BattlefieldsPass of Brander — MacDougall Fleet Action 1308
Medieval

Pass of Brander — MacDougall Fleet Action 1308

1308
Scotland
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
MacDougalls
Forces
MacDougall ambush party and galley fleet on Loch Awe
VS
Victor
Robert Bruce
Forces
Robert Bruce with archers and infantry plus James Douglas's flank force
Outcome
MacDougalls defeated; Argyll opened to Bruce; combined land and water operation turned against the attackers
The Battle

History & Significance

At the Pass of Brander in 1308 the MacDougalls planned to replicate Dal Righ by ambushing Bruce from the hillside above the pass while a galley fleet on Loch Awe covered the water flank. Bruce countered by sending James Douglas with archers up the hillside above the ambushers, turning the ambush into a trap for the MacDougalls. The fleet was unable to intervene as the hillside ambush was defeated; the MacDougalls fled and their power in Argyll was broken.

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