Battle of Glenlivet facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Glenlivet |
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 Site of the Battle of Glenlivet |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Catholic clans: Clan Gordon, Clan Hay, Clan Comyn, Clan Cameron |
Protestant clans: Clan Campbell, Clan Murray, Clan Stewart, Clan Forbes, Clan Macgillivray, Clan Maclean, Clan Grant, Clan MacNeil, Chattan Confederation - Clan Mackintosh. |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll |
Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 2,000 | 10,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 14 | 500 | ||||||
| Designated | 14 December 2012 | ||||||
| Reference no. | BTL33 | ||||||
The Battle of Glenlivet was a big fight between Scottish clans on 3 October 1594. It happened near Glenlivet, in Moray, Scotland. This battle was part of a bigger struggle between different religious groups in Scotland.
On one side were the Protestant forces. They were loyal to King James VI of Scotland. Their leader was Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll. On the other side were Catholic forces. They were led by George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly and Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll. The Catholics won the battle, but King James later brought them under his control.
Contents
Why Did the Battle Happen?
For about 200 years, two powerful families, the Clan Gordon and Clan Campbell, controlled large parts of Scotland. The Gordons were in the north-east, and the Campbells were in the west. They were very important leaders, especially where the Scottish Highlands met the Lowlands.
King James VI was unsure whether to support Catholics or Protestants. Many powerful nobles in the north were Catholic. In 1593, he even sent a secret message to the Pope. He thought about bringing Scotland back under the Pope's authority. But in 1594, he changed his mind again. He decided to enforce laws against Catholics.
Between 1588 and 1595, some Catholic nobles, like the Earls of Huntly, Errol, and Angus, secretly contacted King Phillip II of Spain. They were planning a rebellion against King James. When King James found out about these secret letters, he marched north. He sent a group of soldiers ahead, led by Archibald Campbell, the 7th Earl of Argyll. Argyll was still a teenager at the time. His job was to stop the rebel army led by the Earls of Huntly and Errol. The King's army went into Gordon country, which was a Catholic stronghold.
Argyll's Army Prepares
The Earl of Argyll was only 19 years old. He had about 12,000 men with him. On September 27, 1594, he went into Badenoch. He tried to attack Ruthven Castle. In Argyll's army were important leaders like the Earl of Atholl and the chiefs of Clan Maclean, Clan Mackintosh, Clan Grant, Clan Gregor, Clan MacNeil, and the whole of Clan Campbell.
Ruthven Castle was well defended by the Clan Macpherson. They were loyal to the Earl of Huntly. So, Argyll had to give up his attack. After that, Argyll marched through Strathspey. On October 2, he camped at Druminnor Castle. From there, Argyll sent messages for other clans to join him. These included Lord Forbes, Clan Fraser of Lovat, Clan Dunbar, Clan Mackenzie, Clan Irvine, Clan Ogilvy, and Clan Leslie.
Huntly's Army Prepares
The Catholic Earls knew that Argyll was young and had no battle experience. They also knew his army was made up of new, untrained soldiers. Plus, many of Argyll's own men were actually Catholics.
As Argyll got closer, the Earl of Errol joined the Earl of Huntly at Strathbogie. Errol brought 100 skilled horsemen. Huntly's force now had almost 1,500 men, mostly on horseback. From Strathbogie, they went to Carnborrow. There, the two Earls and their followers promised to win or die trying. Then they marched to Auchindoun that same day.
Huntly learned that Argyll was coming down from the mountains. He sent Captain Thomas Carr and some horsemen to scout ahead. They accidentally met Argyll's scouts. Huntly's men chased them and killed some. Huntly then decided to attack Argyll right away. He wanted to strike before Argyll could be joined by Lord Forbes and other forces waiting in the lowlands.
Argyll passed Glenlivet and reached a small stream called Alltacoileachan. He was surprised to see Huntly and Errol approaching with a smaller army. He worried that Huntly's cavalry (horse soldiers) would be a problem for his foot soldiers. He held a meeting to decide if they should attack or retreat to the mountains. The mountains would be safe from Huntly's horses. He could wait there for more support. The leaders advised Argyll to wait for the King or for more forces to arrive. However, Argyll ignored their advice. He decided to wait for the enemy's attack. He encouraged his men by pointing out how small the enemy force was.
The Battle Begins
Argyll placed his army on a hill between Glenlivet and Glenrinnes. His army was in two main groups. On the right side were the Macleans and Mackintoshes. They were led by Lachlan Maclean and Mackintosh of Mackintosh. On the left side were the Grants, MacNeils, and MacGregors. They were led by Grant of Gartinbeg. In the middle were the Campbells, led by Campbell of Auchinbreck. This front line had 4,000 men, and half of them had muskets (early guns). The back part of the army was led by Argyll himself. It had about 6,000 men.
Huntly's front line had 300 men. They were led by Errol, Sir Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun, the Gordon Laird of Gight, the Laird of Bonnitoun, and Captain Thomas Carr. Huntly followed with the rest of his men. The Macpherson Laird of Cluny was on his right, and the Gordon Laird of Abergeldy was on his left. Huntly also had three cannons. These were commanded by Captain Andrew Gray.
Argyll had the advantage of being on a hill. Huntly's soldiers had trouble because the ground was marshy and had turf pits dug into it. But Huntly still moved his army up the hill. He had made a secret deal with Campbell of Lochnell. Lochnell had agreed to switch sides as soon as the battle started. Campbell of Lochnell disliked Argyll, who had killed his brother in 1592. Lochnell was also Argyll's closest relative who could inherit his title.
However, Campbell of Lochnell was shot and killed by the first cannon fire. His men then ran away from the battle. Argyll's Highlanders had never seen cannons before. The loud blasts made them confused and scared. Huntly quickly attacked them with his cavalry. Errol was told to attack the right side of Argyll's army, led by Maclean. But this part of the hill was very steep. Errol was bothered by the many shots coming from above. So, he had to go around, leaving the enemy on his left. Gordon of Auchindoun charged up the steep hill with a small group to attack Maclean. But he was killed doing this. Maclean faced many attacks. But he moved his men so well that he managed to cut off Errol from Huntly. However, Huntly came to help Errol and rescued him.
The battle lasted for two hours. Huntly's horse was shot from under him, but he quickly got another one. The main part of Argyll's army started to break apart and retreat. However, Maclean kept fighting until he saw that it was hopeless. Then he also retreated. Huntly's success was mostly because Campbell of Lochnell betrayed Argyll. Also, Grant of Gartinbeg, who was actually one of Huntly's loyal followers, retreated as soon as the fighting began. This left the middle and left sides of Argyll's army completely broken.
Argyll's army lost about 500 men. Among those killed were MacNeil of Barra, Campbell of Lochnell, and Campbell of Auchinbreck. Huntly's losses were much smaller: only fourteen gentlemen were killed. These included Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun and the Gordon Laird of Gight. The Earl of Errol and several others were wounded.
Even though it was a big battle for Scotland, Glenlivet also involved an old rivalry between the Clan Cameron and Clan Mackintosh. Historian Alexander Mackenzie said that Allan Cameron of Lochiel, with a few of his clan, fought very well against his old enemies, the Mackintoshes. He defeated them and chased them eagerly. He helped Huntly so much that he deserved a better reward than he later received.
The battle site is about 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of Glenlivet. Experts are still studying the battlefield. It will be listed and protected by Historic Scotland as an important historical site.
What Happened After the Battle?
The day after the battle, on October 4, 1594, Huntly and Errol realized they had no outside help. They met with their supporters in Elgin Cathedral. There, they held the last public Catholic Mass ever held in that Cathedral. They talked about their situation. Huntly's uncle, who was a Jesuit priest, begged his friends and family to stay in their own land.
However, King James gathered a large army. He marched into the troubled areas. None of the rebel nobles fought against the King's army. After the leaders surrendered, they left their men and fled abroad. In early 1595, Errol sailed from Peterhead, and Huntly sailed from Aberdeen, both heading to Europe.
As the King went north, he ordered several castles to be destroyed. These included Old Slains Castle, which belonged to Errol, and Strathbogie Castle, which belonged to Huntly. The reason given was that Catholic priests had been hiding in them. Huntly spent sixteen months traveling through Germany and Flanders. Then he was called back to Scotland. In November 1597, the Parliament in Edinburgh gave Huntly, Errol, and Angus back their old titles and honors. Two years later, the King made the Earl of Huntly a Marquess, an even higher noble rank.
John Maclean, a leader of the Macleans, was badly wounded and died. He asked to be buried at the nearby Chapel of Downan. This chapel had apparently been destroyed by Argyll's troops before the battle, but was later rebuilt.
Between 1591 and 1594, Scotland had been troubled by the actions of Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell. He was a nephew of Mary, Queen of Scots' third husband. This led to the serious rebellion by Catholics in the north-east. But with the death of John Maxwell, 8th Lord Maxwell, a strong Catholic, at the Battle of Dryfe Sands in 1593, and the defeat of the northern Earls after the Battle of Glenlivet in 1594, the Catholic cause in Scotland was weakened.
Music from the Battle
The Battle of Glenlivet in 1594 was the last time the Highland harp was used in a battle. It stopped being used in the Scottish Highlands around 1734. After that, the Great Highland bagpipe became the main instrument for Scottish military music.
A poem called "The Battell of Balrinnes" was written by Patrick Hannay (who died around 1630). It was based on the Battle of Glenlivet. It especially focused on Andrew Gray, who led Huntly's cannons.
Another song, called "Bonnie James Campbell," might be a sad song for a man killed in the battle. The oldest known copy of this song is in a manuscript in the Advocates Library in Edinburgh. We don't know exactly how old it is. Many different versions of the song have been published since then. The original manuscript version is:
O it's up in the Highlands, and along the sweet Tay,
Did bonie James Campbell ride monie a day.
Sadled and bridled, and bonie rode he;
He came horse, he came sadle, but neer hame cam he.
And doun cam his sweet sisters, greeting sae sair,
And down cam his bonie wife, tearing her hair.
My house is unbigged, my barn's unbeen,
My corn's unshorn, my meadow grows green.'
Archaeology at Glenlivet
A group of standing stones near the battle site are believed to be connected to the Battle of Glenlivet. However, no one knows when these stones were first put there.
