| Battle of Corrichie | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Mary, Queen of Scots Civil Wars | |||||||
 Monument to the Battle of Corrichie | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Kingdom of Scotland: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] | ||||||
TheBattle of Corrichie was fought on the slopes of theHill of Fare inAberdeenshire,Scotland, on 28 October 1562. It was fought between the forces ofGeorge Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, chief ofClan Gordon, and the forces ofMary, Queen of Scots, underJames Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray.
Huntly had defeated the English twenty years earlier at theBattle of Haddon Rig; however, at Corrichie he was defeated by Queen Mary's forces, and apparently he died ofapoplexy 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'spike drill.[7]
George Buchanan described the events of 1562 in hisHistory 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 who had fought withJames Ogilvie in Edinburgh. Mary wished that he be imprisoned inStirling Castle. (It had previously been suggested that John might marry Mary, but only in order to manipulate his father.) Mary and Huntly journeyed together towardsHuntly Castle but the Queen, impatient at Huntly's refusal to hand over his son turned back.[8] The English diplomatThomas 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 toInverness Castle, but the Gordon Captain refused to give the royal castle to the Queen's representative. At this time theClan Chattan deserted Huntly and joined the Queen, and others of what Buchanan calls the "ancient Scots" meaning theGàidhealtachd came to her aid, with theFrasers andMunros. Theyeasily 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 theEarl 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 toWilliam 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 byRegent 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 atBadenoch, the site ofRuthven 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 seizeFindlater Castle. They were surprised in the night atCullen 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 andMorton 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, butarquebus 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 hisHistory 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 toJohn Wishart of Pitarrow, theMaster of Lindsay, and theTutor of Pitcur who marched forward with their "spears" through the retreating vanguard. Knox attributes a speech to the Queen's secretaryWilliam Maitland of Lethington who prayed for victory.[14]
After the battle, Huntly's eldest son SirJohn Gordon was taken to Aberdeen and executed three days later. A younger brotherAdam Gordon of Auchindoun, also captured at Corrichie, was spared. The Earls body was preserved and taken to Edinburgh for trial. Huntly's cousinJohn Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland, fled toLouvain inFlanders. At theParliament of Scotland on 28 May 1563, in the presence of Queen Mary, Huntly, Sutherland, and asJohn 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. TheEarl of Bedford, Governor ofBerwick on Tweed, sent aprivateer 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 toElizabeth 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 ofLord Seton. Both were poisoned atHelmsdale Castle by Isobel Sinclair, and died atDunrobin Castle on 23 June 1567.[17]
Quoting 'Scots Acts of Parliament'
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Republished in 1827 in English by James Aikman
Republished in 1827 in English by James Aikman
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)57°06′41″N2°30′08″W / 57.1114°N 2.5022°W /57.1114; -2.5022