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→Death of William Wallace
After the defeat at Falkirk, Wallace may have left for France or even Rome for a period of time. It is possible he was seeking assistance from the French and Pope for the Scottish cause. Sometime around 1304, Wallace likely returned to England and continued to raid parts of English occupied Scotland. The movie depicts an aging Edward I as being tormented by William Wallace. More likely, Edward I probably did not consider Wallace a major threat at this point and Wallace was more in a desperate state.
In fact, because he probably now had a weakened position in Scotland, Wallace was betrayed, as suggested in the movie, by a Scottish noble (John de Menteith) who was loyal to Edward in 1305. Wallace was captured and soon put on trail for treasonat Westminster Palace, where he did seem to say that he was not guilty of treason, the charge he was tried with, because he never claimed loyalty to the English crown, as depicted in the movie. However, he was drawn and quarteredalso charged with other offences. Among the charges brought against him were those related to his pillaging of civilians, which was probably at least partially true. By the end of August 1305, Wallace was found guilty and drawn and quartered, a death reserved for traitors. Wallace's body parts and head were displayed in different parts of England to make an example against those considering of revolting against the English king.
==Conclusion==
Much of William Wallace's life has now been steeped in myth, where in actuality very little is known about him. Most of what we do know deriving from primary accounts center around the battles from 1297-1298 and when he was captured in August 1305. Nevertheless, William Wallace did, for various reason, gain a symbolic importance. Later stories, such as <i>Exploits and Death of William Wallace </i> helped to create a romantic and tragic character, perhaps more similar to later figures rather than William Wallace.
