The Battle of Aberdeen, also known as the Battle of Justice Mills and the Crabstane Rout, was an engagement in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms which took place outside the city of Aberdeen on 13 September 1644. During the battle, Royalist forces led by James Graham, Lord Montrose routed an army raised by the Covenanter-dominated Parliament of Scotland under Robert Balfour, 2nd Lord Balfour of Burleigh.
The battlefield was assessed to be inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Scottish Historical Environment Policy of 2009, but it failed to meet one or more of the criteria.
Prelude
After defeating the government forces commanded by Lord Elcho at the Battle of Tippermuir, outside Perth, Montrose's forces had captured a large cache of weapons and munitions. He was not, however, able to hold Perth; many of the Highlanders forming his army immediately returned home with their plunder and a stronger government force under the Marquess of Argyll was approaching the town from the west. Montrose departed Perth on 4 September. He reached Dundee on 6 September and ordered the town's surrender, but its burgesses answered defiantly. Montrose's army was further depleted when Lord Kilpont, one of his commanders, was murdered by an associate, James Stewart of Ardvorlich; Kilpont's levies immediately disbanded. Rather than attempt to take Dundee by force, Montrose chose to head north in the hope of raising further recruits amongst the Marquess of Huntly's tenantry. With around 1,500 Irish infantry under Alasdair MacColla, a small number of Keppoch clansmen and around 80 horse, Montrose made a rapid advance, but found another government army blocking his path outside Aberdeen.
The Scottish government had ordered all available militia from the Mearns, Aberdeenshire and Banffshire to assemble at the city by 10 September; only the local Aberdeenshire contingents had arrived before Montrose. These comprised the 500-strong Aberdeen Militia and a number of levies from the surrounding area. The government commander, Lord Balfour of Burleigh, also had two regiments of regular soldiers, his own regiment, brought from Fife, and a newly raised Aberdeenshire regiment led by Lord Forbes. Including regulars and militia the Covenanter infantry may have totalled 2,000 men. There were also at least three troops of regular cavalry, commanded by Captain Alexander Keith, Sir William Forbes of Craigevar and Lord Lewis Gordon, along with further untrained 'fencibles'; government horse totalled around 300.
Battle
On the morning of 13 September 1644, the Covenanter force under Burleigh marched out of the town to meet the attackers. Burleigh's men drew up in a strong defensive position south-west of the town, on a steep ridge above the valley of the How Burn.
Montrose sent a messenger and drummer under a flag of truce to demand the surrender of the city, or the defenders could expect no quarter. He also requested that they send women, children and the elderly out of the town before his attack. Aberdeen's chief citizens and guild leaders received this ultimatum near the present day site of Justice Mill Lane. Although the ultimatum was rejected, the Royalist party was treated hospitably. They were treated to drink and one of the Aberdeen magistrates gave the drummer a coin worth 6 Pound Scots. On the way back to the Royalist camp, a trooper of the Fife regiment fired on the Royalist party, killing the drummer. Montrose was supposedly so angered by this that he ordered an immediate attack and gave his troops permission to sack the town.
Deployments
Royalist (James Graham, Lord Montrose) Irish Brigade (Alasdair Mac Colla) Thomas Laghtnan's Regiment Manus O'Cahan's Regiment James MacDonell's Regiment Clan MacDonald of Keppoch Sir Nathaniel Gordon's Horse Sir Thomas Ogilvie's Horse Covenanter (Lord Balfour of Burleigh) Lord Balfour of Burleigh's Regiment Lord Forbes' Regiment Aberdeen Militia (Maj. Arthur Forbes) Aberdeenshire Fencibles Cavalry units: Sir William Forbes of Craigevar Capt. Alexander Keith Lord Lewis Gordon 'Fencible' cavalry (Lord Fraser, Lord Crichton)