The National Wallace Monument
A Victorian tower built by public subscription, topped with a giant stone crown, looks down on the field where William Wallace won his greatest victory.
Published
Quick Facts
- Location
- Abbey Craig, just outside Stirling
- Built or opened
- Foundation stone laid 24 June 1861; opened 11 September 1869
- Height
- About 67 metres (220 feet)
- Climb
- 246 steps up a spiral staircase
- Architect
- John Thomas Rochead
- Style
- Victorian Gothic tower with a crowned spire
- Commemorates
- William Wallace and the Scottish victory at Stirling Bridge, 11 September 1297
- Funded by
- Public subscription, including donations from abroad
A tower with a view of the battlefield
The monument stands on Abbey Craig, a steep volcanic crag above the River Forth. Tradition says Wallace watched the English army gather from this hill before the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297. Whether or not he stood on this very rock, the setting is perfect. From the top you look down over the flat river plain where the battle was fought. Beyond lie Stirling Castle, the Ochil Hills and, on a clear day, a huge sweep of central Scotland. The date matters too. The monument opened on 11 September 1869, exactly 572 years after Wallace and Andrew Moray beat the English army at Stirling Bridge.
The Victorians who passed round the hat
This was not a government project. The campaign took off in the 1850s, driven by the Rev. Charles Rogers, and it was paid for by public subscription. Donations came from across Scotland and from Scots and supporters overseas. The foundation stone was laid on 24 June 1861 by the Duke of Atholl, Grand Master Mason of Scotland. The architect was John Thomas Rochead of Glasgow, who gave the tower its Gothic look: a rugged shaft, turrets and a spire topped with an open stone crown. The building cost roughly £18,000, a serious sum then. It reflected a Victorian appetite for Scottish heroes, at a time when Wallace had become a symbol of national pride well beyond the Highlands and Lowlands alike.
Inside: 246 steps, a sword and a hall of heroes
The climb is a tight spiral of 246 steps, with exhibition rooms on the way up and small windows to catch your breath at. The Hall of Heroes holds marble busts of famous Scots. They include Robert Burns, Walter Scott, Adam Smith, James Watt and John Knox. The monument was always meant to honour more than one man. The sword is the star attraction. It is a huge two-handed blade about 1.63 metres (5 ft 4 in) long, and legend links it to Wallace. It was kept at Dumbarton Castle for years before coming to the monument. Stand beside it and you realise why medieval storytellers made Wallace a giant. Outside, above the entrance, a statue of Wallace by David Watson Stevenson looks out over the approach.
Myths, bridges and Hollywood
The bridge you see near the monument is not the one from the battle. Wallace's was a wooden bridge, and the stone Old Stirling Bridge nearby dates from several centuries later. The 1995 film Braveheart made the monument a magnet for visitors, but it also scrambled the story. In the film there is no bridge at all, which is rather the point of the real battle. The English army was crossing a narrow wooden bridge when the Scots attacked, trapping those who had crossed. The blue face paint is Hollywood too, and so is the kilt, which belongs to a much later period. Wallace's real life ended in London, where he was executed on 23 August 1305, but the story that grew afterwards is what the tower celebrates.
What to look out for on your visit
Stop on the way up to look at the exhibitions on Wallace, the Wars of Independence and the monument's own building. Then take the last stretch to the open-air viewing gallery under the crown. From up there, pick out Stirling Castle on its rock. The rolling country beyond is where Robert the Bruce won at Bannockburn in 1314, just a few miles away. Wallace's victory and Bruce's triumph sit in one view. Back outside, look up at the crown from the foot of the tower. It is the best way to appreciate how much stone and ambition went into a monument paid for by ordinary people.
Notable people
- William Wallace
- Andrew Moray
- John Thomas Rochead
- Rev. Charles Rogers
- David Watson Stevenson
- Robert the Bruce
Test yourself
Play the UK quizMore to see nearby
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