Bruce Routs Edward II: Scotland Wins Independence
Robert the Bruce caught Edward II's English army strung out along a narrow pass at Byland Abbey in Yorkshire on October 14, 1322, and routed them so thoroughly that the English king barely escaped capture. Bruce had sent his Highlanders scaling the cliffs above the pass, a maneuver the English considered impossible. The attack panicked Edward's rearguard, and the retreat became a rout. Edward abandoned his treasury and personal belongings as he fled to Bridlington and then by boat to York. The defeat was so humiliating that England effectively abandoned military operations against Scotland. The Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton in 1328 formally recognized Scottish independence, vindicating a struggle that had begun with William Wallace's rebellion 30 years earlier.
October 14, 1322
704 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Scotland
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England
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Edward II of England
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Robert the Bruce
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King Edward II
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Battle of Old Byland
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Robert the Bruce
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his father the king
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Battle of Old Byland
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Yorkshire
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Wars of Scottish Independence
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Scotland
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Unglück von Eyemouth
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Hurrikan
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