Battle of Rullion Green, 1666
Who Fought
Royalist: 2,000-3,000; Covenanter: 750-1,100
History & Significance
The Battle of Rullion Green took place on 28 November 1666, near the Pentland Hills, in Midlothian, Scotland. It was the only significant battle of the Pentland Rising, a brief revolt by Covenanter dissidents against the Scottish government.
Sparked by opposition to the restoration of episcopalianism in the Church of Scotland, a Covenanter army under Colonel James Wallace was defeated by a government force led by Tam Dalyell of the Binns.
While casualties were relatively light, between 40 and 50 Covenanters were killed and up to 85 prisoners taken, many of whom were alleged to have been tortured. 36 were executed and others transported to Barbados, while unrest continued over the next two decades, culminating in the extended period of repression from 1679 to 1688 known as The Killing Time.
After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the Rescissory Act 1661 restored bishops to the Church of Scotland, or kirk. Ministers were required to renounce the 1638 National Covenant; about a third, or around 270 in total, refused to do so and lost their positions as a result. Many were based in the south-west of Scotland, an area particularly strong in its Covenanting sympathies; they held informal services in open fields known as Conventicles, which often attracted thousands of worshippers.
The Covenanter role in the disputes that led to the 1638 to 1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms meant they were seen as a threat not only to the 1661 kirk settlement but the stability of the regime as a whole. In dealing with them, the government alternated between persecution and toleration; in 1663, dissenting ministers were declared 'seditious persons', with heavy fines for those who failed to attend the parish churches of the "King's curates". Close cultural, commercial and religious links between Scotland and the Dutch Republic meant these concerns heightened following the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1665, while the war severely damaged the Scottish economy.
Troops under General James Turner were sent into the southwest to enforce these sanctions and the so-called Pentland Rising began on 12 November 1666 in St. John's Town of Dalry. This has traditionally been portrayed as a spontaneous action, allegedly triggered when local Covenanters came across soldiers threatening an elderly man for non-payment of a fine. Led by Robert McClellan of Barscobe Castle, they disarmed them, which was followed by a similar action in the nearly village of Balmaclellan.
Realising this would lead to reprisals, McClellan assembled what men he could and moved onto Dumfries, where they captured Turner. However, there is also evidence plans for co-ordinated action had been under discussion for several months; John Blackadder records meetings held by dissenting clergy in Edinburgh during the summer, including attendees from Nithsdale and Galloway. On learning of the rising, members of this group were sent to provide leadership and rally support, among them James Wallace of Auchens, an experienced soldier who served in Ulster and Scotland during the civil wars.
The ground they fought on
The site of Battle of Rullion Green, 1666 lies on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Silurian To Devonian, bedrock that formed in the Devonian. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.
- Royalist: light; Covenanter: 40-50 killed in battle, 80-140 taken prisoner, of whom 36 were later executed and others transported to Barbados
This battlefield is listed on the Register of Historic Battlefields — a national designation identifying Britain's most significant battle sites for protection and further research. Reference: HES BTL27.
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- Battle of Rullion Green · Wikidata
- Battle_of_Rullion_Green · Wikipedia
- Battle of Rullion Green · Historic Environment Scotland
- Rullion Green · Canmore