Braveheart

On a day when we have been remembering men and women who died for their country, maybe it was appropriate that this afternoon we visited the statue of William Wallace. He fought his campaign to keep Scotland free  way back in the thirteenth century, and died, not on the battlefield but on the scaffold in London. 

This statue is the first erected to his memory, and it was not placed on its pedestal till 1814. At  21 and a half feet high and  standing on a ridge above the River Tweed it makes quite an impression.  In its original coat of white paint, it must have been visible for miles.  Now trees have grown up around it and the stone is its natural red colour. 

I've put in an extra which shows the whole figure, complete with winged helmet. I'm not sure about the historical accuracy of any of it, but that touch strikes me as a little bit fanciful.