The last thing Wallace would have seen, as his heroic eyes closed for the last time, would have been Smithfield market and St. Bartholomew's Church. Davy Ross decided this was the place to hold the service to the martyred Scot.

Preparations began in earnest and Davy found Scots willing to help in all manner of ways. (You can read the background to all this in Sir David's new book which comes out shortly it is aptly titled…. 'For Freedom…..Alone' )

So it was going to happen and Davy worked tirelessly towards that goal.

The third of August was a very emotional day for David. It began at the commemoration stone to Sir William Wallace at Robroyston near Glasgow.

David addressed the gathering in his own eloquent way and informed everyone why he had undertaken this pilgrimage to Wallace. He went on to say that, it was disgraceful that the site of this great Scottish patriot's betrayal was not even signposted and that the local council should put this to rights immediately.

David then introduced Ted Christopher to the company. Ted, who is a singer and songwriter, had composed a new song to commemorate the life and death of William Wallace, and what he meant to Scotland. The words were haunting and there were few dry eyes when he finished singing. Ted had been the songwriter responsible for the Dunblane commemorative song that went to Number 1 in the charts and made a lot of money for the fund.

The Deputy Lord Provost attended, and wished David well on his Journey. David took all this in his stride, and when all the commotion died down, he once more headed off, on the start proper of his epic journey. Big David Ross hopes to raise the Scottish spirit, and unite the Scottish people to re-assess and renew their patriotic vows.

The walk itself was a physical and mental strain on David as day after day he pounded out the miles. He suffered in many ways including hallucinating, blisters and of course boredom. He was hampered by the press on his mobile phone, although he realised he had to have them on his side for all the publicity he was producing. There were times of deep distress as this was a huge undertaking for David, and thankfully all his hard training paid off. He soldiered on through the summer sun and made every Scot very proud of his endurance.

David walked steadily towards London , but was desperate to attend the commemorative events at Aberdeen and Stonehaven for William Wallace, on the 19 th and 20 th of August. David decided that if he walked extra miles every day then he could afford the time to backtrack all the way north for the weekend. By this stage in the journey, David had reached Luton and was within easy walking distance of London. His epic trek was coming near to closure. Thankfully, he would not be walking back to the north, but Dennis would be driving him there in the van.

Jim Singer opened proceedings, followed by Sir Toni Paprotny, who recited a prayer in flawless Latin. Lieutenant- Colonel Marshall Blackett, read the prayer again, but this time in English. Next on the agenda was David Wilkie, who said a few words about Wallace, then later read one of his poems dedicated to the great Scottish hero.

David Ross had just returned from his walk, and always speaks with passion; he indeed raised the crowd with his patriotic words. By the end of his talk, everyone there realised what being Scottish was all about. The procession then moved to the musical venue for the evening, which was the ‘Forum' a fantastic night was had by all. The music of Schltrum stirred the blood and the drumming and singing of, ‘Clann an Dumma' shook the building to its core.

Saturday was Stonehaven, and the weather was wonderful, with bright sunshine (God knows his own).

The procession started from the car park in Stonehaven and walked the two miles to Dunnottar Castle, climbing steeply all the time. The pathway that winds sharply downwards to the dramatic shoreline accesses the castle itself. The only ‘fly in the ointment' so to speak was local Tory councillor Wendy Agnew, who single handily removed the Saltire from the Town Hall before the procession arrived there. At least she did not manage to replace it with the Union flag, which had been her intention.

When the ceremony was over everyone went back to the town for refreshments. Later that night the event graduated to the town hall with the ever-popular Gaberlunzie, playing to a great crowd of admirers.These people know how to get a place moving and they proceeded to rock the rafters. Clann an Drumma were on again, and it was a memorable evening.

You should have seen the place. It was swimming in tartan, kilts and the sound of the pipes, with people greeting one another in such an emotional way that, somehow, even the noise of the workers repairing a wall within the precinct did not detract the growing atmosphere within the Hall.

Inside, the atmosphere was sparkling. One of the pipers, who had played at Stonehaven the previous Saturday, was already entertaining the growing crowd with a few tunes. When David arrived, the entire hall vibrated with the welcome given to him by all of us. You could hear the applauses and cheers from the outside. The SNP representatives gave a quick speech but most of us only wanted to hear what David Ross, had to say. When David spoke, the hush that followed was simply dramatic. You could have heard a pin fall. When a song relating to Wallace began, the emotion was just palpable.

The tourists simply could not believe what they saw and heard.

This was about Wallace and Scottish Patriotism in the raw so to speak. We wanted them to get the message.

Coming out of Westminster Hall, we then marched for six miles through London, the Police (again, mainly Scots) clearing the road and stopping the traffic. The day was glorious. Not a cloud in the sky (except for a Saltire seen by many at 5.30 am that day!) and a slight breeze to keep us reasonably cool.

Finally reaching Smithfield, we gathered by the plaque that marked the place were Wallace was executed. More speeches and more Scottish sound, this time by Clan An Drumma playing like they had never played before. There was fervour, passion and complete dedication to remembering Wallace.

It was then time for the speeches. Dr Fiona Watson, from Stirling University, was typically academic and status quo, even uttering the word ‘failure' in her speech.Thank God that Ted Christopher came on after her. His wonderful patriotic song ‘I'm Coming Home' made everyone cry (and I mean everyone!). There was not a dry eye to be seen and the hankies were working overtime.

The end of the service saw the coffin, now closed and draped again, being carried and piped out to the tune of ‘Lord Lovat's Lament'. And for one last mile, it was carried to the Welsh Centre behind the Alaska Highlanders Pipe Band who had specially flown in for the days' commemoration.

But the last mile was the most memorable. To see almost one thousand Saltire Flags flying in the London breeze, all the same light blue and white, was quite magnificent and exhilarating. Heads turned, people stopped at the sight of coffin, tartan, pipes and flags passing by. This had not been seen in London before.

On Sunday 11 of September, the coffin would be placed in its rightful resting place at St Kentigern Church in Lanark.

Would Scotland heed the call? Would you be there to see Scotland's greatest son settled in his final resting place? I'd like to think that you would. History must never be forgotten. England celebrated Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar. But what does he have to do with Scotland? Nothing. Wallace, however, did a lot more for our ancestors than Nelson ever did. He reminded us that Scotland's nationhood was (is) as valid as that of the English. Wallace told our folks to stand up proud and be counted. Wallace died for the concept of freedom and all of us should be grateful for the fact that without him, Scotland would have been anglicised a long time ago.

The next stage of Sir David's journey would be to Lanark for the commemoration planned for the 9 th , 10 th , and 11 th of September.

A few days before Sunday, the Baron of Lee had intimated that he would be honoured if the Spirit of Wallace could lie in state overnight in the castle's private Chapel. This was fitting indeed. (Once upon a time the seat of the Lockarts of Lee (who with Douglas and others took the heart of the Bruce to Spain on an intended Crusade, but unfortunately Douglas was cut down at the siege of the castle in Teba). The grounds may have been very familiar to Wallace. And so, on Saturday afternoon and to the sound of the pipes, carried by the very people who had carried the Spirit of Wallace in London, the precious casket, led by the Baron, Bishop David Stalker (Primus of the Celtic Church in Scotland) was taken to the Chapel. Candles burned all night. As one of the Pall Bearers was required to play the pipes, I myself had the privilege to take a corner of the coffin on the Saturday evening and the Sunday morning. This was a fantastic experience for me and I felt as if I have been a part of history.

The day had begun. Making our way to the Cartland Bridge Hotel for the procession to the Royal Burgh of Lanark.

The most spectacular part of the day was the procession taking the Sprit of Wallace to the 12th century Old St Kentigern's Church (where he married Marion and the place where she is possibly buried). The Spirit of Wallace made its way into the grounds of St Kentigern, to the sound of the pipes, to meet Marion , appearing out of the mist and followed by six monks and John Blair, who in real life had been Wallace's personal chaplain. Torches, high and low, were burning and a brazier was set aflame by the phantom appearance of Marion. Suddenly, the remains of St Kentigern's Church stood red, as if in flames itself.

Torches were distributed and lit and, to the sound of the pipes, we marched back through the Royal Burgh and its narrow streets. At one point, the Lady of Lee turned to look behind her and said to me ‘look behind you, it is a wonderful scene'. And so it was, 2.500 Scots men, women and children carrying a burning torch. The street looked like a burning river.