Denny and Dunipace are neighbouring villages overlooking the River Carron – Denny to the south and Dunipace to the north. Both were on our way from Stirling to Falkirk, which was convenient as they were both family history places I wanted to visit (see below).
Legend has it that William Wallace’s maternal uncle was a clergyman who lived in the area, so Wallace, born in 1270, visited here regularly as a child. His uncle was known as Argyle in the movie Braveheart, and after Wallace’s parents were killed, it is believed that he came to live here with his uncle.
In one of my favourite parts of the movie, Uncle Argyle educated Wallace in Latin and French, and instilled in him the values of liberty and patriotism. He taught him about the dream of Scottish independence and freedom, and famously advised him:
‘Liberty is the best of all things my son, never live under a slavish bond.’
Following Wallace’s brutal execution in 1305, his uncle is believed to have requested the monks of Cambuskenneth Abbey, 10 miles north of Dunipace, to secretly retrieve a small part of Wallace’s body for a proper Christian burial.
It is also believed that King Robert the Bruce’s body stayed in Denny for a night en route to his final resting place at Dunfermline Abbey in June 1329.
Little did I know that these significant moments in Scottish history happened in these two little villages where my ancestors lived!
Family history connection
At least three generations of my Mum’s Bruce family were born here:
John Bruce was born in Dunipace in 1715 and married Isobel Taylor who was born in 1718, not sure where.
James Bruce was born in Dunipace in 1740. He married Agnes Denovan who was also born in Dunipace, in 1747.
James Bruce was born in Denny in 1774. He married Agnes Falconer from Midlothian in Edinburgh – more on this later. They were the grandparents of Archibald who lived in Greenock, and the great grandparents of Alexander, the first Bruce in our family to live in Australia.
