Battle of Philiphaugh, 13 September 1645 (Scotland)

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Civil War Battle that ended the earl of Montrose's otherwise successful Scottish campaign of 1645. Once again, Montrose's victorious army had melted away, partly in protest at Montrose's attempts to secure political control of Scotland, and he marched towards the borders, hoping to recruit more men, at the head of a force probably no more than 700 strong. Opposing him was a new army of 5000 cavalry and 1000 infantry led by David Leslie, including troops taken from the Covenant garrisons of Newcastle and Berwick. Covered by fog, Leslie was able to surprise Montrose's camp at Philiphaugh, and the overwhelmed Irish were soon forced to surrender. Montrose himself had wanted to suffer the fate of his army, but was persuaded to flee the field. After the battle, the churchmen with Leslie protested against the quarter he had granted the Irish, and forced him to commit an atrocity, first massacring the 300 women and children with the army, and then killing the captured soldiers. This was not the only occasion where the more Puritanical elements of the Parliamentary and Covenanting forces massacred captured women.
cover The English Civil War , Richard Holmes & Peter Young, an early work by one of the country's best known military historians, this is a superb single volume history of the war, from its causes to the last campaigns of the war and on to the end of the protectorate.
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See Also
Books on the English Civil War
Subject Index: English Civil War

How to cite this article: Rickard, J. (21 April 2001), Battle of Philiphaugh, 13 September 1645, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_philiphaugh.html

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