The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #70688   Message #1209743
Posted By: GUEST
18-Jun-04 - 05:50 AM
Thread Name: Folklore: Braveheart...again
Subject: RE: Folklore: Braveheart...again
Yes, something interesting about the taking of Bruce's heart to Holy Land to be buried there is that the Scottish party set off and sailed following the coast. By the time they came near Southern Spain and saw the Moors (still there until 1492), the palm trees and the unbearable heat, they came to the conclusion they'd already arrived in Holy Land. Of course, the presence of Spanish Christian knights attacking the Moorish cities must have helped to complete the picture.
Finally, they joined the Christian army and, in one of the raids, the small chest containing the heart was lost. A nobler version is included in the 'Lays of the Scottish Knights'.

I think that Braveheart is a nice combination of history, fiction, oral tradition (Murron's death is based on a traditional ballad) and the success that follows every piece of art where 'a group of poor ragged but brave men opposes and beats the best army in the world'.