Page:A biographical dictionary of eminent Scotsmen, vol 4.djvu/180

526 of several loyal gentlemen, he was able to add about eight hundred Orcadians, who from their unwarlike habits, and their disinclination to the service, added little to his effective strength. After a residence in Orkney of three weeks, he embarked the whole of his forces, fifteen hundred in number, at the Holm Sound, the most part of them in fishing boats, and landed in safety near John O'Groat's house. Caithness, Sutherland, and Ross had been exempted in the late disturbances from those ravages that had overtaken every place south of Inverness, and Montrose calculated on a regiment from each of them. For this purpose he had brought a great banner along with him, on which was painted the corpse of Charles I. the head being separated from the trunk, with the motto that was used for the murdered Darnley, "Judge and avenge my cause, O Lord." It had no effect, however, upon the simple natives of these regions, except to excite their aversion, and they every where fled before him.

In order to secure a retreat to the Orkneys, the castle of Dunbeath was taken possession of, and strongly garrisoned by Montrose, five hundred men were also sent forward to occupy the hill of Ord, which they accomplished just as the earl of Sutherland was advancing to take possession of it. Sutherland retired rapidly before him, leaving his houses of Dunnechin, Shelbo, Skibo, and Dornoch, under strong garrisons for the protection of his lands. Montrose, mortified to find in Sutherland the same aversion to him as in Caithness, and confident of his strength and of the distance of his enemies, sent a message to the earl of Sutherland, threatening to subject his estates to military execution if he continued to neglect his duty and the royal cause. Colonel Strachan had, however, by this time reached Tain, where he met with his lordship and his friends the Rosses and Munroes, to the amount of five or six hundred men. Here it was determined that Sutherland should get behind Montrose, so as to prevent his retreat to the north, while Strachan with four troops of horse, assisted by the Rosses and Munroes, should march up in his front. When within two miles of him, they concealed themselves in a field of broom, and sent out scouts to observe the motions and calculate the strength he had brought along with him. Finding that Montrose had just sent out a party of forty horse, it was resolved that the whole should keep hid in the broom, one troop of horse excepted, which might lead him to think he had no more to contend with. This had the desired effect. Montrose took no pains to strengthen his position but placing his horse a little in advance, waited their approach on a piece of low ground close by the mouth of the river Kyle. Strachan then marshalled his little party for the attack, dividing the whole into four parts, the first of which he commanded in person; and it was his intention, that while he himself rode up with his party, so as to confirm the enemy in the notion that there were no more to oppose, the remaining parties should come up in quick succession, and at once overwhelm him with the announcement that he was surprised by a large army. The plan was completely successful. Montrose no sooner saw the strength of the presbyterians, than, alarmed for the safety of his foot, he ordered them to retire to a craggy hill behind his position. Strachan, however, made such haste that though it was very bad riding ground, he overtook the retiring invaders before they could reach their place of refuge. The mercenaries alone showed any disposition to resist—the rest threw down their arms without so much as firing a shot Montrose fought with desperate valour, but to no avail. He could only save himself by flight The carnage, considering the number of the combatants, was dreadful. Several hundreds were slain, and upwards of four hundred taken prisoners. On the part of the victors only two men were wounded and one drowned. The principal standard of the enemy, and all Montrose's papers, fell into the hands of the victors.