Historical Background

Following the death of James IV at the Battle of Flodden (1513), Scotland had been under the control of a Regency government. Initially headed by the dowager Queen Margaret, sister to Henry VIII of England, she was displaced by a pro-French faction and was replaced by John Stewart, Duke of Albany. Power ebbed and flowed between Margaret's supporters and those of Stewart whilst the English also intervened by invading and sacking the borders in 1523. Eventually the Albany Regency fell and James V became a substantive ruler in his own right.

With Scotland now ruled by the young James V under the influence of his English mother, hopes for improved Anglo-Scottish relations were high. However, in 1534 Henry VIII broke the link between Rome and the English church appointing himself as its Supreme Head. Suppression of the Abbeys and plundering of the wealth of the church followed. Such action was strongly opposed by James V who was heavily influenced by the staunchly Catholic and pro-French magnate Cardinal David Beaton. With Scotland resisting the English move towards religious reform, tensions between the two nations increased significantly. The death of Queen Margaret in 1541 removed the final impediment to war.

Henry VIII demanded that James meet him in York to discuss a religious settlement between the two nations but the Scottish King failed to attend. An English army then raided the Scottish borders under the Command of Robert Bowes. At the Battle of Haddon Rig, fought near Kelso on 24 August 1542, the English were soundly defeated by a Scottish army under George Gordon, Earl of Huntly. A further English raid in October 1542 - under Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk - saw Kelso and Roxburgh burnt. Keen to retaliate, James V mustered his forces for a strike into England.

Prelude

James V had planned to lead the expedition himself but fell ill and advanced no further than Lochmaben Castle. Command of the Scottish army then devolved to Lord Robert Maxwell, a senior magnate who had served in the Regency Government and who had actually raised the bulk of the troops for the campaign. However, despite Maxwell's previous service to the Crown, the King did not trust him. James secretly instructed his favourite, Lord Oliver Sinclair, to take command as soon as the army crossed the border. Completely unaware of this decision, Maxwell ordered the army to break camp on the morning of the 24 November 1542, crossed the River Esk at Langholm, entered the Debateable Lands and headed south towards Carlisle.

Numbers

The English had expected the invasion in the east and had deployed the bulk of their available forces at Berwick. By contrast there were only limited forces in the west especially as the post of Warden of the West March was vacant following the death of Henry Clifford, Earl of Cumberland earlier that year. The defence of the area fell to his deputy, Sir Thomas Wharton, who was located in Carlisle Castle - a formidable border fortress that would have provided a safe haven against any attack. The King's Council acknowledged his plight and on 21 August issued orders that he should simply harass the Scots and attack their supply lines. Wharton however was an experienced commander and not one to cower behind the strong walls of Carlisle. He was also confident in the abilities of his small cavalry force, armed mainly with lances, which was ideal for hit-and-run tactics against a larger army.

The Scots, still under Lord Maxwell at this time, significantly outnumbered the English; by the most conservative assessment they had a 5 to 1 advantage. They also had a significant artillery force and a small mounted contingent.