The Fall Of The House Of Huntly

The Fall of the House of Huntly

A year after Mary Stuart’s arrival in Scotland in 1561 at the age of nineteen she left Edinburgh to travel to the Northern reaches of her kingdom. When she returned almost four months later, her staunchest Catholic ally George Gordon, the 4th Earl of Huntly, along with the most powerful members of the Gordon clan, were disgraced and ruined. The motives behind this royal progress, which became in the end a punitive expedition, have been the subject of much dispute. Mary certainly wanted to get away from the capital: it had not been a happy year, one full of religious controversy and confrontation, and there had been a recent unsatisfactory meeting with the Pope’s envoy, Nicolas de Gouda, who had tried to persuade her to be more severe with adherents of the new doctrines. The planned meeting with Elizabeth of England, on which she had set her heart, had just been cancelled (postponed till the following year, but it never took place). Also, the journey would be long and arduous and this appealed to her keen sense of adventure. There was the advisability of visiting the Earl of Huntly, who ruled in the north like an independent potentate, and to cool his reckless enthusiasm for a Catholic uprising. He had in the previous year attempted to persuade her to land at Aberdeen and boasted that he could raise three shires to fight for her. There was also the desire on the part of Mary to exhibit to Elizabeth and her own protestant subjects that she was capable of dealing impartially with her nobility, whatever their religious persuasion.

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There is some truth in all of these suggested motives, but it is likely that the prime mover in the whole affair was Mary’s half-brother, Lord James. His motives were clear. Created Earl of Mar by Mary on her return to Scotland, he craved a far higher honour, that of the Earldom of Moray, which was in abeyance but administered at that time by George, the fourth Earl of Huntly. Huntly had been a good servant of Mary’s father who had appointed him his Lieutenant of the North. He had fought bravely for James against the English on the borders and had commanded the Scottish army when they defeated the English at Haddenrig in 1542. In 1546 he had been created Lord Chancellor after the assassination of Cardinal Beaton, and the Queen Regent had granted him the Earldom of Moray along with the rich estates that came with it. He fell temporarily into disgrace in 1555 when he was unwilling to execute some Highland rebels, but he was restored to favour two years later. The title of Earl of Moray was not restored to him, but he was allowed to hold the lands in fee and was expecting the new Queen to give him back the title. In 1560, before the death of the Queen Regent, he joined temporarily the Protestant Lords of the Congregation, a defection which weakened considerably the power of the Regent and inflicted a severe blow on the Catholic cause. On account of this he was considered untrustworthy and unstable by his peers, but there is no reason to doubt his fidelity to the Crown.

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However, the man who was at the very hub of power, the Queen’s principal minister and adviser, was Lord James, the newly created Earl of Mar. He was nine years older than Mary. At the age of seven he had been given the Priory of St Andrews, the richest in Scotland, by his father James V. The Regent Mary of Guise granted him the Priory of Pittenweem. His marriage with Agnes Keith, daughter of the Earl Marischal, brought him into a family that had considerable riches and vast estates. He had earlier acquired the estates of the Earldom of Buchan by means of a false betrothal to the Countess of Buchan. He held the lordships of Braemar, Cromar and Strathdee. He was one of the richest men in Scotland. He was also, by virtue of his influence with Mary, the most powerful man in the Kingdom. Mary was just nineteen years of age, totally inexperienced in affairs of state, innocent of political intrigue, accustomed during her brief reign as Queen of France to the forceful guidance of hardened political heavyweights. Her Privy Council consisted of men who were experienced in statecraft and diplomatic maneuvering, among whom were her subtle secretary Maitland and the “dark and dangerous Douglas”, the Earl of Morton, the son of her father’s bitter enemy. The formulaic preamble to all acts of Council and Parliamentary edicts “Hir Hieness, with avyss of the Lordis of Hir Secrete Counsale” had a particular force in Mary’s case. Randolph writes, “The Lord James is commander of the Queen”, and Cecil, “The whole governance rests with the Lord James and the Laird of Lethington”. Nicolas de Gouda, an emissary of the Pope, wrote in 1562: “The men in power acknowledge the The Fall of The House of Huntly/3

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Queen’s title, but prevent her exercising any of the rights of sovereignty; whenever her opinion does not agree with theirs, they oppose her at once.” He added, “Many Lords and Earls are Catholics, but these noblemen keep away from court and from any share in the administration.” It was these Lords of her Secret Council who virtually ran the country. Such was the situation in the summer of 1562: the Protestant Lords of the Congregation still fearful of a Catholic uprising in the North, the leader of these Catholics a man who was a threat to the central authority, that central authority virtually in the hands of the triumvirate of Mar, Maitland and Morton, each of whom had his own agenda for the control of the Kingdom. In the middle of it all was a young woman, unfamiliar with her native country, its culture and customs, impressionable and anxious herself to impress. Although a progress of some kind to the North had been mooted and postponed because of the possibility of a meeting of the two Queens, the immediate spur to move was a brawl which took place in the streets of Edinburgh during that summer. There was a fight between the Earl of Huntly’s third son Sir John Gordon and Lord Ogilvie over a matter of inheritance. Ogilvie was wounded and Sir John and several Gordons were arrested. Mar saw his opportunity and came in haste from Stirling to oversee their punishment. He set Ogilvie free but imprisoned the Gordons in the Tolbooth. Sir John later escaped and made his way North to his father. The Fall of The House of Huntly/4

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Mary left Edinburgh on horseback on 11th August along with four members of her Privy Council and about one hundred servants and retainers. Also in the party were Maitland of Lethington and Randolph, the English ambassador. Randolph wrote frequently to his master, Elizabeth’s Secretary Cecil, and many of the details of the journey are contained in these letters. Also of the party was Sir James Ogilvie, a relative of the wounded Ogilvie, who had been made Master of the Queen’s Household. He kept a diary and recorded all the resting places on the expedition. They passed the first night at Linlithgow and dined the next day at Callendar, the seat of Lord Livingstone, the brother of one of her Maries. From there the party moved to Stirling where they stayed until the 18th. From Stirling they moved on to Aberdeen by way of Perth, Coupar Angus, Glamis and Edzell, where Mary held a meeting of her Privy Council. Randolph describes the journey thus: “From Stirling she taketh her journey as far north as Inverness, the furthest part of Murray, a terrible journey both for horse and man, the countries are so poor and the victuals so scarce…her journey is cumbersome and painful and marvellous long, the weather extreme foul and cold and all victuals marvellous dear, and the corn never like to come to ripeness.”

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They reached Old Aberdeen on 27th August and remained there until 1st September. During that time the Earl and Countess of Huntly came to Aberdeen and invited the party to visit them at their castle of Strathbogie on their way to Inverness. The invitation was refused. However, Randolph and others were allowed to spend a few nights there, where they were regally entertained. He writes: “The Earl of Huntly’s house is the best furnished that I have seen in this country. His cheer is marvellous great, his mind such as it ought to be towards his sovereign.” At the same time Sir John Gordon was ordered to give himself up at Stirling, but as the castle was in the charge of Mar’s uncle, Lord Erskine, he realised his danger and returned to his father’s stronghold. Mary and her party left Aberdeen on 1st September, avoiding Strathbogie, and by way of Rothiemay, Grange and Balveny arrived at Elgin. She left Elgin on 8th September and went to Darnaway Castle, the seat of the Earldom of Moray. Here she held a meeting of her Privy Council during which Lord James produced his patent of the Earldom of Moray which had been privately granted to him earlier by Mary under her Privy Seal. Now he officially assumed the title, relinquishing that of Mar to Lord Erskine who had long claimed it. Randolph makes the pertinent observation: “It is both more honourable, and greater in profit, than the other.”

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At Darnaway news reached Mary of Sir John’s refusal to give himself up and a proclamation was issued ordering him to surrender the fortresses of Findlater and Auchindoune. On 11th September the party left Darnaway for Inverness. Among Huntly’s titles were sheriff of the county and keeper of the castle, titles he had given to his eldest son, Lord George, on the occasion of his marriage to Anne Hamilton, the daughter of the Duke of Châtelherault. The castle was held by a relative and deputy of Lord George, one Alexander Gordon, who refused entry without his lord’s permission. When Huntly heard this he sent orders that the castle should be opened up , but they arrived too late. The castle was entered and Alexander Gordon along with six others were hanged on Moray’s orders. Huntly was now sure that his own ruin was intended and prepared to defend himself. On 15th September Mary left Inverness for Aberdeen by way of Kilravock, Darnaway and Spynie, the seat of Patrick Hepburn, Bishop of Moray and uncle of her future husband Bothwell. On the 19th she crossed the Spey at Fochabers, then went on to Banff by way of Cullen. All the way back to Aberdeen Mary was made to believe by her Council that the Gordons had amassed a large army and that an attack was imminent, but no opposing forces were seen at any time. When the Queen’s forces (which were gathering in numbers all the time) skirted the castles of Findlater and Deskford, an order to surrender was given, but the Gordons, now realising that a confrontation was inevitable, refused to obey.

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The Queen arrived at Old Aberdeen on 22nd September with about three thousand men. The following day she made a formal entry into New Aberdeen and stayed with the Earl Marischal (Moray’s father-in-law) in Castle Street. Randolph writes: “and the good minds of the inhabitants shown as well in spectacles, interludes and others, as they could best devise. They presented her with a cup of silver double gilt, well wrought, with five hundred crowns in it; wine, coals and wax were sent in, as much will serve her.” A meeting of the Privy Council proclaimed that Huntly “shall either submit himself and deliver his disobedient son John, or utterly to use all force against him, for the subversion of his house forever.” The Privy Council also ordered all the Gordons in the County to remain confined to their estates and not to appear out of them on pain of severe fines. Moray sent to Edinburgh for reinforcements which included the Master of Lyndsay, Kirkaldy of Grange and Ormiston. A Captain Hay was sent to Strathbogie to take possession of the huge cannon which had been a formidable weapon in Huntly’s hands. Hay returned with the message that Huntly was willing to surrender and enter into ward till his case might be tried by the whole nobility. The offer was rejected. The Countess of Huntly sent the message that her husband was being oppressed because he would not give up his religion “as those who are now about the Queen’s grace have done.”

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This was the final straw. Seeing no hope of reconciliation, frustrated and desperate, Huntly prepared for battle with Moray. A detachment of soldiers under Kirkaldy of Grange was sent to Strathbogie to arrest Huntly, but he escaped into the wilds of Badenoch. The keys of Findlater and Auchindoune were belatedly surrendered, but Moray refused to receive them. He, too, was determined to fight. On 17th October Huntly was put to the horn. On the 20th the Countess came again to Aberdeen to plead, but she was not allowed into the city. Huntly then offered again to surrender and be tried by his peers. This, too, was rejected. Goaded beyond endurance, Huntly gathered his followers and marched against Moray. On 28th October the two armies met at Corrichie on the Hill of Fare, twenty miles west of Aberdeen. Huntly had about five hundred clansmen of whom many, aware of the odds against them, deserted before the battle. “His own friends, tenants and servants, of whom divers in two nights before, stole secretly from him”. (Randolph) Moray had two thousand able and disciplined soldiers along with many Earls and noblemen. The hereditary enemies of the Gordons – the Frasers, Forbes, Grants and Monroes – many of whom Huntly had put under restraint, were released to take up arms against him. The battle was short, one-sided and bloody. Huntly’s men were driven by Kirkaldy’s arquebusiers from their eminence on the Hill of Fare into a morass where they were slaughtered. He lost one hundred and twenty men while Moray lost none. The Fall of The House of Huntly/9

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Huntly died on the field of battle. There are conflicting reports of his death. Randolph says: “The Earl himself, after that he was taken, without either blow or stroke, being set upon horseback before him that was his taker, suddenly falleth from his horse stark deid, without word that he ever spoake.” The Diurnal of Occurents records “that he bristit and swelt, so that he spak not one word, but deceissit.” Others say that “he deid of a broken heart” and “that he was slein, either by the sword or suffocated from the weight of his armour”. It was claimed by another that he was put to death by Moray’s order. However he died, the corpse of the Earl was crudely embalmed – “his bowels were taken out and his body salted” – and transported to Edinburgh by boat where it was tried for High Treason the following May. The corpse was taken into parliament where it was arraigned – “the coffin sette upright as if the Erle stood upon his feet”. The Act of Attainder declared Huntly’s “dignity, name and memory to be extinct” and his posterity “unable to enjoy any office, honour or rank within the realm.” Sir John Gordon. The wayward son, was executed in Aberdeen with six other Gordons. Moray insisted that Mary witness the execution from the house of the Earl Marischal in Castle Street. There had been a rumour that Sir John was in love with Mary and wanted to marry her and even that Mary herself was not averse to the match. The executioner made a botch of the beheading, a foreshadowing of Mary’s own execution twenty five years later. -11The Fall of The House of Huntly/10

Mary became faint at the sight. George Buchanan, who was no friend of Mary or of the family of Huntly, writes of Sir John: “He was generally pitied and lamented for he was a noble youth, very beautiful, and entering on the prime of his age,” and then he adds typically, “not so much designed for the royal bed, as deceived by the pretence of it.” The body of Sir John was buried in St Nicholas Church. Huntly’s youngest son Adam, who had fought alongside his father, was pardoned because of his youth, and imprisoned for a time in the castle of Dunbar. He was afterwards known as Sir Adam Gordon of Auchendoun and fought for Mary after her escape from Lochleven. The Earl of Sutherland, a kinsman of Huntly, was attainted and condemned to death by Parliament for assisting Huntly’s treason. The sentence was not carried out, but his estates were forfeited to the Crown. Lord George Gordon, the eldest surviving son, who had been with his wife and father-in-law, the Duke of Chatelherault, at Hamilton during the campaign, was nevertheless arrested. He held several heritable titles and lands from his father which Moray coveted. He was tried in February 1563. Indicative of the intricate network of family relationships that characterised the Scottish nobility, the Justice General that presided at the trial was the Earl of Argyle, Moray’s brother-in-law. Gordon was not allowed to offer any

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defence nor object to jury or witnesses. He was quickly found guilty of treason and condemned to death to await “our soveraine’s pleasure”. The sovereign’s pleasure was to have him imprisoned in Dunbar Castle. It was reported that Moray attempted to have him executed by means of a forged warrant, but Gordon was released and restored to his estates four years later. The Earl of Huntly’s castles and mansions were raided and plundered and the rich contents removed. A boatload was conveyed from Aberdeen to Leith. In the Treasurer’s accounts for November 1562 there is a charge of thirty pounds for the transport of the booty. The contents, which included a dozen beds, forty tapestries and hangings, rich embroidered coverings and velvet cushions, together with gold and silver ornaments, were shared between Moray and Mary. The Court left Aberdeen and moved south on 5th November, stopping the first night at Dunnotar Castle, the seat of Moray’s father-in-law, the Earl Marischal. They arrived back in Edinburgh on 21st by way of Montrose, Dundee and Perth. Thus, by 1563 Moray had become the richest and most powerful man in Scotland. As well as the title of Moray he had acquired the Sheriffdoms of Inverness, Elgin and Forres. He had got rid of all those who were stumbling-blocks to his ambition: Bothwell had been forced into exile,

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Arran and his son, the chief of the Hamiltons, were in disgrace and banished from court, the Earl of Sutherland, the other great Northern Earl, attainted and banished, the Earl of Huntly dead and his family disgraced and ruined. Even the post of Chancellor which had been held by Huntly was given to Moray’s relative, the Earl of Morton. It is reported that Mary regretted the severity of the persecution of the Huntly family and would not share in the rejoicing recommended by Moray. John Knox, who had his own reasons for writing up Mary’s displeasure, reports that when Mary received news of Moray’s victory and was asked to share in the celebrations, “sche glowmed boyth at the messenger and at the request, and skarselie wold geve a good worde or blyth countenance to any that she knew earnest favoraris of the Erle of Murray, whose prosperitie was and yitt is a verray vennoume to hyr boldened harte against him for his godlynes and uprycht plainess…..of many days she bair no better countenance, whereby it mycht have bene evidentlie espyed, that sche rejosed nott greatlie of the successe of the matter.” And Buchanan writes: “Murray proceeded to the Court, where, amid the mutual gratulations of the courtiers, the Queen betrayed no symptom of joy, either in her countenance or speech.”

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There can be little doubt that the punishment of Huntly and the Gordons was out of proportion to the danger they threatened. The whole episode can be fairly ascribed to the ambition of James Stewart and the determination of Mary’s closest advisers, both political and military, to destroy the Catholic strength in the North. To these compelling pressures can be added the inexperience and credulity of the Queen herself and her inability, owing to her sex and youth, to exercise fully her rights of sovereignty. Moray himself was assassinated in 1570 by a Hamilton, and his son-in-law, “The Bonnie Earl o’Moray”, was later assassinated by a Gordon, the grandson of the Huntly who fell at Corrichie.

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