Andrew Moray

Andrew Moray, also known as Andrew de Moray, Andrew of Moray, or Andrew Murray, was an esquire, who became one of Scotland's war-leaders during the First Scottish War of Independence. Moray, son and heir to Sir Andrew Moray of Petty, initially raised a small band of supporters at Avoch Castle in early summer 1297 to fight King Edward I of England. He soon had successfully regained control of the north for the absent Scots king, John Balliol. Moray subsequently merged his army with that of William Wallace, and jointly led the combined army to victory at the Battle of Stirling Bridge on 11 September 1297. In the fighting at Stirling, Moray was severely wounded. He died at an unknown date and place that year. Childhood Andrew Moray the younger of Petty was born late in the second half of the 13th century. The date and place of his birth are unknown. Andrew's father, Sir Andrew Moray of Petty, was an influential north Scotland baron and Justiciar of Scotia (1289?–1296), and his mother was the historically-anonymous fourth daughter of John Comyn I of Badenoch. Nothing is known of the formative years of Moray the younger's life. Similarly to other members of his social class, he likely embarked in his youth on the training for knighthood. This would have entailed him being fostered in the household of a mature knight outwith his family, where he would undergo training in horsemanship and in the use of weapons, he would care for the knight's armour and weapons, and care for the knight's horses, and he would serve the knight meals at the table. The Morays of Petty’s place in Scottish society