BattlefieldsSiege of Berwick by Wallace 1297 — Aftermath
Medieval

Siege of Berwick by Wallace 1297 — Aftermath

1297
Berwickshire, Scotland
Also known as: Wallace presses Berwick after Stirling Bridge · Scottish pressure on Berwick 1297
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Siege
Location
Berwickshire, Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Scotland (Wallace)
Forces
English garrison of Berwick
VS
Victor
England (Berwick garrison held)
Forces
Wallace with Scottish post-Stirling Bridge force
Outcome
Wallace could not take Berwicks strengthened walls despite applying pressure in the weeks after Stirling Bridge; the garrison held
The Battle

History & Significance

Berwick was the prize Wallace sought most urgently after Stirling Bridge. Its walls — reinforced by Edward I after the 1296 massacre — were too strong for assault without siege engines Wallace did not possess. The English garrison held out. Berwicks failure to fall meant that Scotland retained a powerful English military and commercial centre deep within its territory. It would not fall to Scotland until Bruces night seizure in 1318. Wallaces inability to take Berwick foreshadowed the limits of his resources.

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