Even in the foggy annals of Scottish history there is no character more fascination than Marion Braidfute, the wife of the great Scottish knight William Wallace. Although it is difficult to turn her history into a story many aspects open a new page in Scotland’s fight for freedom and having a face to Wallace’s legend she adds a human side to this tale.
Early Life
Marion Braidfute grew up in a noble Scottish family in the last third of the 13th century: Scotland was in the middle of a political crisis. She was born in Lamington, Lanarkshire, and the family was rather wealthy, and owned large possessions in the given area.
In her position as the daughter of a small baron, her education, being a girl of this status, would have been standard for any woman of her rank and would have included necessary training to run a household and uphold her family’s dignity.
Career
It may seem strange to even have a ‘career’ for a noblewoman of the 13th century, however Marion had a very important and complex position in society. This was so as lady of the castle in the Scottish nobility, overseeing her family’s affairs, the land and social networks.
Marion Braidfute role involved diplomatic skills, good managerial skills, societal, and political processing skills in what could be described as medieval Scotland. Marion of course would have her greatest historical impact through her relationship with William Wallace and the Scottish freedom fighters.
While documentation regarding her active participation in the struggle is rather sketchy, as the wife of Wallace she would have been living at the vortex of the struggle offering succor and shelter to the nascent freedom fighting movement.
About Spouse: William Wallace
Marion Braidfute marriage to William Wallace is truly one of the most romantic apologies in the Scottish historical narrative. Their wedding, which was rumored to have happened around 1297, received him right at the time he was struggling to assert himself as the Scottish freedom fighter against the English.
Their love was a strain of passion and grief, and they represented particular human consequences of the Scottish war against English domination. It is a matter of history where William Wallace and the young woman met to spend their lives together, but they met in Lanark, a place that William Wallace used to frequent a lot.
Their love and subsequent wedding, happened even as William Wallace was emerging as a symbol of rebellion against the English rule. Its duration may have been short, but they devoted their married life to the Scottish struggle.
Today, the story of Marion Braidfute plays an unintentional second fiddle to the legendary Victorian status of her husband “William Wallace”. She deserved to be remembered for her activism in the Scottish independence movement to which such women contributed immensely though unsung.
Marion Braidfute remains a lasting symbol of that personal bravery and suffering which had been the lot of Scotland in this struggle for liberty.
