school because the Scots are “our people,”.
My cool dead-ancestor story: When the English King announced that everyone must go to the Church of England. Gavin Lang (my ancestor), his brother, John, lead a bunch of men from their village to Edinburgh and delivered a signed notice of their refusal to comply. Gavin and John were instantly beheaded and their heads stuck on a stake, and the men from the village chased away. Luckily, the Lang’s had already procreated or I wouldn’t be typing this today.
Woah! That’s a crazy dead ancestor story. Wild stuff.
You’re descended from royalty!? I feel like i should curtsy or something.
Fascinating history.
How were you able to dig this far back in your family tree?
Yeah, if only those Scots would get the memo. I wasn’t even invited to Will & Kate’s wedding!
Wow! You can trace it up that far? Nice. I’d love to know mine better. Somehow, I only knew the history up to my great grandfather. The historian in my family (my grandpa’s brother) could only trace it up to his father’s siblings and him. My family was a young last name. They changed it because my ancestor was a freedom fighter from the Spaniards so he chose a sort-of Tagalog name as a sign of rebellion.
Before they changed our last name, I heard from my grandpa that we used to have a different surname and that he’s related to a famous composer in my country (they’re cousins). It’s interesting how he pointed out my similarities with George Canseco (our lack of direction). He was saying how the guy used to be there with them when they play in the band but as a banner carrier. Look at how George turned out! George is in the history books (at least the Pilipino Artists) while my grandpa and his bandmates weren’t. Somehow, George’s story makes me realize that I should explore my options more and follow my dreams. Grandpa got stuck without following his. I guess the moral of his story was that you’ll never know if your lackey would be more famous and richer than you.
Very cool. That’s a great connection. Thanks for sharing Marilag.
Once again, I must say that I love this article…you know that you’ll always get my attention when you mention Braveheart.
I’ve already told you a bit about Longshanks being a part of my family tree. I just got back from Ireland (literally just hours ago), and I went to Trim Castle where they filmed part of Braveheart. It was great to see the place where they showed my ancestor tossing his son out of the window. Made me proud…
Okay, first of all I’m mad at you for being in Ireland. Nothing personal, just the jealousy my spirit requires me to project. But I will say that Longshanks didn’t throw his son out the window but rather his sons, ahem, buddy. Third of all, glad to have you back!
Oh my! I can’t believe that I said it was his son! I’ve seen that movie, literally, a hundred times! (I’ll blame my error on the jet-lag). Yes, you’re right, it was his…special friend.
Yeah, Ireland was pretty amazing. I’ve been to a few other countries before, and as beautiful as they are, they’ve got nothing on Ireland! I have never seen a more beautiful place in my life. I would HIGHLY recommend you going there at some point in the near future.
But bring lots of sweaters because, even in July, it is COLD! Still worth the trip, though…
Thanks for the welcome back!