Join Dan Snow and Helen Carr in this full episode about the definitive story of the Wars of Scottish Independence, from the rebellion of William Wallace to the rise of Robert the Bruce. Discover how Scotland fought for its freedom against England's King Edward I, culminating in the crushing Scottish victory at the Battle of Bannockburn. Historian Helen Carr, author of 'Sceptered Isle', joins us to explain the pivotal century that forever changed the course of English and Scottish history. 0:00 - England vs Scotland: A Troubled History 4:24 - The Great Cause: A Kingdom Without a King 15:06 - William Wallace's Rebellion & The Battle of Stirling Bridge 25:15 - The Rise of Robert the Bruce 35:31 - The Battle of Bannockburn: Scotland's Greatest Victory 48:02 - The Legacy of the Wars of Independence Produced by Mariana Des Forges, edited by Natija Grauzinyte & the channel manager is Vilde Øksnes. Join Dan and the team for the first-ever LIVE recording of Dan Snow's History Hit on Friday 12th September 2025! To celebrate 10 years of the podcast, Dan is putting on a special show of signature storytelling, never-before-heard anecdotes from his often stranger-than-fiction career as well as answering the burning questions you've always wanted to ask! Get tickets here, before they sell out: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/dan-snows-history-hit/ You can find more Dan Snow's History Hit on the audio podcast here: https://podfollow.com/dan-snows-history-hit/view Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. All music from Epidemic Sounds. #DanSnowsHistoryHit #HistoryPodcast #ScottishHistory #EnglishHistory