Henry de Bohun Henry de Bohun Sir Henry de Bohun (died 23 June 1314) was an English knight, the grandson of Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford. He was killed on the first day of the Battle of Bannockburn by Robert the Bruce. Riding in the vanguard of heavy cavalry, de Bohun caught sight of the Scottish king who was mounted on a small palfrey "(ane gay palfray Li till and joly)" armed only with a battle-axe. De Bohun lowered his lance and charged, but Bruce stood his ground. At the last moment Bruce manoeuvred his mount nimbly to one side, stood
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