It is a letter which led to one of the darkest days for Scotland’s granite city, penned at a time of tribulation when war raged across the land.
The ‘Montrose Letter’ was written to the Provost of Aberdeen demanding the surrender of the town to an advancing Royalist army on September 13, 1644.
The provost refused, and when the defenders were defeated in the ensuing battle, the Royalist pillaged the town, putting its inhabitants to the sword and looting its treasures.
Now the public is being given the chance to see the almost 400-year-old, hastily-scrawled demand when it goes on display this week to coincide with the 380th anniversary of the Battle of Justice Mills.
Held by Aberdeen’s City Archives, the letter will be on show at Provost Skene’s House, the oldest house in Aberdeen, which dates from 1545.
Fought during the Scottish Civil War, an offshoot of the War of Three Kingdoms which saw King Charles I deposed by Oliver Cromwell and eventually executed, the Battle of Aberdeen pitted Scottish Royalists under James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose against the Covenanters who controlled the Scottish parliament.
With an army comprised of Irish infantry and disparate clansmen, Montrose fought a series of battles in Scotland and won them all, but was unable to keep his forces together.
After victory over a Covenanter host at Perth in 1644, he was forced to march north to try and gather more recruits, only to find his way blocked by the government forces at Aberdeen led by Lord Burleigh.
With another army closing on his rear, Montrose had no time to waste and ordered an immediate surrender of the town – with his words conveyed in the letter now on display.
But the offer was turned down, and the two sides clashed in bloody battle - with the wily and experienced Montrose emerging the victor.
What followed next would prove a disaster for both him and the Granite city, as he carried through with his threat to give no quarter to his defeated foes.
His army pursued the stragglers back into Aberdeen and massacred them, before turning on the townsfolk and sacking the city.
It is reported that some Aberdonians took to wearing sprigs of oats on their hats to match those worn by the Royalist forces, but it did little to stem the bloodlust of the invading forces.
After three days, Montrose’s army moved on, leaving more than 100 townsfolk dead, including three members of the town council.
However, the army’s actions turned a town which had been sympathetic to the Royalist cause against it, and Montrose was unable to get the new recruits he sought from the area.
Montrose would go on to defeat the Covenanters, only to see the Royalist cause dashed with the final defeat of King Charles I forces at Naseby in England.
Unable to secure his power base in Scotland, he fled to Norway, only to return in 1650 to try and once again rally the clans to restore Charles II to the throne.
He failed, and was captured in Rosshire – and suffered the gruesome fate of being hanged, drawn and quartered after a trial in Edinburgh.
Somewhat ironically, the new Covenanter Government of Scotland switched to the Royalist side shortly after his death, and his body was eventually given a state funeral.
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The Montrose Letter will be on display in the historic Provost Skene’s House Wednesday 4 - Sunday 8 September.
On Saturday 7 September from 11am to 4pm, visitors will have the chance to meet soldiers from the Sealed Knot battle re-enactment society, standing in for Royalist forces of the Marquis of Montrose and the Covenanter forces of Lord Burleigh in the building’s Painted Gallery.
Cllr Martin Greig, Aberdeen City Council’s culture spokesperson, said, “The Montrose Letter is a unique survivor from the Battle of Justice Mills, providing a wonderfully tangible connection to this turbulent chapter in Aberdeen’s history.
“I encourage everyone to come along on Saturday to meet members of The Sealed Knot, the UK’s oldest re-enactment society. They will be bringing history to live at Provost Skene’s House, Aberdeen’s oldest surviving townhouse , which dates from 1545.
“Visitors will be able to see the 380-year-old Montrose letter and meet soldiers from the Royalist forces of the Marquis of Montrose and the Covenanter forces of Lord Burleigh.”
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