Clan Mackenzie in the 13th and 14th centuries, terminated in the heiress Margaret del Ard, the Lady of Erchless, who married Alexander Chisolm of Cromer c.1350. In the 14th century during the Wars of Scottish Independence the Clan Mackenzie is said to have been among the clans who fought on the side of Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Inverurie (1308) against the forces of the Clan Comyn who were rivals to the throne. Chief Iain Mac Coinnich is said to have led a force of five hundred Mackenzies at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 where the English were defeated.
Battle of Bannockburn was reopened. After the death of Edward I, his son Edward II of England came to the throne in 1307 but was incapable of providing the determined leadership his father had shown, and the English position soon became more difficult. In 1313, Bruce demanded the allegiance of all remaining Balliol supporters, under threat of losing their lands, as well as the surrender of the English forces encircling Stirling Castle. The castle was one of the most important castles held by the English, as it commanded the route north into the Scottish Highlands. It was besieged in 1314 by Robert the