William Wallace
Wallace was a Scottish knight who led the Scots during the First War of Scottish Independence which began in 1226. He defeated the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297 after which he was rewarded with the appointment of Guardian of Scotland, one of the first in the nation's history. He was defeated at the Battle of Falkirk. Wallace attempted to make alliances with other Scottish nobles, with varying degrees of success, and also with Robert the Bruce's father, who was of the opinion that submitting to the English was the only way in which he would secure the Scottish throne for his son. He was betrayed by Robert, who invited him to a meeting in Edinburgh, only to capture him and hand him over to the English.
He was tried by a magistrate and found guilty of high treason, the punishment for which was public torture and execution. He was hanged, drawn and quartered, but to the end refused to swear allegiance to the king. He gained support from the crowd watching his execution and they called for mercy, but he would not agree to ask for mercy for himself, and so was beheaded.
Although somewhat of a controversial figure, Wallace is nonetheless revered and seen as an icon by those in Scotland who still seek independence from the British crown.
Edward Longshanks
Longshanks was actually King Edward I of England, and also known to the English as the Hammer of the Scots because of the number of rebellions he managed to put down. He was well versed in rebellions having participated in quite a few whilst waiting to become monarch himself. He was also a courageous participant in the Crusades, after which he was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1274.
Edward spent much of his reign reaffirming feudal rights; one of these was the right of a landowner to have sex with a younger woman whenever they pleased, particularly on their wedding night. This particular feudal right is what led to the attempted rape, and subsequent murder, of Murron McCullough, the catalyst for Wallace's guerrilla campaign against the English.
Longshanks was determined to bring Wales and Scotland under English rule in perpetuity, inflicting his rule on the Welsh with relative ease, but having slightly more difficulty with the Scots.
Robert the Bruce
His official title was Robert I, but he is more colloquially known as Robert the Bruce, and he was King of Scotland from 1306 until his death in 1329. He was a famous and revered warrior, leading Scotland during the First War of Independence and ultimately regaining Scotland's home rule during his reign.
He was an ally of William Wallace, although sometimes more in theory than in practice; initially betraying him by fighting alongside the English and feeding them information about Wallace's strategy, he later vowed never to be on the wrong side again. He later disowned his own father for conspiring against Wallace and handing him over to the English.
Isabella of France
Isabella was also dubbed the she-wolf of France, which on the face of it does not sound like much of a compliment. She was the wife of Edward II and was a noted diplomat, although one person's diplomacy is often another person's manipulation, and she was also considered to be somewhat of a cruel femme fatale figure more than anything else.
Whilst ostensibly working for the King against Wallace, she found herself rather taken with him and changed her allegiance, feeding him information and telling him about planned invasions and battle plans. The two eventually had a romantic relationship.
Murron McCullough
Murron was Wallace's childhood friend and confidante, and as adults, they became devoted to each other, marrying in secret. She suffered greatly under the new feudal law that allowed landowners to force young women into sex. She fought off two attempted rapes before being arrested and publicly executed to punish her for refusing to comply with feudal law, and also to warn other young women not to act in the same way.
Murron's death was in many ways the catalyst for Wallace's rebellion against the English, whom he already deeply disliked. Despite romantic attachments to Isabella and others, he never really managed to move past the grief that overtook him after her death.
