THE BATTLE OF OTTERBURN
1388
Percy's Cross
click on the photo to enlarge it.
The fact that Otterburn has so long been celebrated in song and verse indicates just how bloody an encounter it must have been, and this at a time when bloody encounter was far from rare.
The battle was fought at a time of political uncertainty and instability during the reign of Richard II. Taking advantage of this the Scots planned a twin pronged attack, one coming down the west coast and another attacking down the east coast. The eastern force was led by the Earls of Douglas, March and Murray. The invaders crossed the Tweed and swept through Northumberland into Durham. The English army waited in Yorkshire for the Scottish advance but Douglas recalled his men and started to head back home. Hotspur , meanwhile had forced marched his men from Newcastle , where they had been helping in its defense. They reached Otterburn on the evening of the 19th August -St Oswins Eve.
Hotspur with characteristic elan and recklessness resolved upon an immediate night attack. This was extremely hazardous, as Hotspur had no time to reconnoitre the Scottish positions. In the event the English two pronged attack proved too much for the Scots. Douglas sensing defeat hurled himself upon the English line, battle-axe cleaving a bloody swathe through the tightly packed English ranks. Finally he fell unnoticed by the throng and the fight continued.
All through the long night the battle raged and the longer it went on the more their earlier forced marching took its toll on the English. Strength ebbed away from the English and finally they broke. Their leaders captured or killed the inevitable rout ensured.
Dawn revealed a terrible carnage, the English had lost 3,000 men, and the Scots only a few hundred.
Today the battlefield is marked by Percy's Cross just North of Otterburn on the A696. The church at Elsdon and the Norman Motte are well worth a visit.
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