A family of great distinction and with the motto of ‘Quite ready’, they were at the very heart of the bloody struggle for the nation’s freedom and independence, with the gifted commander Sir Andrew de Moray playing a key role in the freedom fighter William Wallace’s victory over the English at the battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297, only to die later of wounds he had received.
One branch of the family, the Tullibardine Murrays, rose to great power and influence, acquiring through marriage vast estates throughout Perthshire, while the Murrays of Atholl benefited from the favour of King James V1 – later James 1 of England – through elevation to the peerage and the gift of Gowrie Palace at Scone.
