Robert Bruce, Lord of Liddesdale Robert Bruce, Lord of Liddesdale Sir Robert Bruce, Lord of Liddesdale (died 11 August 1332) was an illegitimate son of King Robert the Bruce and an unknown mother. He was knighted and awarded the royal arms at the Battle of Bannockburn. His father made him Lord of Liddesdale after William II de Soules was found guilty of treason at the Black Parliament of 1320. It has been suggested that he may have been the father of Thomas Bruce, 1st Baron of Clackmannan, but there is no clear evidence for this. Faced with Edward Balliol's invasion of Scotland, he and Donnchadh
Robert the Bruce appear not to have expected the Scots to give battle here, and as a result had kept their forces in marching, rather than battle, order, with the archers − who would usually have been used to break up enemy spear formations − at the back, rather than the front, of the army. The English cavalry found it hard to operate in the cramped terrain and were crushed by Robert's spearmen. The English army was overwhelmed and its leaders were unable to regain control. Edward II was dragged from the battlefield, hotly pursued by the Scottish forces, and only just escaped