Unknown (53 page)

They
went through the mob as though it was chaff, with little or no
swordery required, or indeed possible. A pistol or two cracked, men
shouted, some screamed as they went down under trampling hooves,
horses whinnied, and they were through.

Montrose
and Aboyne tried to wheel them round, right and left, in true
cavalry style, to drive back again; but of this they made a notable
botch, ending up in a confused tangle, lances menacing each other.
In fact, the return was not required. Seeing more cavalry coming
behind, the camp orderlies, cooks and odds and ends of an army
perceived no point in further interference in what seemed to be no
business of theirs. Prudendy they drew aside, and the
transporters and rearguard trotted through, swords out but
unchallenged.

After
that it was merely a matter of following the winding road through
the night northwards, keeping the rearguard well behind and watching
keenly for pursuit. Also seeing that all took tums at the miserable
duty of carrying artillery. They reached Morpeth exactly twenty-four
hours after their first arrival.

Crawford
and Clavering were already back from North Shields.

That
afternoon, rested and refreshed, Montrose tried out the reassembled
cannon. He had them dragged to the top of the Ha' Hill, the best
vantage point, and from there fired a few trial shots. Unfortunately
no trained nor born artillerymen showed themselves amongst his
force, and their trial-and-error education in the science was
grievously wasteful of the small store of ammunition. Moreover, the
castle's own cannon promptly fired back, and with rather better aim
and much greater prodigality. He set his men to dig trenches for
shelter - but even so there were casualties, largely due to
splinters from trees and rocks. As an artillery duel it was scarcely
a success; but, with one good hit they did demolish a turret of the
gatehouse-tower - proof that, given time and ball, they could batter
their way into the place.

Accepting
that patience was the quality required now, Montrose gave orders
that every smith in and around Morpeth was to be set to the
manufacture of cannon-balls of the required calibre. Lead and iron
must be gleaned from near and far. Gunpowder was less difficult, for
most mansions and manors had stocks for small-arms and sporting
use.

All
this took a lot of time, and Montrose used the waiting period to
good effect. The fact that the Scots force left to contain Newcastle
was making no move to attack him, despite the provocation,
seemed to indicate its poor quality and leadership. He was
emboldened, therefore, to initiate a hit-and-run cavalry campaign
from this base at Morpeth, both to north and south-east. His flying
columns took Amble, Rothbury and Alnwick in quick succession, from
small Scots garrisons. Clavering, after burning North Shields, had
declared that he believed South Shields could be taken, without too
much difficulty, from across the river. This Montrose now gave him
permission to attempt. Quickly the place fell - and for the meantime
at least, Montrose held the mouth of the Tyne. He could not retain
it for long, of course, with only cavalry; but his objective was to
create maximum confusion behind Leslie's lines, not to occupy
territory.

Clavering
and Crawford went on to assault Sunderland.

Then,
at last, Leslie reacted. Eight hundred first-class cavalry were
detached from the main Scots army before York, and sent north
hot-foot, to be followed by a larger body of infantry. This was
success - even though it gave the besiegers of Sunderland a fright
when the Scots horse was reported at the other side of the town, and
they had to beat a hasty retreat, via the Shields South and North,
sinking the ferry-boats behind them. That evening the Graham
recognised that his time at Morpeth was probably short. He did
not intend himself to be besieged.

He
had now assembled a sizeable supply of cannon-balls and powder.
Deciding that little was to be gained by waiting for daylight,
with the target the size it was and the marksmanship erratic anyway,
to say the least, he had the guns dragged up to a point of vantage
on the Ha' Hill, there and then, and bombardment opened, darkness or
none.

He
made an awesome night of the
28th
of
May, with the town shaken by the thunder of explosions, the lurid
flashes of the charges, the fires started in castle and town, the
billowing acrid smoke-clouds. The garrison fired back, of
course, but less vigorously than heretofore; perhaps they themselves
were running short of ammunition. The besiegers suffered a few
casualties, but not many - for the defenders' aim was poor in the
darkness, with nothing so large as a castle to fire at. The town
itself suffered more. It was difficult to assess just what impact
their own cannon made.

Some
time during that hideous night, after the castle guns had been
silent for a notable period, Montrose called a halt. In the relative
quiet he went forward with a trumpeter, to near the battered
gatehouse-tower. After a fanfare which even to his own ears sounded
crazy in all that smoke, he shouted, coughing a little.

'Guard,
ho! Guard, I say. Bring the governor of this castle. I, James Earl
of Montrose, would speak with the governor.'

Almost
immediately the reply came, quite clearly. You would, would you,
James Graham - a plague on you!' In these nightmarish conditions the
casually conversational tones taxed credibility. 'My compliments,
James - frae Sandy Somerville o' Drum. Here's no way to spend a
night, man!
'

'Dear
God - is it yourself, Sandy!' Montrose cried. 'Sandy Somerville, by
all that is wonderful! Are you . . . are you well?' Even the speaker
all but choked at that ridiculous question. The Master of
Somerville, heir to the ninth Lord thereof, was an old friend from
St Andrews University days.

"Never
better, James - never better. Save for an empty belly. You caught us
with the larder empty. What can I do for you?'

You
can come out of that Englishman's house and let me shake you by the
hand, Sandy. And be done with this folly.'

‘
Ooh,
aye. We'd have to think about that, James. Shaking an excommunicate
by the hand, man, may no' be allowed! It's an ill thought'

'Eh?
What did you say... ?'

"Don't
tell me ... don't say nobody has told you, James? That you are
excommunicate? Utterly damned! Hech, aye - bell, book but nae
candle!
'

Into
the pause which succeeded that announcement, the Master of
Somerville shouted again, 'Have they not told you?'

Even
then it took James Graham moments to answer, ‘No.'

'Och,
well - never heed. You're no' the only one,' the other called. 'What
terms will you offer me, James?'

Montrose
pulled himself together. 'This shouting. We could talk the better
face to face. Come out, man, under safe conduct, and we'll discuss
it'

'I'll
send a depute, James. Myself, I'll bide, and have a bit look round
this auld rickle o' stanes you've been battering. To see if we can
hold out a mite longer! Till auld crooked Sandy Leslie sends a wheen
stout lads to our aid, may be.'

'I
have still much ball and powder, Sandy. Must I batter on?'

'We'll
see. I'll send you Jock MacCulloch to discuss the matter...'

So
presently Captain MacCulloch, a Galloway mercenary, came out under a
flag of truce, and after a certain amount of formal parleying,
informed Montrose privately that the Master of Somerville was indeed
anxious to yield, if he could so honourably, for they had had no
food for three days, and all their powder was exhausted. But he did
not wish to seem to do so precipitately. Let them wait until
daylight...

Soon
after a misty sunrise, on the
29th,
Montrose
formally slammed another couple of cannon-balls at the
drunken-looking gatehouse-tower; and thereafter, almost at once, the
white flag was run up from Morpeth Castie keep and all was over.
Presently the governor and garrison of some hundreds - more than
anticipated - marched out to tuck of drum, and James Graham shook
hands with his friend and offered a short speech of congratulation
to all concerned. Somerville and his officers retained their swords,
his men laid down their arms, and thereafter all marched down to the
town, where Montrose had been having a large meal prepared, out of
his own pocket paying for oxen, poultry, ale and bread in abundance.
In courteous style he entertained the Master, the enemy officers and
his own, to dinner in the Tolbooth, while the men feasted cheerfully
in the streets.

It
was a rousing and pleasant occasion - and it would have been more so
had Montrose himself been in a happier frame of mind. But this news
of his excommunication weighed heavily upon him. It had come as a
great shock, such a thing never having occurred to him as possible.
Though not intensely religious, and less than patient with fanatical
divines, he always had been a God-fearing man, and for years had
carried everywhere with him a pocket-Bible, well-worn and much
annotated with his own hand-writing. His Presbyterianism was no mere
outward form. That the Kirk of Scotland should officially declare
him excommunicate, expelled from salvation, was scarcely
believable, and bore sorely on him. It had been done, according to
Somerville, when he had invaded Dumfriesshire at the head of 'a
foreign host.'

His
banquet guests, however, had other tidings, by no means all of it
more cheerful. Sir John Gordon of Haddo, impatient at his chief
Huntly's failure to rise again on the King's behalf, had led a raid
on Aberdeen, kidnapped the Provost, and ridden off triumphandy. This
had made a great impact, but had split Clan Gordon - for though
Huntly had tentatively emerged from Strathbogie to occupy Aberdeen
thereafter, his eldest son, the Lord Gordon, had declared this to be
folly and had actually elected to join the Covenant side - die
fruits presumably of Montrose's own influence on that serious young
man. Argyll had sent a force north to deal with this - and Huntly,
much alarmed again, had handed over the city and its keys to his
son, and decamped northwards at speed, not stopping it was said
until he reached the Pentland Firth at Strathnaver. The young Lord
Gordon was now, to all intents, chief of the clan, and co-operating
with Argyll - a serious situation and strange end-product of James
Graham's association with him. His brother, Aboyne, all,but exploded
at the news. Argyll had executed Gordon of Haddo, out of hand, for
treason - and, sadly, also hanged the Provost of Dumfries who had
been rash enough to welcome Montrose.

Coping
with these indigestible tidings, Montrose was a little heartened to
learn that Hamilton and Lanark, at least and at last, had met their
deserts. They had been summoned south to Oxford from Scotland, by
royal command, had come, and had been arrested and tried before a
commission of enquiry. Found guilty of deliberately misleading the
King and aiding the King's enemies, they were condemned to
imprisonment - despite strong pressure from a powerful party, led by
the Queen, on their behalf. On the way to ward in Cornwall, somehow
Lanark had made good his escape and was now with the Covenant army.
The Duke, it seemed, was held secure at Pendennis Castle.

It
was perhaps typical of King Charles's Court and methods that news of
this should reach his Lieutenant-General only from the enemy.

Montrose,
sending Somerville and his people back to Scotland, was faced
with the question whether to get out of Morpeth and back to Carlisle
while the going was good, having created a sufficient diversion
behind Leslie's lines; or to stay where he was, further to fortify
the town, and seek to hold it in the face of the larger force Leslie
must inevitably send north from York when he heard the news. It was
tidings from York, indeed, which eventually decided the issue - but
not from Leslie. A letter arrived from there - but by a messenger of
Prince Rupert's. That dashing commander had hastened north to
the Earl of Newcasde's aid, had reached York and pushed Leslie back
somewhat But he was now threatened by the Fairfaxes' northern army,
and Manchester's Eastern Association, as well as by the Scots -and
with only
15,000
men
was much outnumbered. He ordered Montrose to leave whatever he was
doing, and march south to join him immediately. As a sort of
postscript the Prince added that His Majesty had, on the 6th of May,
signed a warrant creating his well-beloved James Graham, Marquis of
Montrose, in recognition of services rendered.