Before, however, introducing the reader to the Acts of the Assembly of 1649—the last which the Kirk was permitted in a united and recognised form to hold for the space of forty-one years thereafter—it is necessary to advert to the political and military movements, both in Scotland and England, which intervened.
Immediately after the Scottish Commissioners entered into the engagement at the Isle of Wight for the deliverance of the King and country from the thraldom in which they were held by the English army and parliament, the Scottish nobles and gentry exerted themselves, as may be fairly inferred from the conduct of the Estates in the summer of 1648, as already recorded, in order to ensure success to their designs. But, unhappily, the elements of jealousy and disunion, which had been fermenting during the ten preceding years, and more especially the active hostility of a great portion of the clergy to the engagement, rendered these exertions in a great measure abortive. The nation—that is, the leading men, (for the great body of the people were in a state of abject vassalage to their lords and the clergy,) were, in this emergency, divided into three parties. The first consisted of the clergy and a few of the nobles, who would listen to no proposition for the King’s deliverance and restoration of the monarchy, except an unconditional submission, by him and all others, to the Solemn League and Covenant, and the Kirk as its administrators. Others were for liberating and restoring the King, without reference to ulterior arrangements. A third party were for combining that object with the maintenance of Presbytery and the Covenant in the mode adopted by the Estates in June, 1648. From among such heterogeneous materials, therefore, it was exceedingly difficult to create any one concentrated and united body such as should be able to rally and combine the energies of the kingdom in encountering the approaching struggle. Of the first class, Argyle may be regarded as the most prominent leader; and this party denounced the employment of any in the army, or in public office, who were not out-and-out for the League and Covenant. Of the second class were Traquair, Callender, and others, who again desired to include all who would promote the King’s cause; while Hamilton and his brother Lanerick, Lauderdale, and others, were disposed themselves to subscribe the Covenant, trusting to future modifications of its rigours, provided this sacrifice of their personal sentiments were conducive to the safety and honour of the King, and a cordial co-operation against his adversaries. And to this latter line of policy the great body of the gentry, and many of the clergy, were favourable; while Argyle’s party strained every nerve to defeat the coalition of parties on that basis, and held them up as intent on overturning entirely their kirk polity, if the engagement should prosper.
Amidst manifold difficulties, of which a very lively picture is given in Lanerick’s letters,[382] and other documents of the time, the levies for the army in Scotland were much retarded during the summer of 1648, by the speeches and intrigues of the clerical party,[383] by the want of money, and by the tremours generally awakened under such conflicting influences; but an important addition was made by the recall of a part of the Scottish troops, who were stationed in Ireland, and had continued there for some years. Of that army, above 2,000 foot and 1200 horse returned to Scotland. There had been great difficulty, too, in fixing on a generalissimo. Lord Leven and his brother David Leslie were generally desired, as their names and experience gave them a preference; and, although the latter had acquiesced in the common wish on this point, he afterwards declined. After much chaffering, Hamilton, as the leading nobleman of Scotland, was named to the chief command, although he had not hitherto given any proofs of possessing that military genius which inspires an army with assured confidence in its commander.
In addition to other embarrassments, there were differences of opinion among the Scottish leaders as to the time of making an effective movement of the army. Hamilton and Lanerick were for delay till their opponents at home were somewhat curbed, and their friends in England ready to co-operate by simultaneous demonstrations. But this was deemed inexpedient, as some English troops, under Lambert, were already advancing to the north of England; and, finally, it was resolved that there should be a general rendezvous of the Scottish army at Annan, on the 4th of July, 1648, just on the eve of the meeting of the General Assembly, whose anathemas against the Engagement, and all concerned in it, were fulminated, during the space of a whole month, in the capital of the kingdom.
About this time, and before the army was fully mustered, Loudoun, by whom the engagement had hitherto been zealously promoted, seceded from the cause; whether chagrined by any oversight of his pretensions to high command, or some other mixed motive, has not been sufficiently explained: and even before the army was collected at its rendezvous, Middleton and Urrey had a skirmish at Mauchline, in Ayrshire, with about 2000 rustic ultra-Covenanters, who, under the influence of the clergy, had assembled, with arms, on pretext of celebrating a communion. They were soon, however, dispersed by Callender, the second in command under Hamilton—sixty of the insurgents, and five officers, with some ministers, being taken prisoners. The peasants and clergy were released; the officers were condemned to death by a council of war, but were pardoned by Callender.[384]
At the day appointed, the army assembled; Colonel Lockhart having been previously stationed with some regiments of horse at Annan; Turner, with several regiments of infantry at Dumfries. Hamilton went from Edinburgh to Annan, accompanied by Callender, Middleton, and Baillie, with several regiments of horse and foot, and Turner joined them from Dumfries.
The army thus assembled is described as exceedingly ill appointed. Many of the regiments were not above half their regulated quota; not one in five of the infantry could handle pike or musket; and although the cavalry were the best mounted that had ever left Scotland, yet the troopers were raw and inexperienced, and there was not a single piece of artillery, while there was great want of ammunition, powder, and other necessaries.[385] The march from Annan was precipitated ere yet the army was properly organized, in consequence of movements in England.
Without entering into particulars of the march into England, and the skirmishes which took place with the English forces under Lambert, to whom Langdale, an English loyalist, was opposed, previous to the advance of the Scottish army, it is sufficient to note that it reached Crofton Hall, where it remained above a week, and proceeded successively to Penrith, Appleby, and Kirby-thore in Cumberland, where, in consequence of the inclemency of weather, it remained three weeks. During this progress, it had the advantage, in various conflicts, with Lambert, who retreated before Hamilton’s army. He waited for the rest of his forces, of which not above two-thirds had joined, and for the regiments from Ireland, under Monro, not yet arrived; and the whole amount of the Scottish army did not exceed 10,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry.
The next movement was to Kendal, (where Monro saw Hamilton,) and thence to Hornby, where it was debated in council whether the further march should be to Yorkshire or Lancashire. The latter was preferred—and Langdale led the van. The main body of cavalry, advancing before the infantry for lack of forage, were commanded by Callender and Middleton, to Wigan, and the bulk of the army marched forward to Preston. On the 18th of August, (the day after the army was thus separated,) Callender got notice that Cromwell was about to form a junction with Lambert; and the day following, while the Scottish army and Langdale’s auxiliaries were in this dislocated position, a general engagement took place, the particulars of which it is needless to describe; but the balance of success, after a desultory and gallant though decisive struggle, was in favour of Cromwell, who took advantage of the absence of Monro’s corps, and the separation of the Scottish cavalry and infantry: in short, a retreat was resolved on—and, labouring under numerous privations and hardships, amid unwonted floods of rain, the infantry, under Baillie, were obliged to capitulate to Cromwell—a mutiny arose among the troops—and, finally, at Utoxater, on the 25th of August, the broken remnant capitulated—surrendering their arms and munitions; the Duke, and all his officers and soldiers, having assurance of their lives, and of being treated honourably and with military courtesy. But before the articles of surrender were returned, the Duke had been taken prisoner by Gray of Grobie’s corps, and was carried successively to Derby, Loughburgh, Leicester, and Ashby de la Zouch, where he was kept a prisoner, from the 28th of August till the beginning of December, when he was carried to Windsor. And thus terminated this ill-concerted and fatal expedition in support of the Engagement.[386]
This disastrous issue of the expedition into England, in which several thousands of the Scottish army were killed, taken prisoners, or perished of hardships by the inclemency of the season, was followed by an insurrection in Scotland, of the parties opposed to the engagement, who had been repressed by the overawing power of Hamilton’s army previous to its defeat. Of the whole army that had crossed the Border, Monro’s detachment alone remained entire. It had never, owing to the jealousies which so unhappily prevailed among the nobles and officers in command, been incorporated with the main army, but remained detached in Cumberland; and, after the Duke’s defeat at Preston, Monro retired on Scotland, to which some fragments of the shattered army fought and found its way in a very broken condition. The rout of the expedition was received by what may most appropriately be called the Kirk party, with the highest exultation, and was hailed as an infallible token of the divine wrath against the engagement, and at a heaven-sent commemoration of the Covenant. Forthwith, on the earliest tidings reaching them, Loudoun, the chancellor, who had concerted and co-operated zealously in its promotion, but who had seen meet to desert it in time of need, and Eglinton, stirred up the people of the western counties; and the ministers speedily appeared in the field, leading up whole parishes with such arms as they could procure; and when these were wanting, pitchforks, scythes, and other such weapons were substituted. Loudoun issued the orders for these levies; Eglinton was their first commander; and Argyle made all haste to bring up his Highlanders to the Whigamore[387] host; for this was the occasion on which that distinctive appellation was used, of a party which still subsists, although in later times it has undergone prodigious transformations. Cassillis was one of those who had dissented in Parliament from the engagement and expedition, and he had some scruples at first about the lawfulness of this raid; but, ultimately, he joined some of the other western lords at Linlithgow, with his followers.