Battle of Harlaw
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Harlaw was a Scottish clan
battle fought on 24 July 1411 just north of Inverurie
in Aberdeenshire. It was one of a series of battles fought during the Middle Ages
between the baron
s of northeast Scotland against those from the west coast.
The battle was fought to resolve competing claims to the Earldom of Ross, a large region of northern Scotland
. Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, Regent
of Scotland, had taken control of the earldom as guardian of his niece Euphemia Leslie
. This claim was contested by Donald, Lord of the Isles, who had married Euphemia's aunt Mariota
. Donald invaded Ross
with the intention of seizing the earldom by force.
First he defeated a force of Mackays
at Dingwall
. He captured the castle and then advanced on Aberdeen
with 10,000 clansmen. Near Inverurie he was met by 1,000–2,000 of the local Gentry
, many in armour, hastily assembled by the Earl of Mar
. After a day of fierce fighting there was no clear victor; Donald had lost 900 men before retreating back to the Western Isles, and Mar had lost 500. The latter could claim a strategic victory in that Aberdeen was saved, and within a year Albany had recaptured Ross and forced Donald to surrender. However Mariota was later awarded the earldom of Ross in 1424 and the Lordship of the Isles
would keep the title for much of the 15th century.
The ferocity of the battle gave it the nickname "Red Harlaw". It is commemorated by a 40 foot (12 m) high memorial on the battlefield near the town of Inverurie
, supposedly by the church at Chapel of Garioch, and by ballads and music.
During the Dark Ages, the territory of Scotland was divided between the Gaelic kingdoms of Dál Riata
on the western seaboard and Alba
in the southeast, and Pictish kingdoms in the northeast of which Fortriu
was the most important. Viking influence increased in the west, with the Gaelic-Vikings that became Lords of the Isles taking control of much of Dál Riata in 1156. The Gaels of Alba acquired Brythonic
elements from the conquest of the Kingdom of Strathclyde
in the 11th century and increasingly absorbed French and Germanic culture, influences which also spread to the Pictish areas of the northeast. The lands of Fortriu became part of the great Mormaerdom (kingdom) of Moray, which was conquered by Alba in 1130
and fragmented into territories that were semi-independent of the King in Edinburgh.
Thus there was a long history to conflicts between the Moray gentry and the clans of the West Coast, but some historians present Harlaw as a clash between the Scottish Highlands
and Lowlands
, or between Celt and Teuton. John Hill Burton
(1809–1881) claimed that in Lowland Scotland Harlaw "was felt as a more memorable deliverance even than that of Bannockburn. What it was to be subject to England the country knew and disliked; to be subdued by their savage enemies of the mountains opened to them sources of terror of unknown character and extent". However Sir Robert Rait
(1874–1936) detected no racial antipathy in the two contemporary accounts of the Scotichronicon
and the Book of Pluscarden, and viewed Harlaw not as a conflict between races, but between two groups of Scots of which one spoke English and the other Gaelic. Rait mentions Buchanan's view that it was simply a raid for plunder.
to Ross
and Inverness-shire
, with superiority over the outlying lands of Nairn
and Aberdeenshire
. In 1370 Uilleam (William), Earl of Ross
received a charter from King David II
, confirming his right to the title and directing that in the absence of male heirs, the entirety of the earldom, titles and lands would fall to "the elder daughter always" without division. Uilleam died in 1372 without a male heir, and the title passed to his daughter Euphemia
. By her first husband Sir Walter Leslie, Euphemia had two children - Alexander Leslie
and Mariota
(anglicised as Margaret or Mary). After Walter's death, Euphemia married Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan (the "Wolf of Badenoch") in 1382, giving the Stewarts control of the earldom. In 1392 the marriage was annulled as Buchan had long been living with Mairead inghean Eachann
with whom he had a number of children, including Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
. Euphemia died in 1394 and her son Alexander Leslie inherited the title.
Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany had taken effective control of mainland Scotland towards the end of the reign of his father Robert II
; his power increased during the reign (1390–1406) of his ineffective elder brother Robert III
. Albany's daughter Isabel Stewart married Alexander Leslie before 1398, their only child was a sickly daughter also called Euphemia. According to the Calendar of Fearn, Leslie died on 8 May 1402, whilst his daughter was still a minor. Albany gained wardship of Euphemia, which gave him control of Ross. After the capture by the English of Robert III's heir James and Robert's death soon afterwards in April 1406, Albany was confirmed as regent; Albany continued to govern Scotland until his death in September 1420.
Meanwhile Donald (Domhnall), Lord of the Isles
claimed the earldom of Ross through his marriage to Euphemia's aunt, Mariota, the oldest living female descendant of Uilleam. He also signed an alliance with Henry IV of England
on 16 September 1405, which was renewed on 8 May 1408. Skene
believed the treaty of 1408 to be the key to the Harlaw campaign and that the claim on Ross was no more than a pretext for coordinated hostilities by Donald and the English against the Lowlands of Scotland, a plan abandoned after Harlaw.
on the Sound of Mull and invaded Ross. He met no opposition until "a severe conflict" at Dingwall
, seat of the Earls of Ross, where, at the Battle of Dingwall
, he fought a large body of men of the Clan Mackay from "Strathnaver
". Their leader Angus-Dow (Angus Dubh, Angus Duff) Mackay was captured and his brother Rory-Gald was killed along with "the greater part of his men"; Donald would later give Angus his daughter in marriage. Donald then captured Dingwall Castle
.
Donald assembled his army at Inverness
, and summoned all the fighting men in Boyne and Enzie (northern Banffshire
between the Rivers Deveron and Spey
) to join his army. He then swept through Moray
meeting little or no resistance. He then turned southeast, following roughly the route of the modern A96 road
although the main road ran north of the River Urie, not south as it does today. Donald's men committed "great excesses" in Strathbogie and the Garioch
, which belonged to Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
. Finally the Highland horde came to Bennachie
, the last hill of the Grampians before the coastal plain between Inverurie
and Aberdeen
. Donald had often promised to burn Aberdeen, and he was now within 20 miles (32 km) of the burgh
. On 23 July 1411, he set up camp just north of Inverurie, on high ground 2 km northwest of the bridge over the River Urie.
The Earl of Mar had plenty of warning of their advance, and had assembled a force from among the gentry of Buchan
, Angus
and the Mearns (Kincardineshire
). The Irvings
, Maules
, Morays
, Straitons
, Lesleys
, Stirlings
and Lovels were led by their respective clan chiefs. Mar gathered his troops at Inverurie, a strategic town on the Inverness-Aberdeen road, and on the morning of 24 July marched northwest to meet the invaders.
of the feast of St James – Friday, 24 July 1411. The same source puts Donald's army at 10,000 islanders and men of Ross, although it was probably far less. They were armed with swords, bows and axes
, short knives
and round targe
shields.
Tradition has it that they faced a force numbering between 1000 and 2000 men, although it was probably several thousand, with significant numbers of knight
s. Sir Gilbert de Greenlaw died at Harlaw and his tombstone at Kinkell Church gives an idea of how Mar's knights were equipped. Sir Gilbert carries a hand and a half sword
and wears an open-faced bascinet
helmet with a mail
-reinforced arming doublet beneath plate armour
. Mar's men also carried spear
s, maces and battle axe
s. Tradition has it that the black armour in the entrance hall of Aberdeen's Town House belonged to Robert Davidson, Provost of Aberdeen, who fell in the battle alongside most of the burgesses with him.
On spotting the islanders, Mar organised his force into battle array, with the main army behind a small advance guard of men-at-arms under Sir James Scrymgeour (Constable of Dundee, the hereditary standard-bearer of Scotland
) and Sir Alexander Ogilvie of Auchterhouse (Sheriff of Angus). He probably split the army into three, with the knights as a cavalry reserve and the infantry arranged in schiltron
s, close-packed arrays of spearmen. There is no mention of significant numbers of archers. The islanders were arranged in the traditional cuneiform or wedge shape, with Hector Roy MacLean commanding the right wing and the chief of Clan Mackintosh
on the left. At first the clansmen launched themselves at Scrymgeour's men, but failed to make much impression on the armoured column and many were slain. However, every wave of islanders that was repulsed, was replaced by fresh men. Meanwhile Mar led his knights into the main body of Donald's army with similar results. The islanders brought down the knights' horses and then used their dirks to finish off the riders.
By nightfall, the ballads claim that 600 of Mar's men were dead, including Ogilvie and his son, Scrymgeour, Sir Robert Maule, Sir Thomas Moray, William Abernethy, Alexander Straiton of Lauriston, James Lovel, Alexander Stirling and Sir Alexander Irvine of Drum
; according to Maclean history the latter duelled with Hector Maclean until both were dead. Many families lost not just their chief but every male in their house; Lesley of Balquhain died with six of his sons. Donald lost 900 men, a much smaller proportion of his total force, but including his two seconds-in-command.
Too feeble to retreat, Mar and his surviving men camped on the battlefield, expecting combat to resume in the morning. Come dawn they found that Donald had withdrawn during the night, retreating first to Ross and then back to the Isles. The casualties on both sides meant that neither side felt it had won the day, but Mar had kept Donald from Aberdeen and for the islanders, the absence of conclusive victory was as bad as defeat.
Many of those who fell were buried at Kinkell Church south of Inverurie. The heirs of the slain Scots were exempt from death duties in the same way as heirs of those who died fighting the English. Suspecting that Donald had merely fallen back to rest and reinforce his troops, Albany collected an army and marched on Dingwall in the autumn, seizing the castle and regaining control of Ross. In the summer of 1412, he followed up with a three-pronged attack on Donald's possessions, forcing Donald to surrender his claim on Ross, become a vassal of the Scottish crown and give up hostages against his future good behaviour. The treaty was signed at Polgilbe/Polgillip (Loch Gilp
), an inlet of Loch Fyne
in Argyll
.
It was proposed on 3 June 1415 that Euphemia should marry Thomas Dunbar, 3rd (6th) Earl of Moray
but the papal commission would not have arrived before she surrendered her land and titles (possibly under compulsion) to Albany's son the Earl of Buchan on 12 June 1415, after which she appears to have entered a nunnery. However Buchan was killed at the Battle of Verneuil
in 1424, and the rest of Albany's heirs were executed or exiled by James I
on his return to Scotland. Mariota claimed the earldom of Ross once more, and James I awarded it to her in 1424. Donald's son Alexander
succeeded to the title on her death in 1429.
After Harlaw, the Earl of Mar "ruled with acceptance nearly all the north of the country beyond the Mounth" according to the Scotichronicon
. He entered into an "uneasy alliance" with his uncle Albany, but the ruin of Albany's heirs left Mar in control of the north. Alexander attempted an invasion of Ross in 1429 which led to his defeat and capture by Mar at the Battle of Lochaber. In turn Mar suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Donald's nephew Donald Balloch, at the Battle of Inverlochy (1431)
. The resulting power vacuum allowed Alexander to occupy Inverness and perhaps consider himself Earl of Ross by 1437; the title was officially confirmed by the new regent, the Earl of Douglas
, after the death of James I that year.
The battle would be remembered as "one of the hardest fought that ever took place on Scottish soil", The fighting was so fierce that the battle would go down in history as "Red (Reid) Harlaw". The battle is commemorated in a march, The Battle of Harlaw, and in ballads such as Child ballad 163. Maidment has a different ballad which apparently shares the same tune, but he is sceptical of its antiquity. Sir Walter Scott
mentions Harlaw in his 1816 novel The Antiquary
, particularly in Elspeth's ballad in Chapter 40.
Tradition has it that Mar founded Chapel of Garioch after the battle, to celebrate masses for the souls of the fallen. In 1911, Aberdeen Town Council erected the Harlaw Monument, located to the north of the town of Inverurie, to the memory of Provost Robert Davidson and the Burgesses of Aberdeen that fell in the battle. Designed by Dr. William Kelly and located to the south of Harlaw House, the granite monument is hexagonal and 40 feet (12.2 m) tall. There were once several cairns in the area that were traditionally associated with the battle, but little remains of them now - Drum's Cairn, Provost Davidson's Cairn, Donald's Tomb and the Liggars Stane. 12 human skeletons were uncovered northeast of Harlaw House in 1837;. Although there have been several discoveries of prehistoric artefacts, such as stone axeheads and a flint core, no artefacts directly attributable to the battle have been recorded.
Scottish clan
Scottish clans , give a sense of identity and shared descent to people in Scotland and to their relations throughout the world, with a formal structure of Clan Chiefs recognised by the court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms which acts as an authority concerning matters of heraldry and Coat of Arms...
battle fought on 24 July 1411 just north of Inverurie
Inverurie
Inverurie is a Royal Burgh and town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately north west of Aberdeen on the A96 road and is served by Inverurie railway station on the Aberdeen to Inverness Line...
in Aberdeenshire. It was one of a series of battles fought during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
between the baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
s of northeast Scotland against those from the west coast.
The battle was fought to resolve competing claims to the Earldom of Ross, a large region of northern Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
of Scotland, had taken control of the earldom as guardian of his niece Euphemia Leslie
Euphemia II, Countess of Ross
Euphemia II, Countess of Ross was the daughter of Alexander Leslie, Earl of Ross and his wife Isabella Stewart, daughter of Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany. She was in fact the only child and heir of Earl Alexander, and succeeded to the earldom de jure upon his death in 1402...
. This claim was contested by Donald, Lord of the Isles, who had married Euphemia's aunt Mariota
Mariota, Countess of Ross
Mariota, Countess of Ross was the daughter of Euphemia I, Countess of Ross and her husband, the crusading war-hero Walter Leslie, Lord of Ross...
. Donald invaded Ross
Ross
Ross is a region of Scotland and a former mormaerdom, earldom, sheriffdom and county. The name Ross allegedly derives from a Gaelic word meaning a headland - perhaps a reference to the Black Isle. The Norse word for Orkney - Hrossay meaning horse island - is another possible origin. The area...
with the intention of seizing the earldom by force.
First he defeated a force of Mackays
Clan MacKay
Clan Mackay is an ancient and once powerful Scottish clan from the far north of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old kingdom of Moray. They were a powerful force in politics beginning in the 14th century, supporting Robert the Bruce. In the centuries that followed they were...
at Dingwall
Dingwall
Dingwall is a town and former royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,026. It was formerly an east-coast harbor but now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest castle north of Stirling. On the town's present-day outskirts lies Tulloch Castle, parts...
. He captured the castle and then advanced on Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
with 10,000 clansmen. Near Inverurie he was met by 1,000–2,000 of the local Gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
, many in armour, hastily assembled by the Earl of Mar
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
-Biography:He was an illegitimate son of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and probably Mairead inghean Eachann.Alexander held the Earldom of Mar and the Lordship of the Garioch in right of his first wife Isabel Douglas, Countess of Mar . Alexander's marriage to Isabella followed his capture of...
. After a day of fierce fighting there was no clear victor; Donald had lost 900 men before retreating back to the Western Isles, and Mar had lost 500. The latter could claim a strategic victory in that Aberdeen was saved, and within a year Albany had recaptured Ross and forced Donald to surrender. However Mariota was later awarded the earldom of Ross in 1424 and the Lordship of the Isles
Lord of the Isles
The designation Lord of the Isles is today a title of Scottish nobility with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It emerged from a series of hybrid Viking/Gaelic rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages, who wielded sea-power with fleets of...
would keep the title for much of the 15th century.
The ferocity of the battle gave it the nickname "Red Harlaw". It is commemorated by a 40 foot (12 m) high memorial on the battlefield near the town of Inverurie
Inverurie
Inverurie is a Royal Burgh and town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately north west of Aberdeen on the A96 road and is served by Inverurie railway station on the Aberdeen to Inverness Line...
, supposedly by the church at Chapel of Garioch, and by ballads and music.
Background
Dál Riata
Dál Riata was a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland with some territory on the northeast coast of Ireland...
on the western seaboard and Alba
Alba
Alba is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is cognate to Alba in Irish and Nalbin in Manx, the two other Goidelic Insular Celtic languages, as well as similar words in the Brythonic Insular Celtic languages of Cornish and Welsh also meaning Scotland.- Etymology :The term first appears in...
in the southeast, and Pictish kingdoms in the northeast of which Fortriu
Fortriu
Fortriu or the Kingdom of Fortriu is the name given by historians for an ancient Pictish kingdom, and often used synonymously with Pictland in general...
was the most important. Viking influence increased in the west, with the Gaelic-Vikings that became Lords of the Isles taking control of much of Dál Riata in 1156. The Gaels of Alba acquired Brythonic
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
elements from the conquest of the Kingdom of Strathclyde
Kingdom of Strathclyde
Strathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...
in the 11th century and increasingly absorbed French and Germanic culture, influences which also spread to the Pictish areas of the northeast. The lands of Fortriu became part of the great Mormaerdom (kingdom) of Moray, which was conquered by Alba in 1130
Battle of Stracathro
The Battle of Stracathro, also known as the Battle of Inchbare, took place on 16 April 1130 about 3 miles north of Brechin, Scotland, near the River North Esk. Óengus of Moray and Máel Coluim mac Alaxandair invaded Scotland with 5000 warriors according to the Anglo-Norman chronicler Orderic Vitalis...
and fragmented into territories that were semi-independent of the King in Edinburgh.
Thus there was a long history to conflicts between the Moray gentry and the clans of the West Coast, but some historians present Harlaw as a clash between the Scottish Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
and Lowlands
Scottish Lowlands
The Scottish Lowlands is a name given to the Southern half of Scotland.The area is called a' Ghalldachd in Scottish Gaelic, and the Lawlands ....
, or between Celt and Teuton. John Hill Burton
John Hill Burton
John Hill Burton FRSE was a Scottish advocate, historian and economist. The author of "Life and Correspondence of David Hume", he was secretary of the Scottish Prison Board , and Historiographer Royal ....
(1809–1881) claimed that in Lowland Scotland Harlaw "was felt as a more memorable deliverance even than that of Bannockburn. What it was to be subject to England the country knew and disliked; to be subdued by their savage enemies of the mountains opened to them sources of terror of unknown character and extent". However Sir Robert Rait
Robert Rait
Sir Robert Sangster Rait Kt. CBE DL was a Scottish historian, Historiographer Royal and Principal of the University of Glasgow.-Early life:...
(1874–1936) detected no racial antipathy in the two contemporary accounts of the Scotichronicon
Scotichronicon
The Scotichronicon is a 15th-century chronicle or legendary account, by the Scottish historian Walter Bower. It is a continuation of historian-priest John of Fordun's earlier work Chronica Gentis Scotorum beginning with the founding of Scotland of mediaeval legend, by Scota with Goídel...
and the Book of Pluscarden, and viewed Harlaw not as a conflict between races, but between two groups of Scots of which one spoke English and the other Gaelic. Rait mentions Buchanan's view that it was simply a raid for plunder.
Claims on the Earldom of Ross
The Earldom of Ross was a vast territory reaching from SkyeSkye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
to Ross
Ross
Ross is a region of Scotland and a former mormaerdom, earldom, sheriffdom and county. The name Ross allegedly derives from a Gaelic word meaning a headland - perhaps a reference to the Black Isle. The Norse word for Orkney - Hrossay meaning horse island - is another possible origin. The area...
and Inverness-shire
Inverness-shire
The County of Inverness or Inverness-shire was a general purpose county of Scotland, with the burgh of Inverness as the county town, until 1975, when, under the Local Government Act 1973, the county area was divided between the two-tier Highland region and the unitary Western Isles. The Highland...
, with superiority over the outlying lands of Nairn
Nairn
Nairn is a town and former burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness...
and Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...
. In 1370 Uilleam (William), Earl of Ross
Uilleam III, Earl of Ross
Uilleam III of Ross was the fourth successor of Ferchar mac in tSagairt, as Mormaer of Ross .Uilleam came into his inheritance at a torrid time, his father Aodh dying at the Battle of Halidon Hill. Uilleam temporarily lost many of his lands. However, he returned from Norway in 1336 and regained them...
received a charter from King David II
David II of Scotland
David II was King of Scots from 7 June 1329 until his death.-Early life:...
, confirming his right to the title and directing that in the absence of male heirs, the entirety of the earldom, titles and lands would fall to "the elder daughter always" without division. Uilleam died in 1372 without a male heir, and the title passed to his daughter Euphemia
Euphemia I, Countess of Ross
Euphemia I , also called Euphemia of Ross and Euphemia Ross, and sometimes incorrectly styled Euphemia Leslie and Euphemia Stewart , was a Countess of Ross in her own right.Euphemia was the elder daughter of Uilleam III, Mormaer of Ross...
. By her first husband Sir Walter Leslie, Euphemia had two children - Alexander Leslie
Alexander Leslie, Earl of Ross
Alexander Leslie, Earl of Ross was a Scottish nobleman. Born between 1367 and 1382, he was the son of Walter Leslie, Lord of Ross and Euphemia I, Countess of Ross. In around 1394 he became Earl of Ross and sometime before 1398 he married Isabel Stewart, daughter of Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany....
and Mariota
Mariota, Countess of Ross
Mariota, Countess of Ross was the daughter of Euphemia I, Countess of Ross and her husband, the crusading war-hero Walter Leslie, Lord of Ross...
(anglicised as Margaret or Mary). After Walter's death, Euphemia married Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan (the "Wolf of Badenoch") in 1382, giving the Stewarts control of the earldom. In 1392 the marriage was annulled as Buchan had long been living with Mairead inghean Eachann
Mairead inghean Eachann
Mairead inghean Eachann was the spouse of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and mother of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar. She is mentioned in the Moray Registrum, which gives her name in Latin and informs us that she came from the lands within the sphere of the bishopric of Ross...
with whom he had a number of children, including Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
-Biography:He was an illegitimate son of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and probably Mairead inghean Eachann.Alexander held the Earldom of Mar and the Lordship of the Garioch in right of his first wife Isabel Douglas, Countess of Mar . Alexander's marriage to Isabella followed his capture of...
. Euphemia died in 1394 and her son Alexander Leslie inherited the title.
Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany had taken effective control of mainland Scotland towards the end of the reign of his father Robert II
Robert II of Scotland
Robert II became King of Scots in 1371 as the first monarch of the House of Stewart. He was the son of Walter Stewart, hereditary High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert I and of his first wife Isabella of Mar...
; his power increased during the reign (1390–1406) of his ineffective elder brother Robert III
Robert III of Scotland
Robert III was King of Scots from 1390 to his death. His given name was John Stewart, and he was known primarily as the Earl of Carrick before ascending the throne at age 53...
. Albany's daughter Isabel Stewart married Alexander Leslie before 1398, their only child was a sickly daughter also called Euphemia. According to the Calendar of Fearn, Leslie died on 8 May 1402, whilst his daughter was still a minor. Albany gained wardship of Euphemia, which gave him control of Ross. After the capture by the English of Robert III's heir James and Robert's death soon afterwards in April 1406, Albany was confirmed as regent; Albany continued to govern Scotland until his death in September 1420.
Meanwhile Donald (Domhnall), Lord of the Isles
Domhnall of Islay, Lord of the Isles
Donald, or properly, Dómhnall Íle , was the son and successor of John of Islay, Lord of the Isles and chief of Clan Donald. The Lordship of the Isles was based in and around the Scottish west-coast island of Islay, but under Domhnall's father had come to include many of the other islands off the...
claimed the earldom of Ross through his marriage to Euphemia's aunt, Mariota, the oldest living female descendant of Uilleam. He also signed an alliance with Henry IV of England
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
on 16 September 1405, which was renewed on 8 May 1408. Skene
William Forbes Skene
William Forbes Skene , Scottish historian and antiquary, was the second son of Sir Walter Scott's friend, James Skene , of Rubislaw, near Aberdeen....
believed the treaty of 1408 to be the key to the Harlaw campaign and that the claim on Ross was no more than a pretext for coordinated hostilities by Donald and the English against the Lowlands of Scotland, a plan abandoned after Harlaw.
Invasion and the Battle of Dingwall
It took Donald time to ready his assault, but in 1411 he assembled his forces at Ardtornish CastleArdtornish Castle
Ardtornish Castle is situated in the grounds of the Ardtornish estate in Morvern, on the west coast of Scotland. It stands at the seaward end of a promontory which extends in a southerly direction into the Sound of Mull, approximately a mile south-east of the village of Lochaline, Highland...
on the Sound of Mull and invaded Ross. He met no opposition until "a severe conflict" at Dingwall
Dingwall
Dingwall is a town and former royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,026. It was formerly an east-coast harbor but now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest castle north of Stirling. On the town's present-day outskirts lies Tulloch Castle, parts...
, seat of the Earls of Ross, where, at the Battle of Dingwall
Battle of Dingwall
The Battle of Dingwall was a Scottish clan battle said to have taken place in the year 1411, in Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands. It was fought between the Clan Mackay against the Clan Donald.-Sir Robert Gordon:...
, he fought a large body of men of the Clan Mackay from "Strathnaver
Strathnaver
Strathnaver or Strath Naver is the fertile strath of the River Naver, a famous salmon river that flows from Loch Naver to the north coast of Scotland...
". Their leader Angus-Dow (Angus Dubh, Angus Duff) Mackay was captured and his brother Rory-Gald was killed along with "the greater part of his men"; Donald would later give Angus his daughter in marriage. Donald then captured Dingwall Castle
Dingwall Castle
Dingwall Castle was a medieval fort in the town of Dingwall, eastern Ross-shire, Scotland.The castle is believed to have been established by Norse settlers in the area in the 11th century.-Wars of Scottish Independence:...
.
Donald assembled his army at Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, and summoned all the fighting men in Boyne and Enzie (northern Banffshire
Banffshire
The County of Banff is a registration county for property, and Banffshire is a Lieutenancy area of Scotland.The County of Banff, also known as Banffshire, was a local government county of Scotland with its own county council between 1890 and 1975. The county town was Banff although the largest...
between the Rivers Deveron and Spey
River Spey
The River Spey is a river in the northeast of Scotland, the second longest and the fastest-flowing river in Scotland...
) to join his army. He then swept through Moray
County of Moray
Moray is one of the registration counties of Scotland, bordering Nairnshire to the west, Inverness-shire to the south, and Banffshire to the east...
meeting little or no resistance. He then turned southeast, following roughly the route of the modern A96 road
A96 road
The A96 is a major road in the North of Scotland.It runs generally west/north-west from Aberdeen, bypassing Kintore, Inverurie, Huntly and Forres, and running through Keith, Fochabers, Elgin and Nairn...
although the main road ran north of the River Urie, not south as it does today. Donald's men committed "great excesses" in Strathbogie and the Garioch
Garioch
Garioch is the name of one of six committee areas in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It has a population of 46,254 .Centred on Inverurie, a traditional rural market town whose foundation dates back to the 9th century with the establishment of Christianity at Polnar, "The Kirk of Rocharl" - now St...
, which belonged to Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
-Biography:He was an illegitimate son of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and probably Mairead inghean Eachann.Alexander held the Earldom of Mar and the Lordship of the Garioch in right of his first wife Isabel Douglas, Countess of Mar . Alexander's marriage to Isabella followed his capture of...
. Finally the Highland horde came to Bennachie
Bennachie
Bennachie is a range of hills in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It has several tops, the highest of which, Oxen Craig, has a height of 528 m...
, the last hill of the Grampians before the coastal plain between Inverurie
Inverurie
Inverurie is a Royal Burgh and town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately north west of Aberdeen on the A96 road and is served by Inverurie railway station on the Aberdeen to Inverness Line...
and Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
. Donald had often promised to burn Aberdeen, and he was now within 20 miles (32 km) of the burgh
Burgh
A burgh was an autonomous corporate entity in Scotland and Northern England, usually a town. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when King David I created the first royal burghs. Burgh status was broadly analogous to borough status, found in the rest of the United...
. On 23 July 1411, he set up camp just north of Inverurie, on high ground 2 km northwest of the bridge over the River Urie.
The Earl of Mar had plenty of warning of their advance, and had assembled a force from among the gentry of Buchan
Buchan
Buchan is one of the six committee areas and administrative areas of Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland. These areas were created by the council in 1996, when the Aberdeenshire unitary council area was created under the Local Government etc Act 1994...
, Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
and the Mearns (Kincardineshire
Kincardineshire
The County of Kincardine, also known as Kincardineshire or The Mearns was a local government county on the coast of northeast Scotland...
). The Irvings
Clan Irvine
-Origins of the clan:As a surname Irvine is of territorial origins from one of two places of the same name. Firstly from Irving, an old parish in Dumfriesshire and from Irvine in Ayrshire....
, Maules
Thomas Maule of Panmure
Thomas Maule was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Maule, Baron of Panmure and Benvie, who was killed at the Battle of Harlaw in 1411 and Elizabeth Gray of Fowlis...
, Morays
Clan Murray
Clan Murray is a Highland Scottish clan. The Murrays were a great and powerful clan whose lands and cadet houses were scattered throughout Scotland.- Origins of the Clan :...
, Straitons
Clan Straiton
Clan Straiton also called Straton or Stratton is a Lowland Scottish clan. The clan does not currently have a chief therefore it is considered an Armigerous clan. The barony of Straiton lies in the county of Midlothian on the outskirts of the city of Edinburgh...
, Lesleys
Clan Leslie
Clan Leslie is a Lowland Scottish clan.-Origins:The family name comes from the Leslie lands of Aberdeenshire and was to become famous in Germany, Poland, France and Russia...
, Stirlings
Clan Stirling
-Origins of the Clan:The originator of the Clan Stirling is believed to be a man by the name of Thoraldus de Strivelyn vicecomes de Strivelyn who was granted a charter of lands in Cadder by King David I of Scotland in 1147...
and Lovels were led by their respective clan chiefs. Mar gathered his troops at Inverurie, a strategic town on the Inverness-Aberdeen road, and on the morning of 24 July marched northwest to meet the invaders.
Battle
According to the Scotichronicon, the two armies joined battle on the eveVigil
A vigil is a period of purposeful sleeplessness, an occasion for devotional watching, or an observance...
of the feast of St James – Friday, 24 July 1411. The same source puts Donald's army at 10,000 islanders and men of Ross, although it was probably far less. They were armed with swords, bows and axes
Lochaber axe
The Lochaber axe was a halberd that came into use in Scotland around 1300. The name of the weapon derives from Lochaber, an area in the western Scottish Highlands, as the weapon was employed principally by the Scottish highlanders, who required armament against cavalry.The axe itself is similar to...
, short knives
Dirk
A dirk is a short thrusting dagger, sometimes a cut-down sword blade mounted on a dagger hilt rather than a knife blade. It was historically used as a personal weapon for officers engaged in naval hand-to-hand combat during the Age of Sail.-Etymology:...
and round targe
Targe
Targe was a general word for shield in late Old English. Its diminutive, target, came to mean an object to be aimed at in the 18th century....
shields.
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s. Sir Gilbert de Greenlaw died at Harlaw and his tombstone at Kinkell Church gives an idea of how Mar's knights were equipped. Sir Gilbert carries a hand and a half sword
Longsword
The longsword is a type of European sword designed for two-handed use, current during the late medieval and Renaissance periods, approximately 1350 to 1550 .Longswords have long cruciform hilts with grips over 10 to 15 cm length The longsword (of which stems the variation called the bastard...
and wears an open-faced bascinet
Bascinet
The bascinet was a Medieval European open-faced military helmet, typically fitted with an aventail and hinged visor. The term is also written as bassinet or basinet.-Early versions:...
helmet with a mail
Mail (armour)
Mail is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh.-History:Mail was a highly successful type of armour and was used by nearly every metalworking culture....
-reinforced arming doublet beneath plate armour
Plate armour
Plate armour is a historical type of personal armour made from iron or steel plates.While there are early predecessors such the Roman-era lorica segmentata, full plate armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, especially in the context of the Hundred Years' War, from the coat of...
. Mar's men also carried spear
Spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...
s, maces and battle axe
Battle axe
A battle axe is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes...
s. Tradition has it that the black armour in the entrance hall of Aberdeen's Town House belonged to Robert Davidson, Provost of Aberdeen, who fell in the battle alongside most of the burgesses with him.
On spotting the islanders, Mar organised his force into battle array, with the main army behind a small advance guard of men-at-arms under Sir James Scrymgeour (Constable of Dundee, the hereditary standard-bearer of Scotland
Bearer of the Royal Banner
Tbe Bearer of the Royal Banner is one of the Great Officers of the Royal Household in Scotland.In 1298 Alexander Scrymgeour was granted the office of Constable of Dundee for the service of carrying the royal banner in the army of Scotland, and in 1324 Robert I granted Alexander's son, Nicholas...
) and Sir Alexander Ogilvie of Auchterhouse (Sheriff of Angus). He probably split the army into three, with the knights as a cavalry reserve and the infantry arranged in schiltron
Schiltron
A sheltron is a compact body of troops forming a battle array, shield wall or phalanx....
s, close-packed arrays of spearmen. There is no mention of significant numbers of archers. The islanders were arranged in the traditional cuneiform or wedge shape, with Hector Roy MacLean commanding the right wing and the chief of Clan Mackintosh
Clan MacKintosh
Clan Mackintosh is a Scottish clan from Inverness with strong Jacobite ties. The Mackintoshes were also chiefs of the Chattan Confederation.-Origins:...
on the left. At first the clansmen launched themselves at Scrymgeour's men, but failed to make much impression on the armoured column and many were slain. However, every wave of islanders that was repulsed, was replaced by fresh men. Meanwhile Mar led his knights into the main body of Donald's army with similar results. The islanders brought down the knights' horses and then used their dirks to finish off the riders.
By nightfall, the ballads claim that 600 of Mar's men were dead, including Ogilvie and his son, Scrymgeour, Sir Robert Maule, Sir Thomas Moray, William Abernethy, Alexander Straiton of Lauriston, James Lovel, Alexander Stirling and Sir Alexander Irvine of Drum
Drum Castle
Drum Castle is a castle near Drumoak in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. For centuries it was the seat of the chief of Clan Irvine. The place-name Drum is derived from Gaelic druim, 'ridge'....
; according to Maclean history the latter duelled with Hector Maclean until both were dead. Many families lost not just their chief but every male in their house; Lesley of Balquhain died with six of his sons. Donald lost 900 men, a much smaller proportion of his total force, but including his two seconds-in-command.
Too feeble to retreat, Mar and his surviving men camped on the battlefield, expecting combat to resume in the morning. Come dawn they found that Donald had withdrawn during the night, retreating first to Ross and then back to the Isles. The casualties on both sides meant that neither side felt it had won the day, but Mar had kept Donald from Aberdeen and for the islanders, the absence of conclusive victory was as bad as defeat.
Aftermath
Loch Gilp
Loch Gilp is a small inlet on Loch Fyne which gives its name to Lochgilphead. The Crinan Canal extends from the loch across to Crinan itself....
), an inlet of Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne is a sea loch on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound of Bute, making it the longest of the sea lochs...
in Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
.
It was proposed on 3 June 1415 that Euphemia should marry Thomas Dunbar, 3rd (6th) Earl of Moray
Earl of Moray
The title Earl of Moray has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland.Prior to the formal establishment of the peerage, Earl of Moray, numerous individuals ruled the kingdom of Moray or Mormaer of Moray until 1130 when the kingdom was destroyed by David I of Scotland.-History of the...
but the papal commission would not have arrived before she surrendered her land and titles (possibly under compulsion) to Albany's son the Earl of Buchan on 12 June 1415, after which she appears to have entered a nunnery. However Buchan was killed at the Battle of Verneuil
Battle of Verneuil
The Battle of Verneuil was a battle of the Hundred Years' War, fought on 17 August 1424 near Verneuil in Normandy and was a significant English victory.-The black time:...
in 1424, and the rest of Albany's heirs were executed or exiled by James I
James I of Scotland
James I, King of Scots , was the son of Robert III and Annabella Drummond. He was probably born in late July 1394 in Dunfermline as youngest of three sons...
on his return to Scotland. Mariota claimed the earldom of Ross once more, and James I awarded it to her in 1424. Donald's son Alexander
Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross
Alexander of Islay or Alexander MacDonald was a medieval Scottish nobleman, who succeeded his father Domhnall of Islay as Lord of the Isles and rose to the rank of Earl of Ross...
succeeded to the title on her death in 1429.
After Harlaw, the Earl of Mar "ruled with acceptance nearly all the north of the country beyond the Mounth" according to the Scotichronicon
Scotichronicon
The Scotichronicon is a 15th-century chronicle or legendary account, by the Scottish historian Walter Bower. It is a continuation of historian-priest John of Fordun's earlier work Chronica Gentis Scotorum beginning with the founding of Scotland of mediaeval legend, by Scota with Goídel...
. He entered into an "uneasy alliance" with his uncle Albany, but the ruin of Albany's heirs left Mar in control of the north. Alexander attempted an invasion of Ross in 1429 which led to his defeat and capture by Mar at the Battle of Lochaber. In turn Mar suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Donald's nephew Donald Balloch, at the Battle of Inverlochy (1431)
Battle of Inverlochy (1431)
The Battle of Inverlochy was fought after Alexander of Islay , Lord of the Isles and Earl of Ross, had been imprisoned by King James I...
. The resulting power vacuum allowed Alexander to occupy Inverness and perhaps consider himself Earl of Ross by 1437; the title was officially confirmed by the new regent, the Earl of Douglas
Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Douglas
Archibald Douglas was a Scottish nobleman and General, son of Archibald Douglas, 4th Earl of Douglas and Margaret Stewart, eldest daughter of Robert III...
, after the death of James I that year.
Commemoration and archaeology
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
mentions Harlaw in his 1816 novel The Antiquary
The Antiquary
The Antiquary is a novel by Sir Walter Scott about several characters including an antiquary: an amateur historian, archaeologist and collector of items of dubious antiquity. Although he is the eponymous character, he is not necessarily the hero, as many of the characters around him undergo far...
, particularly in Elspeth's ballad in Chapter 40.
Tradition has it that Mar founded Chapel of Garioch after the battle, to celebrate masses for the souls of the fallen. In 1911, Aberdeen Town Council erected the Harlaw Monument, located to the north of the town of Inverurie, to the memory of Provost Robert Davidson and the Burgesses of Aberdeen that fell in the battle. Designed by Dr. William Kelly and located to the south of Harlaw House, the granite monument is hexagonal and 40 feet (12.2 m) tall. There were once several cairns in the area that were traditionally associated with the battle, but little remains of them now - Drum's Cairn, Provost Davidson's Cairn, Donald's Tomb and the Liggars Stane. 12 human skeletons were uncovered northeast of Harlaw House in 1837;. Although there have been several discoveries of prehistoric artefacts, such as stone axeheads and a flint core, no artefacts directly attributable to the battle have been recorded.
See also
- Battle of Lochaber - the final battle of a similar invasion by Donald's son in 1429
- History of ScotlandHistory of ScotlandThe history of Scotland begins around 10,000 years ago, when humans first began to inhabit what is now Scotland after the end of the Devensian glaciation, the last ice age...
- Lord of the IslesLord of the IslesThe designation Lord of the Isles is today a title of Scottish nobility with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It emerged from a series of hybrid Viking/Gaelic rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages, who wielded sea-power with fleets of...
Further reading
The most modern account, Marren reviews primary and secondary sources.- A comprehensive bibliography can be found in the Battlefields Trust report listed in the references.