One man was responsible for provoking the peoples of Britain into an awareness of their nationhood, and he was England's own home-grown Caesar - Edward I. In 1774, those made curious by his fearsome reputation opened his tomb. The man they found inside was every bit as awesome as contemporaries had recorded, dressed in the purple robe of a Roman emperor, an impressive six foot two tall, fully justifying his nickname, Longshanks. Upon that stark marble tomb, the only ornamentation reads "Edwardus Primus Scottorum malleus hic est. Hammer of the Scots."


这场关乎王权与理念的生死之争，促使英格兰的统治者萌生了建立统一国家的念头。在促进不列颠人民国家意识萌芽的的过程中，有一个人起到了不容忽视的作用。对英国历史来说，他堪比凯撒大帝，他就是爱德华一世。1774年，一些为对其威名，感到好奇的人打开了他的坟墓。墓中人全身上下所散发的威严，丝毫不逊于史书的描述。他身着罗马皇帝的紫色长袍，身高足有六英尺二英寸[1.88米]，完美地诠释了他的绰号，长腿。那座大理石坟墓上唯一的碑文写到爱德华一世，苏格兰之锤。