The situation in Scotland was building into civil war, infighting between rival families and rival towns was heating up, as well as the fight against English occupation. Brawling turned to riots - riots turned to ambush and sporadic battles. Sir Malcolm Wallace was back in the south with his son Malcolm when one of these ambush type battles in 1291 at Loudoun Hill in Irvine saw the death of William's father. This was the start of William's personal resentment of the English which would later develop into utter hatred.
He was now around 19 years of age, his mother was devastated and his older brother Sir Malcolm Wallace junior was now the head of the family. This is now the time for William to cast of the binds of the church and turn to his sword for the first time. He had grown up watching the people around him (his kinfolk) being split by infighting backed by the hand of the English. The cruel treatment of his oppressed country, the exile of his mother into hiding, the death of his father by an Englishman called Fenwick at a minor scuffle in Irvine: it was all too much for this 19 year old boy in a giants body to take.
Throughout his life so far he would have been protected as a scholar of the church and the talk on the lips of his friends, who would also have had fathers and brothers already with sword in hand ready for the fight, would surely have been revenge. As a Scot he would have been more than ready to stand with his family and claim their rights in their own lands. Bear in mind that his first teachings had already installed in him the principals of liberty and the rights of the individual.
The moment when he would strike the first blow in relation for his family's sufferings was not far off.
Dundee castle was well under the control of the English and was now owned by Brian Fitz-Alan of Bedale, he had placed the castle under the control of a constable named Selby, this man was a hardened veteran with a great thirst for blood, and in particular the blood of the Scots. Selby had a son who was just slightly older than William. On a cold December day in 1291, young Selby caught sight of William, who not only stood out from the crowd as being someone worth picking a fight with because of his size, but also because of the bright green clothes that he wore.
Young Selby, accompanied with a number of English friends pulled William aside and began to make remarks about his attire. "Thou Scot, abide; what devil clothed thee in so gay a garment? An Irish mantle were the right apparel for thy kind; a Scottish knife under thy belt to carry; rough shoes upon thy boorish feet." In saying these he was basically demanding the handsome dirk at William's belt. William's response was swift and dramatic; grabbing the Englishman by the collar, he drew his blade and thrust it through his assailant's heart.
Selby's friends made a move on William, but the crowd which was quickly gathering around the dead Selby made it too difficult for these young men to draw their swords. This gave William just the few moments that it took to strike out with his dirk, kill or wound most of the gang and make his escape.
He ran to the house of his uncle where he was greeted by the house keeper, he told her of what had just happened and she covered him in a red cloak and sat him in the corner of the room at the spinning-wheel. Moments later when the English guards came hunting for the young William they passed his uncle's house when they realised that the only occupants were two elderly ladies weaving and spinning. The ruse worked. It was announced that afternoon that there was a warrant out for the murderer of Selby's son, if the town didn't bring forth the murderer then the whole town would be burnt to the ground and everyone within it.
William made his way home to his mother who having already heard the news was beside herself with worry. Everyone knew that it was William that they were after as no one else could fit the description of the man they wanted.
