Battle of Culblean
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Culblean was fought on 30 November 1335, during the Second War of Scottish Independence
. It was a victory for the Scots led by the Guardian, Sir Andrew Murray
over an Anglo-Scots force commanded by David III Strathbogie, titular Earl of Atholl
, and a leading supporter of Edward Balliol
.
and his supporters in 1306, the Scottish War of Independence was at one and the same time a civil war, with the Balliol and Comyn parties taking the side of the English. In the winter of 1314 the Scottish Parliament
, the first to meet after King Robert's great victory at the Battle of Bannockburn
, pronounced formal sentence of forfeiture against all those who held land in Scotland but continued to fight on the side of the English. Thus was created a class of nobility known as the 'disinherited', old Balliol loyalists who would not be reconciled with the Bruce party.
The 1328 Treaty of Northampton between England and Scotland, based on a full recognition of Robert Bruce's kingship, ended any immediate prospect these men had of gaining their lost inheritance. However, the death of Bruce in 1329, and the accession to the throne of David II
, his infant son, offered them a second chance. Under the determined and effective leadership of Henry Beaumont, 4th Earl of Buchan, one of their number and a veteran of the Scottish wars, a party began to take shape in the early 1330s, focusing their hopes on Edward Balliol
, son of the former King John, as the rightful King of Scotland. In 1332 Beaumont and Balliol launched a seaborne invasion of Scotland, winning a remarkable victory at the Battle of Dupplin Moor
; but with only limited support in the country they were expelled by the end of the year. Edward III
, the young English king, who had been playing something of a double game, then decided to declare his open support for Balliol, and the Scots were defeated once again in the summer of 1333 at the Battle of Halidon Hill
. Edward Balliol was reseated on his contentious throne, but his residence proved no more certain than before. In 1335 Edward III made his what was to be his greatest effort on Balliol's behalf, coming to Scotland with a large army. Unable to force the issue in open battle, he left the disinherited to manage as best they could.
, was joint-commander with William Wallace
of the victorious Scottish army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge
, was appointed Guardian of Scotland by the rump of Bruce loyalists meeting in Dumbarton Castle
. Within a short period he was to become one of the country's greatest leaders, and a skilled student of the kind of guerilla warfare practised by King Robert in days past. Moray's credentials were perfect: he was consistent in his defence of the national cause, never at any time submitting to Edward III or Balliol, unlike Robert Stewart
, nephew and heir of the infant David. The men who gathered round him at Dumbarton formed the nucleus of the national revival-the earls of March and Ross, Sir William Douglas
, Maurice Murray and William Keith. After the departure of the English king from Scotland - followed soon after by Edward Balliol - Moray's chief opponent was David de Strathbogie, the titular earl of Atholl, and Balliol's chief lieutenant in the north.
But the great tyranny and cruelty this earl practised among the people words cannot bring within the mind's grasp; some he disinherited, others he murdered: and in the end, he cast in his mind how he might wipe out the freeholders from the face of the earth.
Strathbogie crowned his campaign by laying siege to Kildrummy Castle
in the valley of the River Don in Aberdeenshire. Kildrummy had for some time been held for King David by his aunt, the Lady Christian Bruce, who also happened to be Moray's wife. From southern Scotland the Guardian rushed north to her aid, having gathered a modest force of some 800 men. Strathbogie, according to the historian Lord Hailes, had 3000 men at his disposal. Moray's tactics were risky: he was marching into battle, which all Scots leaders had carefully avoided since the disaster at Halidon Hill. But the situation was critical: the fall of Kildrummy would have been a serious setback to the national cause in the north.
Strathbogie was warned of Moray's approach. He raised the siege of Kildrummy, moving south to intercept his enemy in the forest of Culblean. Moray was joined a few miles north of the River Dee, to the east of Strathbogie's position near Culblean Hill, by a party of three hundred men from Kildrummy, led by one John of the Craig. John's knowledge of the local countryside was invaluable. On the night of 29/30 November he guided Moray's force on a wide sweeping movement to the south and west, designed to take Strathbogie from the rear. As Moray approached at dawn on St. Andrew's Day the element of surprise was lost when he was spotted by enemy scouts. The camp was warned and Strathbogie made ready. But his troops were largely recruited from the local area, probably by impressment, and he appears to have had no archers.
Moray's force was divided in two, the forward unit being commanded by William Douglas. When he saw Strathbogie arrayed for battle Douglas halted, as if hesitating in the face of the enemy's preparedness. This had the desired effect and Strathbogie led his men in a downhill charge; but their ranks began to break on reaching a burn, and Douglas ordered a counter-charge. Sir Andrew with the rearguard immediately launched an assault on the enemy's exposed flank. The charge was so fierce that the bushes in the way were all flattened down. Pinned down in front and attacked from the side, Strathbogie's army broke. Unable to escape, and refusing to surrender, Strathbogie stood with his back to an oak tree and was killed in a last stand with a small group of followers, including Walter and Thomas Comyn. Some of the survivors took refuge in the nearby island castle of Loch Kinnard, but were forced to surrender the following day.
Compared with the other great battles of the Wars of Independence, Culblean was a relatively small affair, and is now largely forgotten.
Nevertheless, its size was greatly outweighed by its importance on the road to Scottish national recovery. Dr Douglas Simpson passed what might be said to be the final verdict on the battle when he wrote; Culblean was the turning point in the second war of Scottish Independence, and therefore an event of great national importance. Small as it was it effectively nullified the effects of Edward's summer invasion, ending forever Balliol's hope of gaining the Scottish throne. Its effects were almost immediately felt. Edward Balliol spent the winter of 1335-6, so says the Lanercost Chronicle; ...with his people at Elande, in England, because he does not yet possess in Scotland any castle or town where he could dwell in safety.
Second War of Scottish Independence
The Second War of Scottish Independence was the second cluster of a series of military campaigns fought between the independent Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries....
. It was a victory for the Scots led by the Guardian, Sir Andrew Murray
Sir Andrew Murray
Sir Andrew Murray , also known as Sir Andrew Moray or Sir Andrew Murray of Bothwell, was a Scottish military leader who commanded resistance forces loyal to David II of Scotland against Edward Balliol and Edward III of England during the Second War of Scottish Independence...
over an Anglo-Scots force commanded by David III Strathbogie, titular Earl of Atholl
David III Strathbogie, titular Earl of Atholl
David of Strathbogie was a 14th century Anglo-Scottish noble. He was born the son and heir of Sir David II Strathbogie, Earl of Atholl, Constable of Scotland and Chief Warden of Northumberland, by his spouse Joan, elder daughter of Sir John Comyn of Badenoch, Joint Guardian of Scotland.This David...
, and a leading supporter of Edward Balliol
Edward Balliol
Edward Balliol was a claimant to the Scottish throne . With English help, he briefly ruled the country from 1332 to 1336.-Life:...
.
Background
After the murder of John Comyn, the nephew of the former King John Balliol, by Robert BruceRobert I of Scotland
Robert I , popularly known as Robert the Bruce , was King of Scots from March 25, 1306, until his death in 1329.His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage , and...
and his supporters in 1306, the Scottish War of Independence was at one and the same time a civil war, with the Balliol and Comyn parties taking the side of the English. In the winter of 1314 the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
, the first to meet after King Robert's great victory at the Battle of Bannockburn
Battle of Bannockburn
The Battle of Bannockburn was a significant Scottish victory in the Wars of Scottish Independence...
, pronounced formal sentence of forfeiture against all those who held land in Scotland but continued to fight on the side of the English. Thus was created a class of nobility known as the 'disinherited', old Balliol loyalists who would not be reconciled with the Bruce party.
The 1328 Treaty of Northampton between England and Scotland, based on a full recognition of Robert Bruce's kingship, ended any immediate prospect these men had of gaining their lost inheritance. However, the death of Bruce in 1329, and the accession to the throne of David II
David II of Scotland
David II was King of Scots from 7 June 1329 until his death.-Early life:...
, his infant son, offered them a second chance. Under the determined and effective leadership of Henry Beaumont, 4th Earl of Buchan, one of their number and a veteran of the Scottish wars, a party began to take shape in the early 1330s, focusing their hopes on Edward Balliol
Edward Balliol
Edward Balliol was a claimant to the Scottish throne . With English help, he briefly ruled the country from 1332 to 1336.-Life:...
, son of the former King John, as the rightful King of Scotland. In 1332 Beaumont and Balliol launched a seaborne invasion of Scotland, winning a remarkable victory at the Battle of Dupplin Moor
Battle of Dupplin Moor
The Battle of Dupplin Moor was fought between supporters of the infant David II, the son of Robert the Bruce, and rebels supporting the Balliol claim in 1332. It was a significant battle of the Second War of Scottish Independence.-Background:...
; but with only limited support in the country they were expelled by the end of the year. Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
, the young English king, who had been playing something of a double game, then decided to declare his open support for Balliol, and the Scots were defeated once again in the summer of 1333 at the Battle of Halidon Hill
Battle of Halidon Hill
The Battle of Halidon Hill was fought during the Second War of Scottish Independence. Scottish forces under Sir Archibald Douglas were heavily defeated on unfavourable terrain while trying to relieve Berwick-upon-Tweed.-The Disinherited:...
. Edward Balliol was reseated on his contentious throne, but his residence proved no more certain than before. In 1335 Edward III made his what was to be his greatest effort on Balliol's behalf, coming to Scotland with a large army. Unable to force the issue in open battle, he left the disinherited to manage as best they could.
A New Guardian
Although the flame of Scottish resistance burned low at times, it was never completely extinguished. David II was sent to the safety of France in 1334. In September 1335 Sir Andrew Murray of Bothwell, whose father, also named AndrewAndrew Moray
Andrew Moray , also known as Andrew de Moray, Andrew of Moray, or Andrew Murray, was a prominent military leader of patriotic forces during the Scottish Wars of Independence. He led the rising in northern Scotland in the summer of 1297 against the occupation by King Edward I of England,...
, was joint-commander with William Wallace
William Wallace
Sir William Wallace was a Scottish knight and landowner who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence....
of the victorious Scottish army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge
Battle of Stirling Bridge
The Battle of Stirling Bridge was a battle of the First War of Scottish Independence. On 11 September 1297, the forces of Andrew Moray and William Wallace defeated the combined English forces of John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and Hugh de Cressingham near Stirling, on the River Forth.-The main...
, was appointed Guardian of Scotland by the rump of Bruce loyalists meeting in Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Great Britain. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high.-Iron Age:...
. Within a short period he was to become one of the country's greatest leaders, and a skilled student of the kind of guerilla warfare practised by King Robert in days past. Moray's credentials were perfect: he was consistent in his defence of the national cause, never at any time submitting to Edward III or Balliol, unlike Robert Stewart
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...
, nephew and heir of the infant David. The men who gathered round him at Dumbarton formed the nucleus of the national revival-the earls of March and Ross, Sir William Douglas
William Douglas, Lord of Liddesdale
Sir William Douglas, Lord of Liddesdale was also known as the Knight of Liddesdale and the Flower of Chivalry. He was a Scottish nobleman and soldier active during the Second War of Scottish Independence.-Family:...
, Maurice Murray and William Keith. After the departure of the English king from Scotland - followed soon after by Edward Balliol - Moray's chief opponent was David de Strathbogie, the titular earl of Atholl, and Balliol's chief lieutenant in the north.
St. Andrew's Day, 1335
In the late autumn of 1335 Strathbogie was operating north of the Forth, attempting, so the sources allege, to eradicate all freeholders, who from the time of William Wallace had been the backbone of Scottish resistance. Strathbogie's actions mirrored the policy of King Edward in southern Scotland, where over one hundred freeholders were forfeited in the period from 1335 to 1337. John of Fordun, a Scottish chronicler, reports the situation thus;But the great tyranny and cruelty this earl practised among the people words cannot bring within the mind's grasp; some he disinherited, others he murdered: and in the end, he cast in his mind how he might wipe out the freeholders from the face of the earth.
Strathbogie crowned his campaign by laying siege to Kildrummy Castle
Kildrummy Castle
Kildrummy Castle is a ruined castle near Kildrummy, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, United Kingdom. Though ruined, it is one of the most extensive castles of 13th century date to survive in eastern Scotland, and was the seat of the Earls of Mar....
in the valley of the River Don in Aberdeenshire. Kildrummy had for some time been held for King David by his aunt, the Lady Christian Bruce, who also happened to be Moray's wife. From southern Scotland the Guardian rushed north to her aid, having gathered a modest force of some 800 men. Strathbogie, according to the historian Lord Hailes, had 3000 men at his disposal. Moray's tactics were risky: he was marching into battle, which all Scots leaders had carefully avoided since the disaster at Halidon Hill. But the situation was critical: the fall of Kildrummy would have been a serious setback to the national cause in the north.
Strathbogie was warned of Moray's approach. He raised the siege of Kildrummy, moving south to intercept his enemy in the forest of Culblean. Moray was joined a few miles north of the River Dee, to the east of Strathbogie's position near Culblean Hill, by a party of three hundred men from Kildrummy, led by one John of the Craig. John's knowledge of the local countryside was invaluable. On the night of 29/30 November he guided Moray's force on a wide sweeping movement to the south and west, designed to take Strathbogie from the rear. As Moray approached at dawn on St. Andrew's Day the element of surprise was lost when he was spotted by enemy scouts. The camp was warned and Strathbogie made ready. But his troops were largely recruited from the local area, probably by impressment, and he appears to have had no archers.
Moray's force was divided in two, the forward unit being commanded by William Douglas. When he saw Strathbogie arrayed for battle Douglas halted, as if hesitating in the face of the enemy's preparedness. This had the desired effect and Strathbogie led his men in a downhill charge; but their ranks began to break on reaching a burn, and Douglas ordered a counter-charge. Sir Andrew with the rearguard immediately launched an assault on the enemy's exposed flank. The charge was so fierce that the bushes in the way were all flattened down. Pinned down in front and attacked from the side, Strathbogie's army broke. Unable to escape, and refusing to surrender, Strathbogie stood with his back to an oak tree and was killed in a last stand with a small group of followers, including Walter and Thomas Comyn. Some of the survivors took refuge in the nearby island castle of Loch Kinnard, but were forced to surrender the following day.
Culblean in History
Nevertheless, its size was greatly outweighed by its importance on the road to Scottish national recovery. Dr Douglas Simpson passed what might be said to be the final verdict on the battle when he wrote; Culblean was the turning point in the second war of Scottish Independence, and therefore an event of great national importance. Small as it was it effectively nullified the effects of Edward's summer invasion, ending forever Balliol's hope of gaining the Scottish throne. Its effects were almost immediately felt. Edward Balliol spent the winter of 1335-6, so says the Lanercost Chronicle; ...with his people at Elande, in England, because he does not yet possess in Scotland any castle or town where he could dwell in safety.
Primary
- Anonimalle Chronicle, 1333-81, ed V. H. Galbraith, 1927.
- Fordun, John of, Chronicles of the Scottish Nation, ed. W. F. Skene, 1872.
- Gray, Thomas, Scalacronica, ed. and trans. H. Maxwell, 1913.
- The Lanercost Chronicle, ed. and trans H. Maxwell, 1913.
Secondary
- Balfour-Melville, E. W. M., Edward III and David II, 1954.
- Brown, C., "The Second Scottish War of Independence" 2001.
- Campbell, T., "England, Scotland and the Hundred Years War", in Europe in the Late Middle Ages, ed. J. Hale et al., 1970.
- Hailes, Lord (David Dalrymple), The Annals of Scotland, 1776.
- Nicholson R., Edward III and the Scots, 1965.
- Ramsay, J. H. The Genesis of Lancaster, 1307-99, 1913.
- Reid, R. C. "Edward de Balliol", in Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Antiquarian and Natural History Society, 3rd series, vol. 35, 1956-7.
- Simpson, W. Douglas, "Campaign and Battle of Culblean", in Proceedings of the Society of Antiquarians of Scotland, vol 64 1929-30.
- Webster, B., "Scotland without a King: 1329-1341", in Medieval Scotland: Crown, Lordship and Community, ed. A Grant and K. J. Stringer, 1993.