Sunnyside Studio

Stirling Castle

The remnant of some long dead volcano provides Stirling with a superb defensive site for its castle. From these impregnable ramparts, the Earl of Surrey and Cressingham, the commanders of the English garrison, could look out across the Forth and watch Wallace assemble his forces, knowing that if they stayed put, there was little the Scots could do to dislodge them.

Stirling from Abbey craig

The site of Stirling has been important since Roman times, commanding as it does the lowest crossing point of the Forth until the railways came. It was the key to the control of central Scotland and many battles have been fought in the area for that reason.

Statue of William Wallace

This is the statue of the hero of "Braveheart", a film which caused a massive increase in the number of visitors to his monument, requiring the construction of a huge new carpark.

The Old Stirling Bridge

A few yards upstream from this stone bridge rebuilt in 1745, it is said that it is sometimes possible, when the river is low, to see the foundations of the narrow wooden bridge that stood here in the thirteenth century.

Full of the confidence that comes from having the larger, better equipped and better trained army, Cressingham and Surrey decided to advance across the bridge, rather than march to a safe ford some miles away. When about half of the English forces were across Wallace attacked from the swampy ground along the river banks and took the north end of the bridge. The English cavalry, crowded on the narrow dry causeway which was the only area they could operate, were surrounded and unable escape the slaughter which followed.

The battle which takes place in the film is exciting and brilliantly staged, but not quite accurate in all its details.

Wallace Monument

The Wallace Monument is relatively recent, being built in Victorian times. It stands in a commanding position on the Abbey Craig. From the top, on a clear day, it is possible to see down the Forth to the east beyond Edinburgh and the hills overlooking the Clyde and Glasgow to the west. It was here in 1297 that Wallace and Andrew Murray of Moray gathered their army to challenge the English occupying Stirling Castle across the River Forth.

Wallace Monument

The Wallace Monument is relatively recent, being built in Victorian times. It stands in a commanding position on the Abbey Craig. From the top, on a clear day, it is possible to see down the Forth to the east beyond Edinburgh and the hills overlooking the Clyde and Glasgow to the west. It was here in 1297 that Wallace and Andrew Murray of Moray gathered their army to challenge the English occupying Stirling Castle across the River Forth.

There is a long association between the Bruce family and this part of Scotland. This fourteenth century keep, although substantially altered since his time, was for a while home to Robert Bruce.

Queen Margaret built the Benedictine Abbey with its church on this site in the eleventh century. The present church was built over the foundations of the original and dates from the twelfth century. These two views, contrived to disguise the renovation work being carried out, are from the east.