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Battle of Byland
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The Battle of Old Byland was Part of First
War of
Scottish Independence, fought on 14th October 1322 on Scawton Moor,
Yorkshire, England.
The Battle of Old Byland (also known as the Battle of Byland Moor and
Battle of Byland Abbey) was a significant encounter between Scots and
English troops in Yorkshire in October 1322, forming part of the Wars of
Scottish Independence. It was a victory for the Scots, the most
significant since Bannockburn, though on a far smaller scale.
Ever since Robert Bruce's victory at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314,
the Scots had taken the initiative in the wars with England, raiding
deep into the north of the country repeatedly and with comparative ease
to attempt to force the English to the peace-table. The English king,
Edward II seemed incapable of dealing with the problem, distracted, as
he often was, in a political struggle with his own barons and refused to
even begin peace negotiations with the Scots which would have required
recognizing Robert the Bruce as King of the Scots. In early 1322 the
situation had become critical, with some senior English noblemen, headed
by Thomas of Lancaster, preparing to enter into an alliance with the
Scots.
It seems unlikely that Bruce had much confidence in Lancaster, who
referred to himself as 'King Arthur' in his negotiations with the Scots,
but he was quick to take advantage of the threat of civil war in
England. Scarcely had the truce of 1319 expired in January 1322 than
Sir
James Douglas, Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray and Walter Stewart
came over the border on a large-scale attack on the north-east. The
three commanders fanned out across the region: Douglas to Hartlepool,
Moray to Darlington and Stewart to Richmond. Lancaster with his army at
Pontefract did nothing to stop them. Edward ignored the Scots,
instructing his lieutenant in the north, Sir Andrew Harclay, the
governor of Carlisle, to concentrate his efforts against the rebel
barons, whom he finally defeated at the Battle of Boroughbridge. In the
wake of this the Scots raiders slipped back across the border.
Boroughbridge was a new beginning for Edward. The baronial opposition
had been defeated and tainted with treason: the king had at last enjoyed
his long-awaited revenge for the murder of Piers Gaveston. This was the
high point of his reign and, emboldened by this rare triumph, he decided
to embark on what was to be his last invasion of Scotland. It was to be
a disaster.
By the time Edward was ready to begin his advance in early August Bruce
was more than ready. He deployed his usual tactics: crops were destroyed
and livestock removed and his army withdrawn north of the River Forth.
In all of Lothian the English are said only to have found one lame cow,
causing the Earl of Surrey to remark; This is the dearest beef I ever
saw. It surely has cost a thousand pounds and more! In the Scalacronica,
Sir Thomas Grey describes the whole campaign thus;
The king marched upon Edinburgh, where at Leith there came such a
sickness and famine upon the common soldiers of that great army, that
they were forced to beat a retreat for want of food; at which time the
king's light horse were defeated by James de Douglas. None dared leave
the main body to seek food by forage, so greatly were the English
harassed and worn out by fighting that before they arrived in Newcastle
there was such a murrain in the army for want of food, that they were
obliged of necessity to disband.
Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh, and the border abbeys of Melrose and
Dryburgh were destroyed in revenge by the English. The invasion had
achieved precisely nothing. More seriously, the effect on national
morale of the ignominious retreat of a starving army was almost as bad
as the defeat at Bannockburn. Worse was to follow; for, as always, an
English retreat was the signal for yet another Scottish attack.
Bruce crossed the Solway in the west, making his way in a south-easterly
direction towards Yorkshire, bringing many troops recruited in Argyll
and the Isles. The boldness and speed of the attack with The Great Raid
of 1322, soon exposed Edward to the dangers on his own land. On his
return from Scotland, the king had taken up residence at Rievaulx Abbey
with Queen Isabella. His peace was interrupted when the Scots made a
sudden and unexpected approach in mid-October.[1] All that stood between
them and a royal prize was a large English force under the command of
John of Brittany, Earl of Richmond. John had taken up position on
Scawton Moor, between Rievaulx and Byland Abbey.
To dislodge him from his strong position on the high ground Bruce used
the same tactics that brought victory at the earlier Battle of Pass of
Brander. As Moray and Douglas charged uphill a party of Highlanders
scaled the cliffs on the English flank and charged downhill into
Richmond's rear. Resistance crumbled and the Battle of Old Byland turned
into a rout. Richmond himself was taken prisoner, as were Henri de
Sully, Grand Butler of France, Sir Ralph Cobham ('the best knight in
England') and Sir Thomas Ughtred. Many others were killed in flight.
Edward – 'ever chicken hearted and luckless in war' – was forced to make
a rapid and undignified exit from Rievaulx, fleeing in such haste that
his personal belongings were left behind.
After Byland, says Sir Thomas Gray, the Scots were so fierce and their
chiefs so daring, and the English so cowed, that it was no otherwise
between them than as a hare before greyhounds.
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Source
Sources for this article include:
Barbour, John, The Bruce, trans. A. A. H. Douglas, 1964.
Gray, Sir Thomas, Scalicronica, trans. H. Maxwell, 1913.
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
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