The Incident was a Royalist

Cavalier

Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...

 plot

Conspiracy (crime)

In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...

 to kidnap a group of Scottish

Kingdom of Scotland

The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...

 nobles. The Incident took place in 1641 during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms

Wars of the Three Kingdoms

The Wars of the Three Kingdoms formed an intertwined series of conflicts that took place in England, Ireland, and Scotland between 1639 and 1651 after these three countries had come under the "Personal Rule" of the same monarch...

, and the plot's targets were all prominent members of the Presbyterian Covenanter

Covenanter

The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century...

 faction who opposed Charles I

Charles I of England

Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

's attempts to control the Scottish Church

Church of Scotland

The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....

. Charles I, King of England and of Scotland, had been forced to agree a truce with the Covenanters, to conclude the Bishops' Wars

Bishops' Wars

The Bishops' Wars , were conflicts, both political and military, which occurred in 1639 and 1640 centred around the nature of the governance of the Church of Scotland, and the rights and powers of the Crown...

 of 1638-1640. In August 1641 he ratified the Treaty of London

Treaty of London

The Treaty of London may refer to:* Treaty of London , which ceded western France to England, repudiated by the Estates-General in Paris on 19 May 1359* Treaty of London , a non-aggression pact between the major European nations...

, and travelled to Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 to finalise negotiations with the Scottish Parliament

Parliament of Scotland

The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...

. Charles hoped to make common cause with the Earl of Argyll

Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll

Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll, 8th Earl of Argyll, chief of Clan Campbell, was the de facto head of government in Scotland during most of the conflict known as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, also known as the British Civil War...

, the effective leader of the Presbyterian Covenanters, against the English Long Parliament

Long Parliament

The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...

, and created him Marquis of Argyll.

The Marquis of Hamilton

James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton

General Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman and influential Civil war military leader.-Young Arran:...

, while remaining a Royalist, sought to develop a friendship with the Marquis of Argyll. It is not clear how much Charles I approved of this liaison, but many in the Scottish Royalist faction felt threatened by this development. On the evening of 29 September, Lord Henry Ker (the son of the Earl of Roxburgh), rode into Edinburgh at the head of an armed retinue and challenged Hamilton to a duel calling him a traitor. The episode ended without violence as Lord Ker backed down and apologised. However it set in motion murmurs and whispers amongst others Royalists which led to plotting.

The plot was directed against the Marquis of Argyll, the Marquis of Hamilton, and his brother the Earl of Lanark

William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton

William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman who supported both Royalist and Presbyterian causes during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms....

. It was hatched by the Royalist, and rival of Argyll, the Earl of Montrose

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose was a Scottish nobleman and soldier, who initially joined the Covenanters in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, but subsequently supported King Charles I as the English Civil War developed...

, who had already attempted to have Argyll charged with high treason

High treason

High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...

. The three were to be kidnapped and taken on board a ship at Leith

Leith

-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....

, but on 11 October, General Leslie

Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven

Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven was a Scottish soldier in Dutch, Swedish and Scottish service. Born illegitimate and raised as a foster child, he subsequently advanced to the rank of a Dutch captain, a Swedish Field Marshal, and in Scotland became lord general in command of the Covenanters,...

, the leader of the Covenanter army, was informed of the plot by Sir John Hurry

John Hurry

Sir John Hurry was a Scottish soldier.He was born in Aberdeenshire, and saw military service as a young man in Germany.In 1641 he returned home and became Lieutenant-Colonel in a Scottish regiment. At the end of the same year he was involved in the plot known as the "Incident"...

, a Scottish soldier who had been invited to join the conspiracy. Argyll, Hamilton and Lanark were forced to flee from Edinburgh to Hamilton's property at Kinneil House

Kinneil House

Kinneil House is a historic house to the west of Bo'ness in east-central Scotland. It was once the principal seat of the Hamilton family in the east of Scotland. The house was saved from demolition in 1936 when 16th-century mural paintings were discovered, and it is now in the care of Historic...

, near Bo'ness

Bo'ness

Bo'ness, properly Borrowstounness, is a coastal town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on a hillside on the south bank of the Firth of Forth within the Falkirk council area, north-west of Edinburgh and east of Falkirk. At the 2001 census, Bo'ness had a resident population of 13,961...

. The next day, Charles denied any involvement in the plot, and was soon forced to allow an investigation into the matter.

Charles was left with no option but to submit to the Covenanters' demands. He assented to the abolition of episcopacy in Scotland, and appointed Covenanting nobles to the Privy Council of Scotland

Privy Council of Scotland

The Privy Council of Scotland was a body that advised the King.In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of material on the political, administrative, economic and social affairs of Scotland...

and other positions, before returning to England in November to face the increasing threat of civil war.