Time Team
Soldiers in Siege
Four years ago he stayed here in this proudest of castles by the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth. Yet William Wallace was a very different man then. In 1296 the English Sheriff of Clydesdale was still walking this earth, unaware that by May the next year he would be killed in bloody revenge for the murder of Wallace's beloved wife.
In the years that followed 10,000 English foot soldiers and 300 cavalrymen faced Wallace and his fearsome army at Stirling Bridge. The rebels outsmarted King Edward's men and returned to their homes victorious. As for Wallace, he became Guardian of Scotland and vowed to put John Balliol back on Scotland's throne.
Now the long-fought battle against King Edward's army has come here to Caelaverock on this strategic spot from where we control the South-west entrance to Scotland. The local farming folk call it the Island of Caerlaverock, surrounded as it is by wetland and marshes. To its very environment Caerlaverock owes its strength, granted a military advantage by the surging tides of the Solway and the Nith and invulnerable to the element of surprise as it can be approached only from the narrow stretch between Lochar Moss and the Nith.
Although confident in her geographical and physical strength, we keep always a full stock of supplies here at Caerlaverock in case of attack. The castle is ever prepared to defend itself and its country from invaders from south of the border. An army of 60 men and ample provisions remains here at all times strengthened by our siege engines. Good walls and good ditches complete our defenses.
In the name of Wallace we fight for Scotland's independence and the return of King John. With Andrew Murray dead just two months after Stirling Bridge the whole country, north and south has united behind this lowland hero. After the bloody defeat at Falkirk in 1298 so many Scottish castles fell into English hands that we had no doubt that Edward (Hammer of the Scots) would do all in his power to capture Caerlaverock.
For quite a time now our garrison has been a thorn in the side of the English invaders, and just some months ago our own commander, Robert Cunningham, fell victim to their brutality. The force occupying Lochmaben was commanded by Robert Felton and it was he who placed poor Cunningham's head on a pole and raised it above the tower at Lochmaben.
There had never been any doubt that we would fight to the death against the invading force, but that one despicable act strengthened our resolve even further.
They came in great number, King Edward's men, in the height of summer to take control of this magnificent fortress. It was July 10th and we were ready for them. 3,000 soldiers and a vast array of weaponry and siege engines was a terrifying force, but for days we stood firm. Their King was enraged at such defiance, and when finally they broke down our defenses he vowed to have each and every defender hanged.
Yet I and 20 of my garrison remain alive, imprisoned now at Newcastle, yet defiant until the end. They may have taken the magnificent Caerlaverock, but the time will come when the English will be thrown out of Caerlaverock and of Scotland herself. Until then we can only pray that Wallace and his courageous warriors will defend our land and, in time, set its people free.