Battle of the River Dee | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of First War of Scottish Independence | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Scottish Crown | Rebels | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Edward Bruce | Donald of Islay or Dungal MacDouall (See § Location and identity of Gallovidian leader) | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
less than 1200[1] | ~1200[1] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
unknown, likely heavy[2] | ~200 dead[1] |
The Battle of the River Dee or the Battle of the River Cree, was a battle fought on 29 June 1308 during the Scottish Wars of Independence near Buittle, on the banks of the River Dee or River Cree, Galloway, Scotland.[3]
Sir Edward de Brus having been left in command in Galloway, Edward led a campaign in Galloway.[3] Edward had defeated John St John during the Battle of Kirroughtree. He then turned his attention to the stronghold of Buittle Castle and the Balliol lands.[citation needed]
On 29 June 1308, the forces of Edward met a force commanded by Donald of Islay or Dungal MacDouall of Galloway and Sir Ingram de Umfraville and Sir Aymer de St John, on the banks of the River Dee at a ford on the River.[1] The forces of MacDouall were routed with heavy losses.[3][2]
The battle may have been fought near Buittle, on the banks of the River Dee, rather than the Cree as claimed by the Bruce.[4] Specifically, Gesta Annalia II relates that a certain 'Donald of the Isles' led a host of Gallovidians to the River Dee, where they were defeated by Edward Bruce, and the leader was himself captured.[5][note 1] Whilst it is possible that the defeated man mentioned by this source might refer to Donald of Islay, an apparent member of Clan Donald,[9] another possibility is that it instead refers to Dungal MacDouall.[10]
A later account of the battle, preserved by the fifteenth-century Scotichronicon,[11] confusingly identifies 'Donald of the Isles' as leader of the Gallovidian forces, but then includes a verse about the clash in which a 'Donald of Islay' is identified as an ally of Edward Bruce.[12] As such, there is reason to suspect that the Bruce-aligned 'Donald' mentioned by this source is identical to Donald of Islay,[13] and that the Gallovidian-aligned 'Donald' is identical to Donald MacCann, a Gallovidian who consistently supported the English against the Bruces, and who disappears from record at about this point in history.[14][note 2]
The account of Edward Bruce's campaigning against the Gallovidians, given by the Chronicle of Lanercost, states that his forces were partly composed of men from the Isles.[17] The evidence of Donald of Islay in league with pro-Bruce forces could indicate that Gesta Annalia II was erroneous in placing him and the Islesmen against Edward Bruce's forces.[18] One possibility is that the account given by Chronicle of Lanercost influenced Gesta Annalia II in its identification of Edward Bruce's foe as from the Isles.[10][note 3]