How Did William Wallace Rise To Power

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William Wallace (1270 - 1305) was a significant individual in Medieval Europe. He was a Scottish knight who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence. He defeated an English army along with Andrew Moray who died from injuries that he obtained at the Battle of Sterling Bridge in September 1297. This was significant to Scotland’s fight for independence as Wallace led the rebellion against Edward I of England. This victory marked great significance in Wallace’s rise to power as he was named the Guardian of Scotland the following March. In his military and social presence Wallace significantly influenced not only Scottish history and Medieval Europe but also the world today.
William Wallace was a well-known and powerful
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One amazing thing about his power that he had was his original position on the feudal pyramid. Wallace was born a knight and in Medieval Europe it was almost impossible to move any higher up. However after his great victory at Sterling Bridge he was given more power and fame by being named the Guardian of Scotland. This power can be demonstrated through a letter that he and Moray wrote to the mayors and communes of Lübeck and Hamburg in 1297. This letter is more commonly known as the Lübeck letter. In this letter Wallace and Moray write to the mayors and communes to tell them that they can have access to all of the ports in the Kingdom of Scotland as it says from this excerpt; “make it be proclaimed amongst your merchants that they can have secure access to all ports of the kingdom of Scotland”. For him to have that much power to be able to freely give out secure access to the ports of Scotland shows just how powerful he was. Although this power didn’t last very long it is still a remarkable feat to be able to gain so much power from being one of about 4000 knights. Also the fact that he shaped other European cities, like Hamburg and Lübeck, shows that his social status greatly influenced the way Medieval Europe was and also the way Europe and the rest of the world is