Battle of Corrichie | |||||||
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Part of Mary, Queen of Scots Civil Wars | |||||||
![]() Monument to the Battle of Corrichie | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
![]() Clan Fraser [1] Clan Munro [1] Clan Mackenzie [1] Clan Mackintosh [1] Clan Mackay [2] Clan Murray [2] Clan Forbes [3] Clan Cameron [4] | Rebels: Clan Gordon [5] Clan Brodie [5] | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Earl of Moray Earl of Atholl Earl of Morton | Earl of Huntly [5] | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
2,000 | 500 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
None | 120 killed 100 captured [6] |
The Battle of Corrichie was fought on the slopes of the Hill of Fare in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on 28 October 1562. It was fought between the forces of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, chief of Clan Gordon, and the forces of Mary, Queen of Scots, under James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray.
Huntly had defeated the English twenty years earlier at the Battle of Haddon Rig; however, at Corrichie he was defeated by Queen Mary's forces, and apparently he died of apoplexy after his capture. Mary had come in person to the north of Scotland intent on confronting the power of the Gordons. At Corrichie, the Gordons' tactic of charging with swords was defeated by Moray's pike drill. [7]
George Buchanan described the events of 1562 in his History of Scotland. The Earl of Huntly had lost the earldoms of Moray and Mar, which he considered his heritage, and became an enemy of the new Earl of Moray, the half-brother of Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary and Moray arrived at Aberdeen in mid-August, and met the Earl and Countess of Huntly. A stumbling block in their discussions was the case of their son, John Gordon. Mary wished that he be imprisoned in Stirling Castle. (It had previously been suggested that John might marry Mary, but only in order to manipulate his father.) Mary and Huntly journeyed together towards Huntly Castle but the Queen, impatient at Huntly's refusal to hand over his son turned back. [8] The English diplomat Thomas Randolph wrote that Mary came within four miles of Huntly Castle, but would not go there. Randolph accepted an invitation and stayed two nights, commenting that the house was "fayer, beste furnishede of anye howse that I have seen in thys countrie." [9]
Mary and her court then travelled to Inverness Castle, but the Gordon Captain refused to give the royal castle to the Queen's representative. At this time the Clan Chattan deserted Huntly and joined the Queen, and others of what Buchanan calls the "ancient Scots" meaning the Gàidhealtachd came to her aid, with the Frasers and Munros. They easily took Inverness Castle on 9 September, and the Gordon garrison was executed (or at least, the Captain). Mary and her court returned to Aberdeen. Huntly tried to get intelligence of the Queen's intentions via his cousin the Earl of Sutherland, but Sutherland's correspondence was discovered and he was forced to flee. Huntly was now close to Aberdeen at Corrichie. [10]
The English diplomat Thomas Randolph, who accompanied Queen Mary to Aberdeen, described the battle in letters to William Cecil. These letters add more detail. Randolph says that Huntly had a royal cannon at Huntly Castle (then called Strathbogie) which he had been given by Regent Arran. Mary demanded its return with short notice. Her men went to Huntly Castle on 9 October and attempted to capture the Earl, but he escaped over a low wall at the back gate. The Countess of Huntly stayed at Strathbogie and the Earl went to his house at Badenoch, the site of Ruthven Barracks, and was declared a rebel on 17 October. [11] John Knox mentions another incident which angered the Queen; Mary had sent Captain Stewart with 60 men to seize Findlater Castle. They were surprised in the night at Cullen by Huntly's son John Gordon and sustained a number of casualties. [12]
According to Thomas Randolph, Huntly marched towards Aberdeen with 700 men, and was said to have intended to capture the Queen. Two thousand men led by the Earls of Moray, Atholl and Morton encircled his encampment on 28 October 1562. The Gordons, now numbering 500, had camped on a hill (said Randolph), where the cavalry could not reach them, but arquebus shot drove them down to marshy ground where they were cornered. The Queen's army attacked, and at first her vanguard lost their nerve and threw away their spears. The Earl of Moray forced them to fight. Randolph wrote the battle ended "incontinent" meaning it was over straight away. About 120 Gordons were killed and about 100 captured. Randolph wrote that none of the Queen's army were killed but many were hurt and many horses were killed. The Earl of Huntly was mounted on a horse to be taken to Aberdeen as a captive and before leaving the battlefield suddenly and soundlessly died. George Buchanan says that Huntly waited for Moray's army in "a place surrounded by marshes," and "fortified by nature." Moray gained a small hill as a vantage point that overlooked Huntly's position. Buchanan wrote that Moray's vanguard broke because of the many 'traitors,' who would not fight against Huntly and fixed heather on their bonnets. He continues that the Gordons threw away their spears expecting to use their swords in a pursuit. Moray and his second line stayed firm with extended pikes, despite the retreating vanguard who were forced to go around the pike line on either side. Moray's pikemen won the day because of the length of their pikes, Huntly's men being unable to approach. [13]
John Knox in his History of the Reformation gave further details. The Earl of Huntly got up late on the morning of the battle which did not help morale. Knox gives him some speeches, making the observation that Moray's vanguard was composed of his friends, and the small company on the hill side (Moray's pikemen) were to be feared. Huntly's position was Corrichie Burn or the Fara Bank, meaning a slope amidst the Hills o'Fare. After the vanguard broke, Knox credits the resolution of the second line to John Wishart of Pitarrow, the Master of Lindsay, and the Tutor of Pitcur who marched forward with their "spears" through the retreating vanguard. Knox attributes a speech to the Queen's secretary William Maitland of Lethington who prayed for victory. [14]
After the battle, Huntly's eldest son Sir John Gordon was taken to Aberdeen and executed three days later. A younger brother Adam Gordon of Auchindoun, also captured at Corrichie, was spared. The Earls body was preserved and taken to Edinburgh for trial. Huntly's cousin John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland, fled to Louvain in Flanders. At the Parliament of Scotland on 28 May 1563, in the presence of Queen Mary, Huntly, Sutherland, and as John Knox noted eleven other Earls and Barons of the name Gordon were forfeited. [16] In 1565 Queen Mary of Scotland restored the Earls of Huntly, Sutherland and others of the name Gordon who had been forfeited. [2]
The Earl of Sutherland was invited to return to Scotland. The Earl of Bedford, Governor of Berwick on Tweed, sent a privateer called Wilson who carried Swedish letters of marque to intercept his ship, and the Earl was imprisoned at Berwick. Sutherland was considered a danger to English policy in Scotland. Mary, Queen of Scots, demanded the release of the Earl, who was now sick with an ague. Bedford wrote to Elizabeth I of England on his behalf. The Earl was released in February 1566 after the assurance that he was reconciled with the Earl of Moray. On his return he married Marion Seton, daughter of Lord Seton. Both were poisoned at Helmsdale Castle by Isobel Sinclair, and died at Dunrobin Castle on 23 June 1567. [17]
James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. At times a supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for his half-nephew, the infant King James VI, from 1567 until his assassination in 1570. He was the first head of government to be assassinated with a firearm.
Huntly Castle is a ruined castle north of Huntly in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where the rivers Deveron and Bogie meet. It was the ancestral home of the chief of Clan Gordon, Earl of Huntly. There have been four castles built on the site that have been referred to as Huntly Castle, Strathbogie Castle or Peel of Strathbogie.
Inverness Castle sits on a cliff overlooking the River Ness in Inverness, Scotland. A succession of castles have stood on this site since 1057, although the present structure dates from 1836. The present structure is a Category A listed building.
George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly was a Scottish nobleman.
Clan Gordon is a Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the most powerful Scottish clans. The Gordon lands once spanned a large territory across the Highlands. Presently, Gordon is seated at Aboyne Castle, Aberdeenshire. The Chief of the clan is the Earl of Huntly, later the Marquess of Huntly.
George Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly, was Lord Chancellor of Scotland and major conspirator of his time.
Clan Sutherland also known as House of Sutherland is a Highland Scottish clan whose traditional territory is the shire of Sutherland in the far north of Scotland. The chief of the clan was also the powerful Earl of Sutherland, however in the early 16th century this title passed through marriage to a younger son of the chief of Clan Gordon. The current chief is Alistair Sutherland who holds the title Earl of Sutherland.
Robert Mor Munro, 15th Baron of Foulis, and 18th chief of the Clan Munro was a 16th-century Scottish chief. He was known as Robert Mor on account of his large stature. He was the eldest son of Robert Munro, 14th Baron of Foulis. Although this Robert Munro is traditionally 15th Baron and 18th overall chief of the clan, he is only the 8th Munro chief that can be proved by contemporary evidence.
Elizabeth Keith, Countess of Huntly, was a Scottish noblewoman and the wife of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, Scotland's leading Catholic magnate during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots. In 1562, Elizabeth encouraged her husband to raise forces against Queen Mary which led to his being outlawed, and after his death, his titles forfeited to the Crown. Elizabeth's son Sir John Gordon was executed for having taken part in his father's rebellion.
Jean Gordon, Countess of Bothwell was a wealthy Scottish noblewoman and the second wife of James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell. He became, after his divorce from Lady Jean, the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. Lady Jean herself had a total of three husbands. Upon her second marriage, she became the Countess of Sutherland.
Anne Hamilton, Countess of Huntly, was a Scottish noblewoman and a member of the powerful Hamilton family which had a strong claim to the Scottish crown. Her father James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault, 2nd Earl of Arran was heir presumptive to the throne of Scotland after Mary, Queen of Scots prior to the birth of the latter's son Prince James in 1566. Anne was the wife of George Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly, Lord Chancellor of Scotland and a chief conspirator during the reign of Queen Mary.
Jean Hepburn, Lady Darnley, Mistress of Caithness, Lady Morham was a Scottish noblewoman and a member of the Border clan of Hepburn. Her brother was James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. Jean's first husband was John Stewart, 1st Lord Darnley, an illegitimate half-brother of Queen Mary, which made Jean a double sister-in-law of the queen. Jean married three times. She was also Lady of Morham, having received in 1573 the barony of Morham and lands which had belonged to her mother, Lady Agnes Sinclair and was forfeited to the Crown subsequent to her brother, the Earl of Bothwell's attainder for treason.
Darnaway Castle, also known as Tarnaway Castle, is located in Darnaway Forest, 3 miles (4.8 km) southwest of Forres in Moray, Scotland. This was Comyn land, given to Thomas Randolph along with the Earldom of Moray by King Robert I. The castle has remained the seat of the Earls of Moray ever since. Rebuilt in 1810, it retains the old banqueting hall, capable of accommodating 1,000 men.
The siege of Inverness Castle took place in 1562. When Mary, Queen of Scots, visited Inverness on 9 September 1562 the gates of the castle were shut in her face by Alexander Gordon upon the orders of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, who was chief of Clan Gordon and Sheriff of the county. The castle was subsequently besieged by supporters of the Queen.
The Marian civil war in Scotland (1568–1573) was a period of conflict which followed the abdication of Mary, Queen of Scots, and her escape from Lochleven Castle in May 1568. Those who ruled in the name of her infant son James VI fought against the supporters of the Queen, who was exiled in England. Edinburgh Castle, which was garrisoned in her name, became the focus of the conflict and surrendered only after an English intervention in May 1573. The conflict in 1570 was called an "intestine war in the bowels of this commonwealth", and the period was called soon after an "intestine war driven by questions against authority."
Adam Gordon of Auchindoun (1545–1580) was a Scottish knight, younger brother of the Earl of Huntly and military leader during the Marian civil war on behalf of Mary, Queen of Scots in north west Scotland. In Scottish ballad lore, Adam became known as Edom o'Gordon.
John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland (1525–1567) was a Scottish magnate. John Gordon supported the chief of his family, his cousin the Earl of Huntly against the Earl of Moray. After Huntly's defeat at Corrichie, he went into exile, and shortly after his return to Scotland he was murdered by a kinswoman.
Patrick Lindsay, 6th Lord Lindsay of the Byres, (1521–1589), Scottish courtier and Confederate lord.
Iye Du Mackay, 12th of Strathnaver, was the chief of the Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan, from 1550 to 1572.
Sir John Wishart of Pitarrow was a Scottish lawyer, courtier, comptroller of the exchequer, and rebel.
Quoting 'Scots Acts of Parliament'
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Republished in 1827 in English by James Aikman
Republished in 1827 in English by James Aikman
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