(Newswire.net — December 22, 2014) Thomson, Illinois — If you thought you learned all there is to know about William Wallace by watching Braveheart, think again.
So says historian and audio theater producer Bill Heid, who, in a new blog post makes the case that while Braveheart did a nice job of putting the 14th-century Scottish hero on the map, it missed the mark in historical accuracy.
For instance, Wallace’s sole motivation was not vengeance, as Braveheart implied.
“While the film teaches audiences that Wallace was a vengeful leader, a self-proclaimed ‘savage,’ the real William Wallace was firm but diplomatic while serving as guardian,” Heid wrote. “He also attempted solving political problems through ‘representational’ initiatives, establishing parliaments to share the power with Scotland’s guardians, and keeping the Scottish church heavily involved in the establishment of the country, instead of looking to Scottish nobility as the sole way to establish unity in the Scotland.”
Heid is the executive producer of a new audio theater CD set, In Freedom’s Cause, that separates fact from fiction and tells the real story of Wallace.
Heid’s latest blog, “5 More William Wallace Myths From Mel Gibson’s Braveheart,” also says the movie wrongly showed Wallace as being the biological father of Isabella of France’s first child.
“At the end of the film,” Heid wrote,” “she alludes to her first child’s father being Wallace, not her husband. Historically speaking, the event was impossible. Isabella was born between 1294 and 1295. Wallace was killed in in 1305, putting Isabella between 9 and 10 years old at the time of his execution and therefore younger than this when the affair is supposed to have taken place. The event was historically impossible and clearly just another chance to add a ‘sinful twist’ to the real story.”
Heid wrote, “Films have become the most pervading teaching tool in modern culture.”
In Freedom’s Cause features Skandar Keynes (Edmund of The Chronicles of Narnia series), Joanne Froggatt (Anna Bates of Downton Abbey), Billy Boyd (Pippin of The Lord Of The Rings) and James Cosmo (Campbell, Father Christmas of Braveheart and The Chronicles of Narnia, respectively), as well as a score by composer John Campbell (Lamplighter Theatre, Focus on the Family Radio Theatre, Adventures in Odyssey).
For more information on In Freedom’s Cause, visit InFreedomsCause.com.