On Montrose’s arrival at Strathbogie, or Gordon castle, Lord Graham, his eldest son, a most promising youth of sixteen, became unwell, and died after a few days’ illness. The loss of a son who had followed him in his campaigns, and shared with him the dangers of the field, was a subject of deep regret to Montrose. While Montrose was occupied at the death-bed of his son, Lord Gordon was busily employed among the Gordons, out of whom he speedily raised a force of about 500 foot, and 160 horse.
With this accession to his forces, Montrose left Strathbogie and marched towards Banff, on his route to the south. In passing by the house of Cullen, in Boyne, the seat of the Earl of Findlater, who had fled to Edinburgh, and left the charge of the house to the countess, a party of Montrose’s men entered the house, which they plundered of all its valuable contents. They then proceeded to set the house on fire, but the countess entreated Montrose to order his men to desist, and promised that if her husband did not come to Montrose and give him satisfaction within fifteen days, she would pay him 20,000 merks, of which sum she instantly paid down 5,000. Montrose complied with her request, and also spared the lands, although the earl was “a great Covenanter.” Montrose’s men next laid waste the lands in the Boyne, burnt the houses, and plundered the minister of the place of all his goods and effects, including his books. The laird of Boyne shut himself up in his stronghold, the Crag, where he was out of danger; but he had the misfortune to see his lands laid waste and destroyed. Montrose then went to Banff, which he gave up to indiscriminate plunder. His troops did not leave a vestige of moveable property in the town, and they even stripped to the skin every man they met with in the streets. They also burned two or three houses of little value, but not a drop of blood was shed.
From Banff Montrose proceeded to Turriff, where a deputation from the town council of Aberdeen waited upon him, to represent the many miseries which the loyal city had suffered from its frequent occupation by hostile armies since the first outbreaking of the unfortunate troubles which molested the kingdom. They further represented, that such was the terror of the inhabitants at the idea of another visit from his Irish troops, that all the men and women, on hearing of his approach, had made preparations for abandoning the town, and that they would certainly leave it if they did not get an assurance from the marquis of safety and protection. Montrose heard the commissioners patiently, expressed his regret at the calamities which had befallen their town, and bade them not be afraid, as he would take care that none of his foot, or Irish, soldiers should come within eight miles of Aberdeen; and that if he himself should enter the town, he would support himself at his own expense. The commissioners returned to Aberdeen, and related the successful issue of their journey, to the great joy of all the inhabitants.[287]
Whilst Montrose lay at Turriff, Sir Nathaniel Gordon, with some troopers, went to Aberdeen, which he entered on Sunday, the 9th of March, on which day there had been “no sermon in either of the Aberdeens,” as the ministers had fled the town. The keys of the churches, gates, and jail were delivered to him by the magistrates. The following morning Sir Nathaniel was joined by 100 Irish dragoons. After releasing some prisoners, he went to Torry, and took, after a slight resistance, 1,800 muskets, pikes, and other arms, which had been left in charge of a troop of horse. Besides receiving orders to watch the town, Sir Nathaniel was instructed to send out scouts as far as Cowie to watch the enemy, who were daily expected from the south. When reconnoitring, a skirmish took place at the bridge of Dee, in which Captain Keith’s troop was routed. Finding the country quite clear, and no appearance of the covenanting forces, Gordon returned back to the army, which had advanced to Frendraught. No attempt was made upon the house of Frendraught, which was kept by the young viscount in absence of his father, who was then at Muchallis with his godson, Lord Fraser; but Montrose destroyed 60 ploughs of land belonging to Frendraught within the parishes of Forgue, Inverkeithnie, and Drumblade, and the house of the minister of Forgue, with all the other houses, and buildings, and their contents. Nothing, in fact, was spared. All the cattle, horses, sheep, and other domestic animals, were carried off, and the whole of Frendraught’s lands were left a dreary and uninhabitable waste.
From Pennyburn, Montrose despatched, on the 10th of March, a letter to the authorities of Aberdeen, commanding them to issue an order that all men, of whatever description, between the age of sixteen and sixty, should meet him equipped in their best arms, and such of them as had horses, mounted on the best of them, on the 15th of March, at his camp at Inverury, under the pain of fire and sword. In consequence of this mandate he was joined by a considerable number of horse and foot. On the 12th of March, Montrose arrived at Kintore, and took up his own quarters in the house of John Cheyne, the minister of the place, whence he issued an order commanding each parish within the presbytery of Aberdeen, (with the exception of the town of Aberdeen,) to send to him two commissioners, who were required to bring along with them a complete roll of the whole heritors, feuars, and liferenters of each parish. His object, in requiring such a list, was to ascertain the number of men capable of serving, and also the names of those who should refuse to join him. Commissioners were accordingly sent from the parishes, and the consequence was, that Montrose was joined daily by many men who would not otherwise have assisted him, but who were now alarmed for the safety of their properties. While at Kintore, an occurrence took place which vexed Montrose exceedingly.
To reconnoitre and watch the motions of the enemy, Montrose had, on the 12th of March, sent Sir Nathaniel Gordon, along with Donald Farquharson, Captain Mortimer, and other well-mounted cavaliers, to the number of about 80, to Aberdeen. This party, perceiving no enemy in the neighbourhood of Aberdeen, utterly neglected to place any sentinels at the gates of the town, and spent their time at their lodgings in entertainments and amusements. This careless conduct did not pass unobserved by some of the Covenanters in the town, who, it is said, sent notice thereof to Major-general Hurry, the second in command under General Baillie, who was then lying at the North Water Bridge with Lord Balcarras’s and other foot regiments. On receiving this intelligence, Hurry put himself at the head of 160 horse and foot, taken from the regular regiments, and some troopers and musketeers, and rode off to Aberdeen in great haste, where he arrived on the 15th of March, at 8 o’clock in the evening. Having posted sentinels at the gates to prevent any of Montrose’s party from escaping, he entered the town at an hour when they were all carelessly enjoying themselves in their lodgings, quite unapprehensive of such a visit. The noise in the streets, occasioned by the tramping of the horses, was the first indication they had of the presence of the enemy, but it was then too late for them to defend themselves. Donald Farquharson was killed in the street, opposite the guard-house; “a brave gentleman,” says Spalding, “and one of the noblest captains amongst all the Highlanders of Scotland, and the king’s man for life and death.” The enemy stripped him of a rich dress he had put on the same day, and left his body lying naked in the street. A few other gentlemen were killed, and some taken prisoners, but the greater part escaped. Hurry left the town next day, and, on his return to Baillie’s camp, entered the town of Montrose, and carried off Lord Graham, Montrose’s second son, a boy of fourteen years of age, then at school, who, along with his teacher, was sent to Edinburgh, and committed to the castle.
The gentlemen who had escaped from Aberdeen returned to Montrose, who was greatly offended at them for their carelessness. The magistrates of Aberdeen, alarmed lest Montrose should inflict summary vengeance upon the town, as being implicated in the attack upon the cavaliers, sent two commissioners to Kintore to assure him that they were in no way concerned in that affair. Although he heard them with great patience, he gave them no satisfaction as to his intentions, and they returned to Aberdeen without being able to obtain any promise from him to spare the town. Montrose contented himself with making the merchants furnish him with cloth, and gold and silver-lace, to the amount of £10,000 Scots, for the use of his army, which he held the magistrates bound to pay, by a tax upon the inhabitants. “Thus,” says Spalding, “cross upon cross upon Aberdeen.”
When Sir Nathaniel Gordon and the remainder of his party returned to Kintore, Montrose despatched, on the same day (March 16th), a body of 1,000 horse and foot, the latter consisting of Irish, to Aberdeen, under the command of Macdonald, his major-general. Many of the inhabitants, alarmed at the approach of this party, and still having the fear of the Irish before their eyes, were preparing to leave the town; but Macdonald relieved their apprehensions by assuring them that the Irish, who amounted to 700, should not enter the town; he accordingly stationed them at the Bridge of Dee and the Two Mile Cross, he and his troopers alone entering the town. With the exception of the houses of one or two “remarkable Covenanters,” which were plundered, Macdonald showed the utmost respect for private property, a circumstance which obtained for him the esteem of the inhabitants, who had seldom experienced such kind treatment before.
Having discharged the last duties to the brave Farquharson and his companions, Macdonald left Aberdeen, on March 18th, to join Montrose at Durris; but he had not proceeded far when complaints were brought to him that some of his Irish troops, who had lagged behind, had entered the town, and were plundering it. Macdonald, therefore, returned immediately to the town, and drove, says Spalding, “all these rascals with sore skins out of the town before him.”[288]