Call for returning Wallace document

Published on Friday 28 October 2005 13:58

A SCOTTISH parliamentarian is seeking the return of a document once carried by William Wallace.

A letter, known as The Safe Conduct, was in Wallace's possession when he was captured in August 1305 in Robroyston, near Glasgow. Written by the King of France, the paperwork was meant to grant the Scots hero safe passage to visit the Pope. However the document has been archived in London since Wallace was tried and executed on charges of treason.

Jim Mather, Highlands and Islands MSP and shadow enterprise minister, on Wednesday formally lodged a motion at the Scottish Parliament to have the document returned north of the border. Mather is a member of the Scottish National Party, which this year hosted a memorial service for Wallace at Westminster Hall in London to commemorate 700 years since his death.

"In 2005, the 700th anniversary of William Wallace's death, I feel it would be highly appropriate if this document were to be returned to Scotland," Mather said. "Once here it could be properly displayed and provide a rare tangible link to the national hero, who led the nation at the start of the Wars of Independence."

The document currently rests in the National Archives at Kew. However, Mather is calling on the National Library of Scotland along with the Scottish Museums and the National Archives of Scotland to campaign for the letter's permanent return to Scotland.