The Declaration of Arbroath was and has been unequalled in its eloquent plea for the liberty of man. From the darkness of mediaeval minds it shone a torch upon future struggles which its signatories could not have foreseen or understood. A very important thing to note is the passionate sincerity of the men who believed it, who were placing a new and heady nationalism above the feudal obligations that had divided their loyalties less than a quarter of a century before. In its mixture of defiance and supplication, nonsensical history and noble thought, two things make the Declaration of Arbroath the most important document in Scottish history. Firstly it set the will and the wishes of the people above the King. Secondly, the manifesto affirmed the nation's independence in a way no battle could, and justified it with a truth that is beyond nation and race.