The Battle of Harlaw was fought near Inverurie in Aberdeenshire on 24 July 1411. Donald, Lord of the Isles (Macdonald) and his invading Highlanders engaged an army of Lowlanders commanded by the Earl of Mar. Inverurie is a burgh in Aberdeenshire, Scotland approximately 16 miles north east of Aberdeen along the A96 road. ... Aberdeenshire can refer to two local authorities in Scotland with this name. ... July 24 is the 205th day (206th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 160 days remaining. ... Events Births September 21 - Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York (died 1460) Juan de Mena, Spanish poet (died 1456) Deaths June 3 - Leopold IV, Regent of Tyrol and Further Austria (born 1371) November 4 - Khalil Sultan, Timurid ruler in Transoxiana (born 1384) Hasdai Crescas, Jewish philosopher and halakhist (born c. ... Lord of the Isles, originally referred to a series of hybrid Viking / Gael rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages, who wielded sea-power with fleets of galleys Although at times nominal vassals of the King of Norway and/or of the King of... The Scottish Clan Donald (motto: Per Mare Per Terras which means By sea and by land ) is split into several branches including MacDonald of the Isles, MacDonald of Clan Ranald, MacDonald of Sleat, MacDonald of Keppoch, MacDonald of Ardnamurchan and McDonell of Glengarry. ... The Scottish Highlands are considered to be the mountainous regions of Scotland north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault. ...

The battle had been the result of the attempts by the Lord of the Isles to pursue his claim to the Earldom of Ross. Robert Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany, then Regent and Governor of Scotland, had challenged Donald to fight for it. It was a fiercely fought and bloody encounter (hence its traditional designation, Red Harlaw). It was essentially a draw, though both sides thought they had lost, such were the losses (around 900 Highlanders and 500 Lowlanders). Later generations would claim victory for one side or the other, but the political consequences of the battle are undisputed. Robert Stewart or Stuart, 1st Duke of Albany (c. ...

Given also that the two opposing forces represented the two cultures which existed (exist) in Scotland, Highland (Gaelic, Celtic) and Lowland, the battle has often been viewed (cf. Walter Scott and others) as an expression of the mutual antipathy between the two cultures, and also as a struggle for supremacy. These may or may not be exaggerated views of the significance of the battle. Had Donald's forces won, Scotland's history would certainly have been different. In the event, however, it did represent a dramatic end to the possibility of Gaeldom's chances of expanding its influence beyond the Highlands.
Sir Walter Scott, Bart. ...

Professor Child collected and published a ballad The Battle of Harlaw that remembers this event (Child Ballad 163). Francis James Child (February 1, 1825 - September 11, 1896), was an American scholar and educationist, and collector of what came to be known as the Child Ballads. ... A ballad is a story in song, usually a narrative song or poem. ... The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, collected by Francis James Child. ...

See: W.C. Mackenzie, History of the Outer Hebrides (Paisley : Alexander Gardner, 1903 (or 1974 reprint)), p. 85-91

See also

William Mackay, Battle of Harlaw : its true place in history (Inverness : Northern Chronicle, 1922); Anon., Two old historical Scots poems, giving an account of the battles of Harlaw, and the Reid-Squair (Glasgow, 1748); Charles Dawson, Don poem, ... giving an account of the ancient families, castles, and curiosities on Don and its branches, with a full account of the battles of Harlaw, Brechin, Alford, &c (Aberdeen, 1797 and later eds.). N.B. These have not been viewed. The references are taken from the catalogue of the [National Library of Scotland]. See also modern published histories of Scotland (and references therein) for accounts of the battle and its significance.

• History of Scotland

Stirling Castle has stood for centuries atop a volcanic crag defending the lowest ford of the River Forth. ...

External websites

• http://www.clandonald.org.uk/cdm08/cdm08a09.htm
• http://www.clan-cameron.org/battles/1411.html
• http://www.royal-stuarts.org/harlaw.html which reproduces an account of the battle which appeared in vol. 2 of John Hill Burton's History of Scotland from Agricola's invasion to the Revolution of 1688 (Edinburgh, 1870)
• http://www.fortunecity.com/bally/leitrim/147/battles.html#harlaw
• http://www.gunnclan.net/midi/harlaw.htm