Sir William Wallace was one of the greatest heroes in Scotland's long struggle for independence from the English yoke. D.J. Gray probes the character and life of this resolute, and at times pitiless, warrior. Wallace raised a people's army to fight against the forces of Edward I, and his victory at the battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297 resulted in his elevation to the status of Guardian of Scotland. However, furious at the success of a man he regarded as a guerrilla, King Edward relentlessly pursued Wallace to his death. Remembered today as the architect of Scottish independence, Wallace's story gives a curious insight into the mind of the modern freedom fighter.