Battle of Dunbar (1296)
Background
After the Siege of Berwick, King Edward stayed in Northern England for another month to try to complete the conquest of Scotland and ensure the strengthening of Berwick's defenses.
On April 5th, 1296, Edward received a message from King John Balliol of Scotland, renouncing his homage to Edward. Edward remarked:
O' foolish knave!
What folly he commits.
If he will not come to us, we will go to him.
Patrick IV, Earl of March, supported Edward and swore fealty to the English King on March 25th, 1296, but his wife, Marjory Comyn, sister of the Earl of Buchan, did not share her husband's loyalties and took the side of Scotland. She allowed her fellow Scots to occupy Dunbar Castle, 29 miles north of Berwick.
Edward sent John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, John Balliol's own father-in-law, north with a force of knights to take Dunbar Castle.
Defenders in the castle got word to John Balliol, who was encamped with the main body of his army at nearby Haddington. John then advanced a large part of his army to rescue Dunbar Castle. Up to this point, John had not shown much in the way of competence as a King, and now even less as a commander, as he did not accompany his army.
The Battle of Dunbar was about to begin.
Battle
Both armies were comprised mainly of knights (mounted men-at-arms on horseback, or armed cavalry). The English forces were divided into four formations, with John de Warenne leading one of them.
The Scottish force was led by John Comyn, Earl of Buchan. The two sides came into sight of each other on April 27th, 1296. The Scots arrived at noon and held the high ground on the edge of the Lammermuir Hills overlooking Dunbar. Now, the garrison within the castle started to taunt the English forces, threatening to cut off their tails.
John de Warenne's English forces had to cross the Spott Burn, a small stretch of water between Dunbar and Spott. To do so, their ranks had to break up into smaller groups to cross the burn.
The Scottish army saw this happening and misinterpreted that the English were leaving the field. With cries of "They flee! They flee!" the Scots abandoned their position in a downhill disorderly charge to attack the English, only to find that the English had reformed their ranks once they crossed the burn and were advancing in perfect order.
The English routed the disorganized Scots in a single charge. Some Scots "fled headlong all together" west to the safety of Ettrick Forest. The English had won the day.
Aftermath
King Edward arrived the following day, and Dunbar Castle surrendered to him personally. There was only one casualty of any note during the battle, a knight from Lothian, Sir Patrick Graham. About 100 Scottish lords and knights were taken prisoner, including John Comyn, Earl of Buchan, and the earls of Mar, Atholl, Ross, and Menteith. All were sent to England and held captive.
Soon afterwards, James Stewart, the hereditary High Steward of Scotland, surrendered Roxburgh Castle to the English without attempting to defend the castle. Others also followed suit, except Edinburgh Castle, which held out for a week against Edward's siege engines before surrendering.
Edward then advanced northwest in pursuit of King John. Stirling Castle was deserted, save a single porter who stayed behind to surrender the castle to King Edward. John arrived in Perth on June 21st, where he received messages from Edward asking for peace.
John surrendered and submitted himself to a protracted abasement. On July 2nd, he confessed to rebellion and prayed for forgiveness at Kincardine Castle. He abandoned his treaty with France five days later in the kirkyard of Stracathro.
On July 8th at Montrose, John was ceremoniously stripped of the vestments of royalty. When Antony Bek, Bishop of Durham, ripped the red and gold arms of Scotland from his surcoat. John would forever be known by the nickname "Toom Tabard" (empty surcoat). He and his son Edward Balliol were sent south into captivity at the Tower of London. John would never set foot in Scotland again.
King Edward soon followed south, taking with him Scottish relics of nationhood, including the Stone of Destiny (Stone of Scone), which was brought to Westminster Abbey in London.
The submission of leading Scottish Nobles were recorded in the Ragman Roll.
Despite the victory and capture of the Scottish King, Edward's Scottish wars had just begun.
