Sieges of Haddington
Encyclopedia
The Sieges of Haddington were a series of sieges staged at the Royal Burgh
of Haddington
, East Lothian, Scotland, as part of the War of the Rough Wooing one the last Anglo-Scottish Wars
. Following Regent Arran
's defeat at the battle of Pinkie Cleugh
on Saturday 10 September 1547, he took Haddington, with 5000 troops including French mercenaries and troops sent by Henry II of France
to bolster the Auld Alliance
. Afterwards, Francis Talbot, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury
took it with nearly 15000. The English forces built artillery fortifications and were able to withstand an assault by the besieging French and Scots troops supported by heavy cannon in July 1548. Although the siege was scaled down after this unsuccessful attempt, the English garrison abandoned the town on 19 September 1549, after attrition by Scottish raids at night, sickness, and changing political circumstance.
captured and garrisoned Haddington by 23 February 1548. Grey and Thomas Palmer
began to fortify the town in earnest after 24 April 1548. The English strategy was for the siege of Haddington was to consume Scottish and French resources. The soldiers built the fortifications alongside labourers from England who were called 'pioneers.' Although the site had obvious drawbacks, overlooked by the ridge of the nearby Garleton Hills
and four miles from the sea, the finished ramparts were much admired. The French ambassador in London, Odet de Selve
, heard from a French mercenary serving on the English side that it was almost as impregnable as Turin
. Regent Arran moved the Scottish artillery to the nearby villages of Ormiston
, Brunston and Saltoun, and summoned the men of Stirling
, Menteith
and Strathearn
. But the English construction works continued unmolested. Somerset
even showed Odet de Selve the plan, and said it was better than Calais. The design include four corner bastions, called Bowes
, Wyndham
, Taylor and Tiberio, after the commanders (Francisco Tiberio was a leader of a band of Italian mercenaries). The French ambassador was told that the tollbooth, a tall and solid stone structure, had been filled with earth to form a gun platform called a cavalier
.
. The Master of the Scottish Artillery, Lord Methven
, organised guns to be brought from the siege of Broughty Castle
in June. These guns were shipped to Aberlady
the nearest haven on the Forth
. The great Scottish gun 'thrawinmouth' from Dunbar Castle
was also deployed and the cannons from Broughty were placed on 3 July 1548. On 5 July Methven gave Mary of Guise
an optimistic report of the damage caused to the English defences by his guns. His fire had demolished the Tollbooth within the town, and he had advanced trenches towards the ramparts. Mary of Guise
came to view the progress of the siege on 9 July 1548 and her party came in range of the English guns. Sixteen of her entourage were killed around her and she was terror-stricken. At this time the English inside were countermining against the French and Scottish siegeworks. A Scots force joined the French troops on 16 July to storm the town but were driven away by cannon fire. Following this set-back, the French officer d'Essé
ordered the heavy guns to be withdrawn on 17 July. With rumours of English reinforcement, Methven took the Scottish and French guns to Edinburgh and Leith, while d'Essé kept the camp. D'Essé made his feelings known to Arran; that an earlier decisive assault before the English had time to entrench would have been the best action.
Shrewsbury arrived on 23 August 1548 with an army close in size to the English army at Pinkie. The French and Scots abandoned their siege of Haddington and retired to Edinburgh and Leith. Edward VI was told that the some of the departing besiegers had spoken to Captain Tiberio. They had pointed out the inadequacies of the fortifications and said all honour was due to the defenders and none to themselves. Edward also recorded a subsequent large but unsuccessful night raid against Haddington. The French troops in Edinburgh started a fight in Edinburgh in October 1548 over a culverin
sent for repair and several Scots were killed on the Royal Mile
. D'Essé organised a night raid on Haddington to increase their popularity. The raid was repulsed after the English watch shouted, "Bows and Bills", which according to John Knox was the usual alarm of the time. While the French were away from Edinburgh the townsfolk killed some of their wounded. On 1 November 1548, Wilford wrote to Somerset
describing the state of Haddington, with a garrison stricken by plague:
. The English (and their mercenary forces, which included German and Spanish professional soldiers) evacuated Haddington on 19 September 1549, travelling overland to Berwick upon Tweed. Mary of Guise was triumphant.
Royal burgh
A royal burgh was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished in 1975, the term is still used in many of the former burghs....
of Haddington
Haddington, East Lothian
The Royal Burgh of Haddington is a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is the main administrative, cultural and geographical centre for East Lothian, which was known officially as Haddingtonshire before 1921. It lies about east of Edinburgh. The name Haddington is Anglo-Saxon, dating from the 6th...
, East Lothian, Scotland, as part of the War of the Rough Wooing one the last Anglo-Scottish Wars
Anglo-Scottish Wars
The Anglo-Scottish Wars were a series of wars fought between England and Scotland during the sixteenth century.After the Wars of Scottish Independence, England and Scotland had fought several times during the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. In most cases, one country had attempted to...
. Following Regent Arran
James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault and 2nd Earl of Arran was a Scottish nobleman.-Biography:He was the eldest legitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran....
's defeat at the battle of Pinkie Cleugh
Battle of Pinkie Cleugh
The Battle of Pinkie Cleugh, on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland on 10 September 1547, was part of the War of the Rough Wooing. It was the last pitched battle between Scottish and English armies, and is seen as the first modern battle in the British Isles...
on Saturday 10 September 1547, he took Haddington, with 5000 troops including French mercenaries and troops sent by Henry II of France
Henry II of France
Henry II was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559.-Early years:Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany .His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by his sworn enemy,...
to bolster the Auld Alliance
Auld Alliance
The Auld Alliance was an alliance between the kingdoms of Scotland and France. It played a significant role in the relations between Scotland, France and England from its beginning in 1295 until the 1560 Treaty of Edinburgh. The alliance was renewed by all the French and Scottish monarchs of that...
. Afterwards, Francis Talbot, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury
Francis Talbot, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury
Francis Talbot, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury, 5th Earl of Waterford, 11th Baron Talbot KG was the son of George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury and Anne Hastings....
took it with nearly 15000. The English forces built artillery fortifications and were able to withstand an assault by the besieging French and Scots troops supported by heavy cannon in July 1548. Although the siege was scaled down after this unsuccessful attempt, the English garrison abandoned the town on 19 September 1549, after attrition by Scottish raids at night, sickness, and changing political circumstance.
The English dig in
The English commander, Grey of WiltonWilliam Grey, 13th Baron Grey de Wilton
William Grey, 13th Baron Grey de Wilton KG, was an English baron and military commander serving in France in the 1540s and 1550s, and in the Scottish wars of the 1540s.He was the thirteenth Baron Grey de Wilton....
captured and garrisoned Haddington by 23 February 1548. Grey and Thomas Palmer
Sir Thomas Palmer (died 1553)
Sir Thomas Palmer was an English soldier and courtier. His testimony was crucial in the final downfall of the Duke of Somerset in 1551–1552...
began to fortify the town in earnest after 24 April 1548. The English strategy was for the siege of Haddington was to consume Scottish and French resources. The soldiers built the fortifications alongside labourers from England who were called 'pioneers.' Although the site had obvious drawbacks, overlooked by the ridge of the nearby Garleton Hills
Garleton Hills
The Garleton Hills, in East Lothian, Scotland, are a range of igneous hills, to the north of Haddington, formed largely from Carboniferous tuffs and trachytic lavas. Although the highest point is only , the hills are conspicuous throughout the county...
and four miles from the sea, the finished ramparts were much admired. The French ambassador in London, Odet de Selve
Odet de Selve
Odet de Selve was a French diplomat.He was the son of Jean de Selve, first president at the parlements of Rouen and Bordeaux, vice-chancellor of Milan, and ambassador of the king of France. In 1540 Odet was appointed councillor at the parlement of Paris and in 1542 at the grand council...
, heard from a French mercenary serving on the English side that it was almost as impregnable as Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. Regent Arran moved the Scottish artillery to the nearby villages of Ormiston
Ormiston
Ormiston is a village in East Lothian, Scotland, UK, near Tranent, Humbie, Pencaitland and Cranston, located on the north bank of the River Tyne at an elevation of about 276 ft....
, Brunston and Saltoun, and summoned the men of Stirling
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...
, Menteith
Menteith
Menteith or Monteith , a district of south Perthshire, Scotland, roughly comprises the territory between the Teith and the Forth. The region is named for the river Teith, but the exact sense is unclear, early forms including Meneted, Maneteth and Meneteth.First recorded as the Mormaerdom of...
and Strathearn
Strathearn
Strathearn or Strath Earn is the strath of the River Earn, in Scotland. It extends from Loch Earn in Perth and Kinross to the River Tay....
. But the English construction works continued unmolested. Somerset
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp of Hache, KG, Earl Marshal was Lord Protector of England in the period between the death of Henry VIII in 1547 and his own indictment in 1549....
even showed Odet de Selve the plan, and said it was better than Calais. The design include four corner bastions, called Bowes
Robert Bowes (lawyer)
Sir Robert Bowes was an English lawyer and military commander.-Life:He was son of Sir Ralph Bowes and Marjory Conyers of South Cowton, Yorkshire, and studied law in his early years; but his ancestral connection with the Border country marked him out for employment in border affairs, where he did...
, Wyndham
Thomas Wyndham (navigator)
Thomas Wyndham was an English naval officer and navigator.The son of Sir Thomas Wyndham of Felbrigg and Elizabeth Wentworth, he was educated at Louvain University and possibly in Italy....
, Taylor and Tiberio, after the commanders (Francisco Tiberio was a leader of a band of Italian mercenaries). The French ambassador was told that the tollbooth, a tall and solid stone structure, had been filled with earth to form a gun platform called a cavalier
Cavalier (fortification)
The term Cavalier has been adopted from the French as a term in fortification for a work of great height constructed in the interior of a fort, bastion or other defence, so as to fire over the main parapet without interfering with the fire of the latter. A greater volume of fire can thus be...
.
Sieges
French and Scots troops began to seriously besiege the town in July 1548. It was defended by Sir James WilfordJames Wilford
Sir James Wilford was an English soldier, and commander of Haddington in Scotland during its occupation in the war of the Rough Wooing....
. The Master of the Scottish Artillery, Lord Methven
Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven
Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven was Master of the Scottish Artillery and third husband of Margaret Tudor, eldest daughter of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York.-Ancient lineage:...
, organised guns to be brought from the siege of Broughty Castle
Broughty Castle
Broughty Castle is a historic castle in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, Scotland. It was completed around 1495, although the site was earlier fortified in 1454 when George Douglas, 4th Earl of Angus received permission to build on the site. His son Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus was coerced into...
in June. These guns were shipped to Aberlady
Aberlady
Aberlady is a coastal village in the Scottish council area of East Lothian. On Aberlady Bay, it is five miles northwest of Haddington and approximately 18 miles east of Edinburgh, to which it is linked by the A198 Dunbar - Edinburgh road.Aberlady Parish Church dates back to the 15th century. It...
the nearest haven on the Forth
River Forth
The River Forth , long, is the major river draining the eastern part of the central belt of Scotland.The Forth rises in Loch Ard in the Trossachs, a mountainous area some west of Stirling...
. The great Scottish gun 'thrawinmouth' from Dunbar Castle
Dunbar Castle
Dunbar Castle is the remnants of one of the most mighty fortresses in Scotland, situated over the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian.-Early history:...
was also deployed and the cannons from Broughty were placed on 3 July 1548. On 5 July Methven gave Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise was a queen consort of Scotland as the second spouse of King James V. She was the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots, and served as regent of Scotland in her daughter's name from 1554 to 1560...
an optimistic report of the damage caused to the English defences by his guns. His fire had demolished the Tollbooth within the town, and he had advanced trenches towards the ramparts. Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise was a queen consort of Scotland as the second spouse of King James V. She was the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots, and served as regent of Scotland in her daughter's name from 1554 to 1560...
came to view the progress of the siege on 9 July 1548 and her party came in range of the English guns. Sixteen of her entourage were killed around her and she was terror-stricken. At this time the English inside were countermining against the French and Scottish siegeworks. A Scots force joined the French troops on 16 July to storm the town but were driven away by cannon fire. Following this set-back, the French officer d'Essé
André de Montalembert
André de Montalembert , Seigneur d'Essé, was a French noble man and officer of the 16th century. As a young boy he fought in the Italian Wars...
ordered the heavy guns to be withdrawn on 17 July. With rumours of English reinforcement, Methven took the Scottish and French guns to Edinburgh and Leith, while d'Essé kept the camp. D'Essé made his feelings known to Arran; that an earlier decisive assault before the English had time to entrench would have been the best action.
Shrewsbury arrived on 23 August 1548 with an army close in size to the English army at Pinkie. The French and Scots abandoned their siege of Haddington and retired to Edinburgh and Leith. Edward VI was told that the some of the departing besiegers had spoken to Captain Tiberio. They had pointed out the inadequacies of the fortifications and said all honour was due to the defenders and none to themselves. Edward also recorded a subsequent large but unsuccessful night raid against Haddington. The French troops in Edinburgh started a fight in Edinburgh in October 1548 over a culverin
Culverin
A culverin was a relatively simple ancestor of the musket, and later a medieval cannon, adapted for use by the French in the 15th century, and later adapted for naval use by the English in the late 16th century. The culverin was used to bombard targets from a distance. The weapon had a...
sent for repair and several Scots were killed on the Royal Mile
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets which form the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.As the name suggests, the Royal Mile is approximately one Scots mile long, and runs between two foci of history in Scotland, from Edinburgh Castle at the top of the Castle...
. D'Essé organised a night raid on Haddington to increase their popularity. The raid was repulsed after the English watch shouted, "Bows and Bills", which according to John Knox was the usual alarm of the time. While the French were away from Edinburgh the townsfolk killed some of their wounded. On 1 November 1548, Wilford wrote to Somerset
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp of Hache, KG, Earl Marshal was Lord Protector of England in the period between the death of Henry VIII in 1547 and his own indictment in 1549....
describing the state of Haddington, with a garrison stricken by plague:
"The state of this town pities me both to see and to write it; but I hope for relief. Many are sick and a great number dead, most of the plague. On my faith there are not here this day of horse, foot, and Italians, 1000 able to go to the walls, and more like to be sick, than the sick to mend, who watch the walls every 5th night, yet the walls are un-manned."
English withdraw
The English withdrew because they were out of supplies, many of their men had died from disease or during the Scottish night raids, and more French re-inforcements had arrived under Paul de ThermesPaul de Thermes
Paul de La Barthe de Thermes , also Paul de Terme or Maréchal de Thermes, was a French Army Marshal who led the French effort in the Invasion of Corsica in 1553. The Ottoman fleet supported the French by ferrying the French troops under Marshal de Thermes from Siennese Maremma to Corsica...
. The English (and their mercenary forces, which included German and Spanish professional soldiers) evacuated Haddington on 19 September 1549, travelling overland to Berwick upon Tweed. Mary of Guise was triumphant.
Sources
- Fullwell, Ulpian, The Flower of Fame, with a discourse of the worthie service that was done at Haddington in Scotlande the second yere of the raigne of King Edward the Sixe, William Hoskins, London (1575), 49r-59r.
- Merriman, Marcus H., The History of the King's Works, vol. 4 (1982), ed. H. M. Colvin, part iv, 'The Scottish Border', 607-726.
- Merriman, Marcus H., The Rough Wooings, Tuckwell (2000)
- Phillips, Gervase, The Anglo-Scots Wars, Woodbridge (1999)
- Phillips, Gervase, 'In the Shadow of Flodden', Scottish military tactics, 1513–1550, Scottish Historical Review, 77 (1998), 162-182.