Epic re-enactment of Battle of Harlaw
Hundreds march out at Castle Fraser
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A RE-ENACTMENT of the 1411 Battle of Harlaw saw modern-day Highland clansmen and defiant Aberdeen citizens also facing a battle with weekend weather.
Castle Fraser, near Kemnay, provided the backdrop to Saturday and yesterday’s re-enactment of the battle.
With a replica camp set up in the grounds of the National Trust property, hundreds of costumed knights and warriors marched out to recreate one of the deadliest battles in Scottish history.
While yesterday’s dry conditions attracted hundreds of onlookers, driving rain and mist on Saturday made the event as much of a mudbath as a historic bloodbath.
Yesterday trust property manager Marie Buckley said: “Today has been fantastic but yesterday only 50 stalwart spectators turned up because of the terrible weather.
“It was disappointing given this is the first re-enactment of the Battle of Harlaw there has been since Victorian times, and the months of preparation that went into the whole weekend,” she added.
Wearing costume and wielding weapons of the era, living history enthusiasts from throughout the country took the role of the opposing armies.
Involved in the epic clash, that was said to have the local river running red with blood, was a marauding army led by Donald the Lord of the Isles and a citizen force from Aberdeen that was led by the city’s Provost Sir Robert Davidson. He was among more than 2,000 killed.
Yesterday’s session proved a hit, with visitors able to tour the replica camp and see everything from archery demonstrations to fighting skills displays before watching the battle re-enactment.
Following the 1411 battle that lasted an entire day in July, the Highland army withdrew back into the hills. The exhausted city force led by the Earl of Mar remained on the battlefield, having saved Aberdeen.
City-based Mediaeval Realm re-enactors Harry Brechin, of Alford, took the role of the Earl of Mar, while John Mackay, from Aberdeen, played the Lord of the Isles.
Providing music at the event was Glasgow-based Clann An Drumma, led by Rothes-born Joe Mackenzie. Following yesterday’s success, it is planned to make the battle an annual event.
In 1914, a monument to the Battle of Harlaw was erected by Aberdeen Town Council overlooking Inverurie.
