Flags for the Strathbogie Regiment

"...he caused make some ensigns where upon ilk side was drawn a red rampant lion..."

Spalding 

I am playing catch-up with this post. I realised while updating the blog this week that I had forgotten to share the flags for the Strathbogie Regiment, a unit which I completed some time ago and which can be seen here. The great thing about the flags for this unit is that we actually have some contemporary details on their appearance thanks to my favorite 17th century blogger, John Spalding.


Spalding, an Aberdonian Lawyer (but lets not judge him too harshly for that) and part-time soldier in the Aberdeen City Militia was a prolific contemporary observer of current events, recording copious news and gossip of his time in his hand-written blog, "The History of the Troubles..." [click here for free online eBook]. Spalding was a Royalist, but is generally quite balanced in his writing compared to several of his contemporary historians, biographers and bloggers. Be warned though, he writes in old scots english, a dialect similar to the Doric and Buchan dialects that can still be heard in parts of Northeast of Scotland.

Spalding's writings are such a treasure of information because he would often record details which his contemporaries may have thought too trivial or so obvious as to be uninteresting (and to be honest much of it is). However, almost 500 years later some of his observations provide us with wonderful insights. One such treasure for wargamers, re-enactors and vexillologists is his description of a set of flags ordered by the Marquis of Huntly for his forces in early 1644...

"Upon Monday the 15th of April he [Huntley] returned about six hours at even to Aberdeen he caused make some ensigns where upon ilk side was drawn a red rampant lion having a crown of gold above his head a 'CR' for Charles Rex having the motto 'For God the king and against all traitors' and beneath 'God save the king'. There were diverse others made for the barons. The marquis and his followers wore a black taffeta about their craig whilk was a sign to fight to the death but it proved otherwise"

An excerpt from "THE HISTORY OF THE TROUBLES AND MEMORABLE TRANSACTIONS IN SCOTLAND DURING THE REIGN OF CHARLES I" By JOHN SPALDING, COMMISSARY CLERK ABERDEEN

There is one curious line in this quote; "There were diverse other made for the barons". Spalding could be saying here that a range of different flags were made for "the barons" (which I assume refers to all the nobles that fought under Huntly) . However I have interpreted this to mean that a number of similar sheets were provided to all Gordon regiments of 1644. This would include the Strathbogie Regt and Monaltrie's Regt, which later split into Inverey's Regt and Monymore's Regt in early 1645.

For the Strathbogie flags I have faithfully reproduced the text and device is described by Spalding but concede that the exact layout is speculative. Unfortunately Spalding neglects to mention the field colour of these flags and we are left frustrated, wondering how Spalding could take the trouble to let us know that the regiment wore black neckscarves, but could neglect to mention the colour of the flags! 

I have chosen to make one of the flags Yellow, as this seems a good match for a red rampant lion in Scotland, and I have made the other white, for no other reason than it makes the red lion really stand out on the table top. But if you think it through there are not many other likely field colours. 

As with all my flags, they are prepared in photoshop, printed on good quality paper and then re-painted. The finished article can be seen on the Strathbogie Regiment in the photos included and in the full post on the Strathbogie Regiment.

Flags for Farquharson of Monaltrie's Regiment

"There were diverse other [ensigns] made for the barons."

Spalding on Huntly's 1644 order of flags

Below are the flags I used for Farqharson of Monaltrie's Regiment. They were made in photoshop and can be printed for use in your own armies. They can be used as is, but I re-paint over the printed design as I prefer the hand-painted look. The end-product can be seen in the photos at the bottom of this post.

The white sheet above is a Colonel's colour with the Farquharson coat of arms in the centre. There is no surviving description of either Monaltrie's or Inverey's colours, so this design is purely speculative. The Farquharson arms are quartered with the 1st and 4th quarters containing a yellow field with a red rampant lion, and the 2nd and 3rd quarters containing a white field with a fir tree on a small mound. In each white field, in the top left corner above the tree is a red hand holding a dagger. 

The fir tree tree on a mound is for Farquar Shaw, from whom the Farquarsons claim descent, and it is thought to represent the forest of Rothimurcus, ancestral home of the MacKintosh Shaws. The lion rampant represents the Farquharson lineage through the chiefs of MacKintosh, back to the Earls of MacDuff. These heraldic elements are common in the families of Upper Deeside and even though we don't know the colours of this regiment, this crest looks great and feels right.

The yellow sheet is a speculative company colour based on a description of a set of colours ordered by Huntly in early 1644. The text and device is described by Spalding but the field colour is speculative (yellow seems likely for a rampant lion).

"Upon Monday the 15th of April he [Huntley] returned about six hours at even to Aberdeen he caused make some ensigns where upon ilk side was drawn a red rampant lion having a crown of gold above his head a 'CR' for Charles Rex having the motto 'For God the king and against all traitors' and beneath 'God save the king'. There were diverse others made for the barons. The marquis and his followers wore a black taffeta about their craig whilk was a sign to fight to the death but it proved otherwise"

An excerpt from "THE HISTORY OF THE TROUBLES AND MEMORABLE TRANSACTIONS IN SCOTLAND DURING THE REIGN OF CHARLES I" By JOHN SPALDING, COMMISSARY CLERK ABERDEEN

There is one curious line in this quote; "There were diverse other made for the barons". Spalding could be saying here that a range of different flags were made for "the barons" (which I assume refers to all the nobles that fought under Huntly) . However I have interpreted this to mean that a number of similar sheets were provided to all Gordon regiments of 1644. This would include the Strathbogie Regt and Monaltrie's Regt, which later split into Inverey's Regt and Monymore's Regt in early 1645.

Apologies for once again repeating the info on the yellow sheet that is posted in several places on this blog, but I wanted to include all the relevant flag information in this post too.

Finally here are a couple of photos of the flags fully painted and on the models. More photos and information about this unit can be found by following this link.

Farquharson of Monaltrie's Regiment

This regiment completes the royalist Gordon Infantry Brigade which comprises Farquharson of Monaltrie's Regiment, Gordon of Monymore's Regiment and the Strathbogie Regiment. As with Monymore's Regiment, Farquharson's Regiment is believed to have been a 'regular' unit conventionally equipped with pike and shot.

This regiment is modelled and painted in a very similar way to my Gordon of Monymore's Regiment. The figures are mostly Eureka Highland Musketeers and Pikemen from the 17th Century Scots range, but also includes a number of Perry ECW scots in lowland clothing, plus a couple of old Foundry pikemen from the Perry sculpted Elizabethan range.

 

For the commander of this unit, which could be Donald Farqharson or his successor, James Farqharson, I have used the excellent Montrose on foot model by Eureka. This beautiful sculpt by Alan Marsh, is indistinguishable from the Perry models and has captured a fantastic air of calm and confidence. Perfect for either of these highland colonels.

I requested the Eureka range through the Eureka "100 Club" back in 2006, with the Royalist Gordon highlanders in mind. They were sculpted by Alan Marsh to be compatible with Perry ECW Scots and were finally produced in Jan 2008. Primary reference provided was the 17th century Stettin print.

I have painted Farquharson's Regiment in a similar way to Monymore's Regiment.  To give the unit a strong highland flavour I have painted almost every model with some tartan. The highlanders have belted plaids, and tartan long coats, and those in lowland clothing typically have tartan breeks (breeches).  

I have to confess this unit almost broke my painting spirit. It was the fourth unit in my army to heavily feature tartans, and despite the patience and time required I did not want to compromise on the look of this unit. As a result painting slowed down to a snail's pace, and this was not helped by a move to a new job in the same period. However I plodded away at it doing a wee bit at a time, and spaced it out by helping my son with his Warhammer armies, and finally it's done. To date I have painted ~170 models with tartan clothing for this army.

The history of this regiment is intertwined with that of Gordon of Monymore's Regiment.  Monaltries's Regiment was raised from the Gordon controlled territories of Upper Deeside, from Aboyne to Braemar, and Strathavan in Speyside, an area known these days for its famous Glen Livet whisky distillery. The regiment was raised and led by Colonel Donald Farquharson of Monaltrie, who had married into the Gordon family, and the original regiment's officers included William Gordon of Monymore and a Lieutenant Colonel James Farqhuarson of Inverey.  Monaltrie is an area of Deeside near Ballater.

First raised in 1639, the regiment was part of Gordon of Huntly's Royalist army and is believed to have fought at the battle of Megray Hill (near Stonheaven) in 1640 where the Royalists were swiftly routed and the regiment subsequently disbanded. 

The regiment was raised again in early 1644, once again in support of an uprising sponsored by the Marquis of Huntly. The unit fought at Fyvie, and Inverary in 1644, but in March 1645 Donald Farquharson was killed at Aberdeen during a surprise attack by Hurry (who had recently changed allegiance and joined the Covenanters). Following the death of Monaltrie the regiment appears to have split into two regiments; the Strathavan men were formed into a new regiment led by Col. William Gordon of Monymore, and leadership of the Deeside contingent was assumed by Colonel James Farqhuarson of Inverey. The Inverey estate is located in Upper Deeside near Braemar.

During the remainder of 1645, Inverey's regiment was present at the battles of Alford and Kilsyth, and may have been present at Auldearn, but this cannot be confirmed. The regiment was not with Montrose at Philiphaugh, but joined Huntly for the infamous storming of Aberdeen in 1646. 

James Farquharson of Inverey appears also to have fought with the Scots Royalist army (which also included many of his former Covenanter adversaries) at the battle of Worcester in 1651, but I am still trying to find more information to confirm this.

When the regiment was raised in 1639 they were described as being equipped with bow and firelock. This means they were probably as poorly equipped as any highland levy of the times. At Megray Hill in 1640 they are described as a 'standing regiment' and are thought to have been conventionally armed with pike and shot. They were not however very disciplined at this point, as their less than impressive performance during this defeat suggests.

The regiment is considered to have been conventionally armed and drilled for the entire duration of the 1644-1646 campaign, and their performance under Montrose, especially at Alford, suggests much improved discipline and training. 

In keeping with all other foot regiments in this project I have given Inverey's Regt two colours. The white sheet is a Colonel's colour with the Monaltrie coat of arms in the centre. This is a speculative flag and no description of Monaltrie's colours survive.  The yellow sheet is a speculative company colour based on a description of a set of colours ordered by Huntly in early 1644. The text and device is described by Spalding but the field colour is speculative (yellow seems likely for a rampant lion).

"Upon Monday the 15th of April he [Huntley] returned about six hours at even to Aberdeen he caused make some ensigns where upon ilk side was drawn a red rampant lion having a crown of gold above his head a 'CR' for Charles Rex having the motto 'For God the king and against all traitors' and beneath 'God save the king'. There were diverse others made for the barons. The marquis and his followers wore a black taffeta about their craig whilk was a sign to fight to the death but it proved otherwise"

An excerpt from "THE HISTORY OF THE TROUBLES AND MEMORABLE TRANSACTIONS IN SCOTLAND DURING THE REIGN OF CHARLES I" By JOHN SPALDING, COMMISSARY CLERK ABERDEEN

There is one curious line in this quote; "There were diverse other made for the barons". Spalding could be saying here that a range of different flags were made for "the barons" (which I assume refers to all the nobles that fought under Huntly) . However I have interpreted this to mean that a number of similar sheets were provided to all Gordon regiments of 1644. This would include the Strathbogie Regt and Monaltrie's Regt, which later split into Inverey's Regt and Monymore's Regt in early 1645.

All of the Gordon regiments in my army carry the 'Spalding' Gordon flag and this helps tie the brigade together. Both flags will be posted on the blog very soon. 

This regiment will be very flexible. It can be deployed as either Monaltrie's or Inverey's Regiments. The figure poses and basing is fully compatible with Monymore's so both regiments could be combined to form a very large regiment of highland regulars, perhaps to march on Worcester!  The figures will also be used to represent the Earl of Sutherland's highland levies at Auldearn, but that regiment will be the subject of later blog post.

The Strathbogie Regiment

I finally finished the Strathbogie Regiment a couple of weeks ago, but a work trip to Canada and a heavy week of preparation for the trip have prevented me from holding a proper photoshoot until today.

The figures are all Perry Miniatures from the Scots of the Civil War and English Civil War ranges. Several of the figures have been converted from English troops to Scots by clipping/carving off the English head gear and addition of Scots bonnets with green stuff. This is an easy conversion and gives much more variety if painting a large Scots army, especially useful for command models.

The unit is modelled advancing into action at Auldearn and, within the constraints of available models, is based on the two-page illustration of the Strathbogie regiment by Gerry Embleton which can be found in the Osprey book "Auldearn 1645 - The Marquis of Montrose's Scottish Campaign" by Stuart Reid.

The regiment is clothed in hodden grey with many troopers wearing tartan breeks or shouldered plaids. This adds a bit of colour and a highland look, and distinguishes the regiment from the grey ranks of the government troops. Headgear is the ubiquitous blue bunnet with the exception of a couple of troopers with monmouth (woolly) caps and a sergeant with floppy hat. I did promise a step-by-step on painting the plaids and will try and get round to that next. 

The flags are based on a description of a set of colours ordered by Huntly in early 1644. The text and device is described by Spalding but the field colour is speculative. I have used yellow for a company colour as yellow is a most suitable field for a rampant lion. I have reproduced the same colour in white for a Colonel's colour. I have also followed Spalding and given the regiment black neck scarves.

"Upon Monday the 15th of April he [Huntley] returned about six hours at even to Aberdeen he caused make some ensigns where upon ilk side was drawn a red rampant lion having a crown of gold above his head a 'CR' for Charles Rex having the motto 'For God the king and against all traitors' and beneath 'God save the king'. There were diverse others made for the barons. The marquis and his followers wore a black taffeta about their craig whilk was a sign to fight to the death but it proved otherwise"

An excerpt from "THE HISTORY OF THE TROUBLES AND MEMORABLE TRANSACTIONS IN SCOTLAND DURING THE REIGN OF CHARLES I" By JOHN SPALDING, COMMISSARY CLERK ABERDEEN

For it's "I've come east and I've come west

And I've come through Strathbogie-oh

And the bonniest lady that ere I saw

She was followin three gypsy laddies oh"

Excerpt from the Lyrics to "The Gypsy Laddie" (trad.)

Strathbogie is the ancient name for the modern burgh of Huntly in the Northeast of Scotland. It was the principle seat of the Marquis of Huntly who raised this infantry regiment first in 1639 and again in 1644 and in 1645 for the King's service. In 1639 the regiment took the field with the Royalist Army at Megray Hill and defended the Bridge of Dee to Montrose's Covenanter force. The regiment was re-raised in 1644 and garrisoned Aberdeen for the Royalists. In October 1644 a small detachment of the Strathbogie Regt. was present at Fyvie with Montrose, but deserted before being engaged. 

In February 1645, following Montrose's victory over Argyll at Inverlochy, Lord Gordon, Huntly's eldest son, defected to the Royalists bringing the Gordon Cavalry, and the Strathbogie Regt was raised on a permanent basis. The regiment then fought with Montrose at Auldearn, Alford and Kilsyth. The unit avoided destruction at Philiphaugh as the Gordon's had left Montrose after Kilsyth due to a quarrel. The Gordon's continued to fight on for the King and the Strathbogie Regt took part in Gordon's  infamous Storming of Aberdeen in May of 1646.

The regiment numbered around 500 men at Auldearn and was armed as regular pike and shot. They performed well for Montrose throughout 1645 and are generally considered well trained and disciplined.

I am dedicating this regiment to my Dad who passed away this summer. My dad got me hooked on local history at a young age and was my companion on many visits to Northeast castles and battlefields including the spectacular Huntly Castle, home of the Marquis of Huntly.

The next regiment on the painting table is Farquharson of Monaltrie's Royalist Regiment. This unit will have two command stands to allow it to do double duty as the Earl of Sutherland's Government Regiment.