Battlefields›Skirmish at Kelso 1640
English Civil War

Skirmish at Kelso 1640

1640
Roxburghshire, Scotland
Also known as: Action at Kelso — Second Bishops' War
Era
English Civil War
Battle Type
Skirmish
Location
Roxburghshire, Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
English border forces
Forces
English border forces c.500–1,000
VS
Victor
Covenanters (Leslie)
Forces
Covenanters (Leslie) c.2,000–3,000
Outcome
Scottish Covenanting army crossed the Tweed; English border force dispersed
The Battle

History & Significance

Alexander Leslie's Covenanting army crossed the Tweed at Kelso in August 1640 during the Second Bishops' War. The English border force made a show of resistance but was dispersed. Leslie advanced to the Tyne at Newburn where the decisive battle of the war was fought — the first English military defeat since Flodden.

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

Protected heritage nearby

Scheduled Monuments near Skirmish at Kelso 1640

Kelso Abbey
Scheduled monument · ~0.3 miles
Pinnaclehill Farm,burial mound & cists 90m NW of
Scheduled monument · Bronze Age · ~0.5 miles
Old Roxburgh,deserted town between River Teviot & River Tweed
Scheduled monument · ~0.8 miles
Roxburgh Castle
Scheduled monument · ~1.1 miles
Piper's Grave,cists
Scheduled monument · Bronze Age · ~2 miles
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