Epilogue
As 1314 came to a close, news of appalling events arrived at the royal court of Scotland from across the channel.
Grand Master of the Knights Templar, Sir Jacques Molay, and some of his close associates had been immolated on slow pyres to maximise their suffering. Torture failed to reveal the resting place of the Templar treasure and King Philippe offered death as his final recourse. Molay issued a visionary threat, though smoke stole his sight and fire blistered the soles of his feet. Both of his enemies, he cried out in dire extremis, would die before the year was out. He would see they suffered the wrath of God for their betrayal.
King Philippe and Pope Clement died by year's end and Christians across the continent shivered in terror.
Another who died in far off France at his ancestral home was King John of Scotland. He had been stripped of his powers by Edward I, but to many Scots he remained the rightful king. It was the end of an era in which Scotland and her people had suffered terribly. Now, King Robert reigned, but his nemesis had left a legacy of hatred in his son, John.
Despite pressure from within his kingdom by his hostile northern barons, Edward II failed to respond to repeated Scottish entreaties for peace. He played on whilst his power base disintegrated and his enemies grew strong. Thus, the future held no rest for Robert the Bruce. Scotland's independence was still very much in question.
♣♣♣♣
YOU ARE READING
Sisters of The Bruce 1292-1314 (Abridged Version )
Historical FictionSisters of The Bruce 1292-1314 offers a finely-drawn tale of Robert the Bruce's sisters and the challenges these remarkable women face Set against the wild and perilous background of Scotland in the late thirteenth century, the adventurous lives of...
