2. Robert was born on the 11 th July 1274 into aristocratic Scottish family. Through his father he was distantly related to the Scottish royal family his mother had Gaelic antecedents

3. And when it comes to the fight Let each man set his heart will and strength To humble our foes’ great pride. They will come arrayed on horse And advance on you at no small speed; Meet them with spears boldly, And think then of the great ill That they and theirs have done to us And are still determined to do. Bruce’s advice to his troops before Bannockburn in John Barbour’s epic poem ‘The Bruce’ c.1377. From modern translation by A.A.M.Duncan.

4. Scotland and England are two nations divided by their experience of history. That divide was never wider than during the Wars of Independence in the 13th and 14th centuries when a chance event brought an era of relative friendship to an end in violent conflict.

5. The Declaration of Arbroath is without doubt the most famous document in Scottish history. Like the American Declaration of Independence, which is partially based on it, it is seen by many as the founding document of the Scottish nation. It was drafted on the 6th April 1320 - a day the United States of America has declared to be Tartan Day.

6. Robert died on 7 June 1329. He was buried at Dunfermline. He requested that his heart be taken to the Holy Land, but it only got as far as Spain. It was returned to Scotland and buried in Melrose Abbey.