Editing Battle of Bannockburn (section)

==Background==

[[Edward I]] had wanted to expand England to prevent a foreign power such as France from capturing territories in the British Isles. But he needed Scotland's allegiance, which led to his campaign to capture Scotland.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Blumberg |first=Arnold |author-link=Arnold Blumberg |date=2014 |title=Scotland's First War of Independence: Historical introduction |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/48578347 |journal=Medieval Warfare |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=6–8 |issn=2211-5129 |jstor=48578347 |access-date=3 May 2022 |archive-date=2 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220502165644/https://www.jstor.org/stable/48578347 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Wars of Scottish Independence]] between England and Scotland began in 1296. Initially, the English were successful under the command of Edward I: they won victories at the [[Battle of Dunbar (1296)]] and at the [[Capture of Berwick (1296)]].<ref name="Black">Black, Jeremy. (2005). ''The Seventy Great Battles of All Time''. pp. 71–73. Thames & Hudson Ltd. {{ISBN|9780500251256}}.</ref> The removal of [[John Balliol]] from the Scottish throne also contributed to the English success.<ref name="Black"/> However, the Scots defeated the English at the [[Battle of Stirling Bridge]] in 1297. This was countered by Edward I's victory at the [[Battle of Falkirk (1298)]].<ref name="Black"/> By 1304, Scotland had been conquered, but in 1306 [[Robert the Bruce]] seized the Scottish throne and the war was reopened.<ref name="Black"/>

After the death of Edward I in 1307, his son [[Edward II of England]] was crowned as king, but was incapable of providing the determined leadership his father had shown, and the English position soon became more difficult.<ref name="Black"/>

In 1313, Bruce demanded the allegiance of all remaining Balliol supporters, under threat of losing their lands. He also demanded the surrender of the English garrison at [[Stirling Castle]],<ref name="bbc"/> one of the most important castles held by the English, as it commanded the route north into the [[Scottish Highlands]].<ref name="Black"/> It was besieged in 1314 by Bruce's younger brother [[Edward Bruce]], and the English decided that if the castle was not relieved by mid-summer it would be surrendered to the Scots.<ref name="Black"/>

The English could not ignore this challenge, and prepared and equipped a substantial campaign. Edward II requested from England, Wales and Ireland 2,000 heavily armoured cavalry and 13,000 infantry. It is estimated that no more than half the infantry actually arrived, but the English army was still by far the largest ever to invade Scotland. The Scottish army probably numbered around 7,000 men,<ref name="bbc"/> including no more than 500 mounted troops.<ref name="Black"/> Unlike the English, the Scottish cavalry was probably not equipped for charging enemy lines and suitable only for skirmishing and reconnaissance. The Scottish infantry was likely armed with axes, swords and pikes, and included only a few bowmen.<ref name="Black"/>

The precise numerical advantage of the English forces relative to the Scottish forces is unknown, but modern researchers estimate that the Scottish faced English forces one-and-a-half to three times their number.<ref name="watson">{{Cite web |last=Watson |first=F. |date=3 February 2011 |title=In Our Time, The Battle of Bannockburn |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00y2srx |access-date= |website=[[BBC Radio 4]] |language=en-GB |archive-date=16 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616082503/http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00y2srx/In_Our_Time_The_Battle_of_Bannockburn |url-status=live }}</ref>