On 23rd August 2005, the world commemorated the 700th anniversary of the judicial murder of Sir William Wallace, Guardian of Scotland. March 25th 2005 saw the 700th anniversary of Robert the Bruce being crowned King of Scots. When Mel Gibson released his film 'Braveheart' in 1995, he raised international awareness of an era of British history - 'Scotlands first War of Independence' - which had been largely ignored before. Now we are in the thick of 700th anniversaries (and there are plenty more to come!), because this war raged from 1296 to 1328.

On December 7 2006 BBC 2 Scotland televised a special programme "King of Scots" which explores the life of this extraordinary king. Sarah Crome, author of "Scotland's First War of Independence", features in the programme and explains why Robert the Bruce is often misinterpreted in Scottish History.

Sarah's book "Scotlands First War of Independence" chronicles these times in a lavishly illustrated book. This time 700 years ago, King Robert was a hunted fugitive, hated by many and preparing his comeback. Discover what happened next. The book seeks to overturn the myth of Braveheart that presents Bruce as an indecisive coward. How did Bruce fight back and win the hearts and minds of his countrymen?