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Battle
of Bannockburn Chess Set
A187
In
the Battle of Bannockburn chess set, the artists and sculptors at
SAC have captured a pivotal moment in Scottish history. The
patriotic quest of Robert the Bruce, King of Scots, to free his
land of foreign domination reached its climax at the Battle of
Bannockburn on 24th June 1314.
By
the summer of 1314 only Stirling Castle remained in the grip of
Scotland 's English overlords. It was just south of here at the
Burn (or small stream) at Bannock that the Scottish army prepared
for the decisive set-piece battle against the army of King Edward
II of England.
The
set features many of the historic characters from this famous
battle. The Scot’s side is led by Robert the Bruce, King
Robert I who was famously heartened by the tenacious spider to
persist in his struggle against the English. He is accompanied by
his queen Elizabeth de Burgh who was reunited with King Robert
after being captured eight years earlier. The English are
represented by Edward II who reigned from 1284 until 1327 when he
was deposed, imprisoned and horrifically killed at the behest oh
his wife, the Queen of England, Isabella of France. The rook on
both sides is the Tower of Old Sterling Castle which overlooked
the battle from its site on top of an ancient volcanic rock.
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