Douglas burning of Stirling, 1452

Who Fought

History & Significance

James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton, 6th Laird of Cadzow (c. 1415 – 6 November 1479) was a Scottish nobleman, scholar and politician.

James Hamilton was the son of James Hamilton of Cadzow, 5th Laird of Cadzow. He was born at Cadzow Castle, Lanarkshire. He first appears on record on a charter of 1426, granting him the rights to the lands of Dalserf, which had been alienated by his father.

Hamilton was intimately connected with the powerful House of Douglas: his paternal grandmother was a daughter of James Douglas Lord of Dalkeith d. 1441, and also through his marriage in 1439/1440 with Lady Euphemia Graham, the youthful widow of Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Douglas and daughter of Euphemia Stewart, Countess of Strathearn. Hamilton became stepfather to the young 6th Earl of Douglas, William Douglas, and his brother David, who would both be murdered in November 1440 at the 'Black Dinner' at Edinburgh Castle in the presence of James II. Furthermore, he was the stepfather of Margaret Douglas, known as the "Fair Maid of Galloway", who was to marry her cousins William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas, and James Douglas, 9th Earl of Douglas.

Prior to 1440 he achieved the status of knighthood, and c. 1440/1441 he inherited his father's estates.

In 1445, Hamilton received letters patent creating him a Lord of Parliament. This charter raised all his estates into the entail of that rank, with its Capital Messuage at the Orchard, (later Hamilton Palace), at Cadzow. Furthermore, the charter stated that henceforth the lands would be known as Hamilton as they are today.

Hamilton accompanied his stepson in law, the 8th Earl of Douglas, to Rome in 1450, and there obtained permission from the Holy See to convert the Parish Church at the new burgh of Hamilton into a Collegiate Establishment, with endowments for a Provost and six Canons.

He was certainly with the 9th Earl of Douglas, a month after the murder when the 9th Earl burned the town of Stirling. There followed open warfare in which King James II attacked Douglas lands. An agreement was reached between the King and the Douglas faction at Douglas Castle, in August 1452 that was to last until 1455 in which the Douglas forgave the King's killing of his brother.

In 1453, Hamilton was in England, again with the 9th Earl of Douglas, arranging the release of his brother in law, Malise Graham, Earl of Strathearn. For this action Strathearn granted Hamilton the lands of Elliestoun in Linlithgowshire. Hamilton was again in London the following year negotiating a treasonous bond in which Douglas was to swear fealty to King Henry VI in return for support against King James, but the negotiations came to nothing. He was back in Scotland by February 1455 at which time Hamilton and the Earl of Douglas's brothers ravaged and burned much of Lanarkshire.

The ground they fought on

The site of Douglas burning of Stirling, 1452 lies on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Carboniferous To Permian, bedrock that formed in the Permian. The rock here is dolerite and tholeiitic basalt.

Frequently Asked Questions

Scheduled Monuments near Douglas burning of Stirling, 1452

Stirling, town wall & bastion & Port Street Bastion at 44 Bastion Wynd

Scheduled monument · ~0.3 mi

Stirling town wall and bastion is a defensive structure built to protect the royal burgh of Stirling on its elevated site above the River Forth. The fortification occupies the rising ground at 44 Bastion Wynd, where the bedrock of Permian dolerite and tholeiitic basalt provides a naturally strong…

Stirling, remains of former bridge to N of Stirling Old Bridge

Scheduled monument · ~0.7 mi

Stirling, remains of former bridge to N of Stirling Old Bridge is a masonry bridge structure of unknown date situated on the River Forth immediately north of the medieval Stirling Old Bridge. The monument consists of fragmentary stonework visible in the riverbed and banks, testimony to an earlier…

King's Park,cup & ring mark

Scheduled monument · ~1.1 mi

King's Park cup and ring mark is a prehistoric rock carving located in Stirlingshire, Scotland. The motif consists of a cup—a small circular depression—surrounded by concentric rings pecked into the living rock surface. Such carvings are characteristic of later Neolithic and Bronze Age societies…

Abbey Craig,fort

Scheduled monument · Iron Age · ~1.4 mi

Abbey Craig fort is an Iron Age hillfort situated on a prominent rocky outcrop near Stirling in Perthshire, Scotland. The fort exploits the natural defensive qualities of its location, built upon bedrock composed of Permian-age igneous intrusion dominated by dolerite and tholeiitic basalt, which…

Airthrey Castle,standing stone 280m SE of

Scheduled monument · Bronze Age · ~2 mi

Airthrey Castle is a Bronze Age standing stone located in Perthshire, Scotland, approximately 280 metres south-east of Airthrey Castle itself. The monument stands upon bedrock of the Arbuttnott-Garvock Group, a geological formation of Pragian age comprising sandstone interspersed with conglomerat…

Gillies Hill,fort

Scheduled monument · Iron Age · ~2.3 mi

Gillies Hill is an Iron Age fort situated in Stirlingshire, Scotland. The fortification commands views across the surrounding landscape from its position on bedrock formed by Permian-age igneous intrusion, comprising dolerite and tholeiitic basalt. This volcanic geology provides the natural found…

Other Medieval Battles

Battles near Douglas burning of Stirling, 1452

Explore the landscape around this battlefield

Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in the UK — drawing on Domesday records, scheduled monuments, Victorian OS maps, geological data and archaeological archives to tell the full story of a place.

• James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton · Wikipedia
• James III of Scotland · Wikipedia