 Despite being accused of being illiterate, Lewis was appointed in the hope of providing strong military leadership in his diocese which sat on the dangerous Scottish border, much in the same way as his brother, Henry, had done for the past twenty years.It was a questionable choice on the part of King Edward as Lewis was reported to be lame in both feet and his lack of mobility would seriously limit his ability to lead armed forces against the guerilla tactics of Robert the Bruce.In early 1317 Edward appealed to Pope John XXII to excommunicate Bruce and to end his attacks.