Royal Navy a major naval power in the North Sea. The development of naval power allowed Robert to successfully defeat English attempts to capture him in the Highlands and Islands and to blockade major English controlled fortresses at Perth and Stirling, the last forcing King Edward II to attempt the relief that resulted at English defeat at Bannockburn in 1314. Scottish naval forces allowed invasions of the Isle of Man in 1313 and 1317 and Ireland in 1315. They were also crucial in the blockade of Berwick, which led to its fall in 1318. With the Viking era at an end, and
Robert Bruce (1668–1720) Robert Bruce (1668–1720) Robert Bruce (, Roman Vilimovich Bruce; 1668–1720) was the first chief commander of Saint Petersburg. Of Scottish descent, he was the brother of Jacob Bruce and father of Alexander Romanovich Bruce. In 1683, Bruce joined the personal armed forces of Peter I, in 1695 receiving the rank of captain in the Preobrazhensky Regiment. He took part in the Azov campaigns of Peter I (1695–6) and probably accompanied Peter on his travels abroad (1697–1698). In 1700, he was appointed colonel of one of the infantry regiments, which participated in the siege of Narva. In 1702, he was at