Battle of Tillieangus

Last updated

Battle of Tillieangus
Part of Clan Gordon - Clan Forbes feud and Marian civil war
Date10 October 1571
Location
White Hill of Tillyangus, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Result Gordon victory
Belligerents
Clan Gordon Clan Forbes
Commanders and leaders
Sir Adam Gordon Black Arthur Forbes

The Battle of Tillieangus was fought on 10 October 1571 between the Clan Gordon and the Clan Forbes near White Hill of Tillyangus, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It was part of the Marian civil war in which the Gordons supported Mary, Queen of Scots and the Forbeses supported her son, James VI of Scotland. [1]

Contents

Battle

On 10 October 1571, a force of Catholic Gordons, under the command of Sir Adam Gordon, was on its way to gain the Suie Road to Edinburgh, to join George Gordon, the Earl of Huntly. They were opposed by a force of Protestant Forbes under the command of "Black Arthur" Forbes, the 6th Lord Forbes's youngest son. The forces met near the White Hill of Tillyangus, where the Gordons were victorious. Black Arthur Forbes was killed. Legend has it that "he stooped down to quench his thirst and one of the Gordons gave him his death blow through an open joint in his armour". [2] On the Gordon side, John Gordon of Buckie was killed. [3]

The battle was mentioned in a letter of the Bishop of Galloway to the Earl of Shrewsbury of 16 November 1571. He mentions the death of 36 gentlemen of the name of Forbes with Lord Forbes's brother, and 100 prisoners taken including a younger son of Lord Forbes. [4]

Archaeology

In about 1800 a large quantity of human bones were found at the site of what are traditionally the burial cairns of the Battle of Tillieangus. [5]

Related Research Articles

Battle of Harlaw 1411 Scottish clan battle

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 barons of northeast Scotland against those from the west coast.

Clan Mackay Highland Scottish clan

Clan Mackay is an ancient and once-powerful Highland Scottish clan from the far North of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old Kingdom of Moray. They supported Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century. In the centuries that followed they were anti-Jacobite. The territory of the Clan Mackay consisted of the parishes of Farr, Tongue, Durness and Eddrachillis, and was known as Strathnaver, in the north-west of the county of Sutherland. However, it was not until 1829 that Strathnaver was considered part of Sutherland when the chief sold his lands to the Earls of Sutherland and the Highland Clearances then had dire consequences for the clan. In the 17th century the Mackay chief's territory had extended to the east to include the parish of Reay in the west of the neighbouring county of Caithness. The chief of the clan is Lord Reay and the lands of Strathnaver later became known as the Reay Country.

Clan Farquharson Highland Scottish clan

Clan Farquharson of Invercauld is a Highland Scottish clan and is a member of Clan Chattan.

Clan Gordon Scottish clan

Clan Gordon, also known as the House of Gordon, is a Scottish clan. The chief of the clan is the powerful Earl of Huntly, and now also the Marquess of Huntly. During the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 13th century, the Gordons supported William Wallace in the cause of independence. In the 15th century, the chiefship of the clan passed to an heiress, who married into the Seton family and her male descendants assumed the surname Gordon and continued as chiefs of the clan. The Gordons assisted in defeating the rebellion of the Earl of Douglas also in the 15th century. In the 16th century, the Gordons as Catholics feuded with their Protestant neighbors the Clan Forbes and also defeated at the Battle of Glenlivet, the Protestant Earl of Argyll. During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms of the 17th century, the Gordons supported the Royalist cause. During the Jacobite rising of 1715 the Clan Gordon was Jacobite. During the Jacobite rising of 1745, their chief, then the Duke of Gordon, pledged his support to the British-Hanoverian Government, but his clan remained Jacobite.

Battle of Sheriffmuir Engagement in 1715 at the height of the Jacobite rising in England

The Battle of Sheriffmuir was an engagement in 1715 at the height of the Jacobite rising in England and Scotland. The battlefield has been included in the Inventory of Historic Battlefields in Scotland and protected by Historic Scotland under the Scottish Historical Environment Policy of 2009. Sheriffmuir was and is a remote elevated plateau of heathland lying between Stirling and Auchterarder on the north fringe of the Ochil Hills.

Battle of the Shirts Scottish clan battle that took place in 1544 in the Great Glen, at the northern end of Loch Lochy

The Battle of the Shirts was a Scottish clan battle that took place in 1544 in the Great Glen, at the northern end of Loch Lochy. The Clan Macdonald of Clanranald and their allies the Clan Cameron fought the Clan Fraser and men from Clan Grant. The battlefield has been included and protected by Historic Scotland in their Inventory of Historic Battlefields in Scotland.

Clan Boyd Lowland Scottish clan

Clan Boyd is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands and is recognized as such by the Lord Lyon King of Arms.

Battle of Glenlivet Scottish clan battle fought on 3 October 1594 near Glenlivet, Moray, Scotland

The Battle of Glenlivet was a Scottish clan battle fought on 3 October 1594 near Glenlivet, Moray, Scotland. It was fought between Protestant forces loyal to King James VI of Scotland who were commanded by Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll, against Catholic forces who were commanded by George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly, and Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll. The Catholics won a decisive victory in the battle, but in the aftermath were subdued by King James.

Battle of Bealach nam Broig Battle in Highland, Scotland, UK

The Battle of Bealach nam Broig was a battle fought between Scottish clans from the lands of north-west Ross, against north-eastern clans of Ross who supported the Earl of Ross. The actual date of the battle is debated, it probably occurred in 1452 but the Conflicts of the Clans suggests a date as early as 1299.

Battle of Corrichie Battle fought near Meikle Tap, near Aberdeen, Scotland, on 28 October 1562

The Battle of Corrichie, also known as the Battle of Corrichy was a battle fought near Meikle Tap, near Aberdeen, Scotland, on 28 October 1562. It was fought between the forces of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, chief of Clan Gordon, against the forces of Mary, Queen of Scots, under James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray.

Clan Forbes Highland Scottish clan

Clan Forbes is a Highland Scottish clan from Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

Knock Castle, Aberdeenshire Ruined tower house in Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Knock Castle is a ruined tower house in Aberdeenshire, north-east Scotland. It is typical of the traditional type of residence of a laird, a Scottish landed gentleman. Knock Castle is in Royal Deeside, about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the town of Ballater, and about 6 miles (9.7 km) east of Balmoral. It sits on a knoll in a field on the south side of Craig of the Knock, a low hill at the entrance to Glen Muick. The castle is a category B listed building, and is in the care of Historic Environment Scotland. Knock Castle is the ancestral seat of Lady Krisztina de Varga of Knock.

Battle of Inverlochy (1431) Battle in Highland, Scotland, UK

The Battle of Inverlochy (1431) was fought after Alexander of Islay, Lord of the Isles and Earl of Ross, had been imprisoned by King James I. A force of Highlanders led by Donald Balloch, Alexander's cousin, defeated Royalist forces led by the Earls of Mar and Caithness at Inverlochy, near present-day Fort William. Over 1000 men were supposedly killed, among them the Earl of Caithness. Balloch then went on to ravage the country of Clan Cameron and Clan Chattan, who had been loyal to the king during the rebellion. King James himself soon after led an army into the Highlands, and the rebel forces disintegrated.

Borve Castle, Sutherland

Borve Castle in Sutherland, Scottish Highlands is now a ruin. Formerly called the House of Burro. It was built in Kirtomy Bay near the hamlet of Farr. It is also known as Farr Castle.

Battle of Craibstone Sixteenth century Scottish clan battle

The Battle of Craibstone was fought on 20 November 1571 between Clan Gordon and the Clan Forbes on an area that has now been constructed over, found in central Aberdeen, Scotland. It was part of the Marian civil war in which the Clan Forbes supported the King James VI and the Clan Gordon supported Mary, Queen of Scots.

Marian civil war

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.

William Forbes, 7th Lord Forbes (1513-1593) was a Scottish landowner.

Battle of Embo 13th century Scottish battle

The Battle of Embo was a battle that took place at Embo in Sutherland, Scotland in 1245. It was fought by Scottish forces against Viking invaders who were defeated.

John Forbes, 6th Lord Forbes was a Scottish landowner.

References

  1. Historic Environment Scotland. "Battle of Tillieangus - Battle site (17720)". Canmore . Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  2. Simpson, William Douglas (1949). The Earldom of Mar: being a sequel to The Province of Mar, 1943. Aberdeen University Press. p. 89. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  3. Bulloch, John Malcolm (1910). Gordons of Cairnfield : and their hold on the lands of Echres, Auchinhalrig, Arneidlie, Cufurrach, Mayne, Myrieton, Coynach, Whitburn, Lunan, Briggs, Arradoul and Rosieburn. Keith: Privately printed. p.  7 . Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  4. Lodge, Edmund (1791). Illustrations of British History. Vol. 2. London. pp. 62–63.
  5. Historic Environment Scotland. "Battle of Tillieangus - Burial Cairns (17718)". Canmore . Retrieved 29 June 2013.