Glencairn's rising was a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

revolt in Scotland against the

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over m ...

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

from 1653 to 1654. It was led by

William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn ( gd, Uilleam Coineagan) (1610–1664), was a Scottish nobleman, Lord Chancellor of Scotland, and a cavalier. He was also the chief of Clan Cunningham. The eldest son of William Cunningham, 8th Earl of ...

(1610–1664), who was given command of the Royalist forces in Scotland by Charles II. Initially successful it began to suffer divisions when John Middleton arrived to replace Glencairn as commander, resulting in a series of duels between officers. It was defeated when Thomas Morgan caught Middleton's army at Dalnaspidal on 19 July 1654. Although the rising was unsuccessful it forced a change of policy by the Cromwellian regime, which now looked for a reconciliation with former Royalists and Engagers.

Origins

was given command of the Royalist forces in Scotland by Charles II. He convened a meeting of Scottish notables at Lochearn in August 1653. Among those present were

John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl, KT (2 May 16316 May 1703) was a leading Scottish royalist and defender of the Stuarts during the English Civil War of the 1640s, until after the rise to power of William and Mary in 1689. He succeeded as 2n ...

Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to: Peerage * Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer * Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland * Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...

, eldest son of the Marquis of Argyll, Lord Loin, Donald MacDonell of Glengarry,

Ewen Cameron of Lochiel Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel (Scottish Gaelic: ''Eòghain Camshròn Mac Dhòmhnaill Dubh''; February 1629 – 12 June 1719) was a Scottish highland chief, soldier and courtier. He was the Chief of Clan Cameron – the 17th Lochiel, and was renow ...

John Graham of Duchray John Graham of Duchray (Highland Hector, Tetrarch of Aberfoyle) (Scottish Gaelic: Iain Greumach an Dubhchra), Scottish landowner and soldier, was born in Scotland around 1600 and died around 1700. He married Marion Graham of Rednock, and had a s ...

and Colonel

Blackadder ''Blackadder'' is a series of four period British sitcoms, plus several one-off instalments, which originally aired on BBC One from 1983 to 1989. All television episodes starred Rowan Atkinson as the antihero Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robins ...

of Tullyallan. These notables then mustered their vassals and supporters to form a small army of about 60 horse, and a force of foot, made up of 60–80 Lowlanders and 150 Highlanders. The governor of

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

, Colonel Kidd, sallied out to suppress this force, but was defeated at

Aberfoyle Aberfoyle may refer to: *Aberfoyle, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland *Aberfoyle, Stirling, Scotland * Aberfoyle, Ontario, Canada *Aberfoyle, Texas Aberfoyle is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Hunt County, Texas, Hunt Count ...

.S. C. Manganiello, ''The Concise Encyclopedia of the Revolutions and Wars of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1639–1660'' (Scarecrow Press, 2004), , pp. 223–5. This victory boosted morale and the rising gained some support from Lowland Scottish lords, forcing the Commonwealth government to adopt a more conciliatory attitude to these groups.

Divisions

Although it gained recruits, the rising began to suffer from internal divisions, particularly between the Highlanders who made up the bulk of the forces and the Lowland nobles and officers who were their commanders. In early 1654, nine months into the revolt, John Middleton (1608–1674), a Lowland officer and a veteran of the

Battle of Worcester The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell def ...

, arrived with a commission to command from Charles II.M. Lynch, ''Scotland: a New History'' (London: Random House, 1991), , pp. 284–5. Despite objections from his followers, Glencairn surrendered control over his forces, which had now reached 3,500 foot and 1,500 horse. Divisions were largely due to petty disputes between Glencairn's and Middleton's respective forces. That evening Sir George Munro, Middleton's aide, insulted Glencairn's forces and the result was a duel between Glencairn and Munro in which the latter was wounded. Glencairn was arrested. He would eventually be released and retire from the conflict. The following day two junior officers from the two camps had a duel of their own in which one was killed and the other was later arrested and hanged. A series of other disputes and duels undermined the leadership of the campaign for the remainder of the rising.

Defeat

Middleton adopted a strategy of raid and harrying. Although successful in distracting the Commonwealth forces and causing disruption, it soon began to prove counter-productive, as growing unpopularity led to a drying up of recruitment. With his return to Scotland after his brief naval command against the Dutch, Monck began a campaign against the rising, making forced marches of between 12 and 20 miles a day in difficult terrain. On 19 July 1654 a force from Monck's command under Thomas Morgan caught Middleton's army at Dalnaspidal. In the resulting battle the royalists were scattered and a wounded Middleton was forced to escape to the Highlands. The end of the Dutch War meant there was no possibility of foreign aid and government reinforcements were now available to combat the rising. As a result the Royalist military effort petered out. Eventually, Glencairn surrendered to Monck and Middleton escaped to the continent to join the court in exile.

Consequences

Although the rising was unsuccessful it forced a change of policy by the regime, which instead of attempting to replace the landholding classes now looked for a reconciliation with former Royalists and Engagers. This resulted in the Act of Grace and Pardon, proclaimed in Edinburgh on 5 May 1654. Instead of a blanket forfeiture among those implicated in resistance, it named 24 persons (mainly from the nobility) whose lands would be seized, and 73 other landholders who could retain their estates after paying a fine. Even then most of those names were treated with leniency and fines were remitted for confiscations, or were reduced, and some were abandoned.D. L. Smith, ''Cromwell and the Interregnum: The Essential Readings'' (John Wiley & Sons, 2008), , p. 203.

Notes

References

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