Great Battles
FLODDEN
On the morning of 9 September 1513, King James IV of Scotland stood atop Flodden Hill with what seemed an insurmountable advantage over the English. Yet by the day’s end he would lay slain and his army shattered
WORDS MARC DESANTIS
BRANXTON, ENGL AND 9 SEPTEMBER 1513
Images © Alamy, Getty
Scotland’s King James IV was a quintessential Renaissance prince, ruling his kingdom in an era when the great works of Greece and Rome were being recovered and classical culture reborn across Europe. He vigorously suppor ted the new learning, but a king’s first and foremost role in that day was that of war-leader, and James was every bit the warrior-monarch.
He adopted new weapons and tactics for his army, and poured vast resources into developing a national navy for Scotland that could compare with that of young King Henry VIII in England, Scotland’s larger and more powerful neighbour to the south.
There had already been much conflict between England and Scotland for hundreds of years. In 1502, an attempt was made to bring calm to long-troubled AngloScottish relations with the nations entering into the Treaty of Perpetual Peace, which saw James IV wed to Henry VII’s daughter Margaret Tudor (also the sister of Henry VIII) in the next year. While this agreement was not without its merits, it created an obvious threat to Scotland’s long-standing alliance with France should events force James to choose between peace with England or his connections with the French.
Centuries earlier, Scotland and France had entered into the Treaty of Paris in 1295, which called for either to come to the aid of the other in times of war with England. This was the beginning of what was known in Scotland as the ‘Auld Alliance’, and it would play a significant role in the Flodden campaign. In 1513 Henry VIII, eager for martial glory, departed for France as part of his commitment to the anti-French Holy League. In response, James declared war against his brother-in-law, mustered his army in late July and struck into Nor thumberland in the north of England in a bid to show his support for his French allies.
Organising for war
With Henry away on the Continent, another figure would have to lead the defence of the English north. Senior command of the English army fell to 70 -year-old Thomas Howard, the Earl of Surrey, and his son, also named Thomas, who was the Lord Admiral of England.
The main commanders of the Scottish army, which numbered an impressive 42,000, were of course James himself, and Lord Alexander, the Earl of Home. Home had charge of Scotland’s difficult East March on the border with England and was well-acquainted with warfare. But he possessed no experience of commanding large numbers of troops in a set-piece battle.
England was a wealthier, more populous and stronger nation than Scotland. Yet many of England’s best troops were currently in France with their king. In Nor thumberland, James would have a strong numerical, and perhaps even qualitative, advantage over the English. It should also be borne in mind that he was not seeking to conquer England, something beyond his ability, but to mount a short and sharp raid in support of France that would win him glory and prestige.