Battlefields›Battle of Culblean (Kilblane) 1335
Medieval

Battle of Culblean (Kilblane) 1335

1335
Scotland
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
David III de Strathbogie, titular Earl of Atholl (Balliol/English supporters)
VS
Victor
Sir Andrew Murray (Bruce loyalists)
Forces involved

Bruce loyalists: approximately 1,100 men under Sir Andrew Murray and Sir William Douglas of Liddesdale. Balliol/English supporters: approximately 3,000 men under David III de Strathbogie, Earl of Atholl

Outcome
Murray's outnumbered force routed Strathbogie's army through a feigned withdrawal by William Douglas of Liddesdale followed by a flank attack; Strathbogie was killed. The victory effectively ended Edward Balliol's realistic hope of retaining the Scottish throne and is considered the turning point of the Second War of Scottish Independence.
The Battle

History & Significance

Battle of Culblean (Kilblane) 1335 was a medieval pitched battle between opposing field armies, fought in Scotland in 1335. Sir Andrew Murray (Bruce loyalists) prevailed over David III de Strathbogie, titular Earl of Atholl (Balliol/English supporters). Murray's outnumbered force routed Strathbogie's army through a feigned withdrawal by William Douglas of Liddesdale followed by a flank attack; Strathbogie was killed. The victory effectively ended Edward Balliol's realistic hope of retaining the Scottish throne and is considered the turning point of the Second War of Scottish Independence.

Confirmed battlefield location
The ground

The ground they fought on

The site of Battle of Culblean (Kilblane) 1335 lies on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Late Silurian To Early Devonian, bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is felsic-rock.

Casualties & Losses
  • Light casualties for the Bruce loyalists; heavy casualties for Strathbogie's force, including Strathbogie himself, killed defending an oak tree
Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

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Overview
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Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Stat Accounts
The parish Statistical Accounts of the 1790s and 1830s, describing life, work and population here.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
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Target Zones
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Protected heritage nearby

Scheduled Monuments near Battle of Culblean (Kilblane) 1335

Old Kinord,settlements and field systems E of
Old Kinord,settlements and field systems E of
Scheduled monument · Post-Medieval · ~0.7 mi

Old Kinord is a post-medieval settlements and field systems site located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The monument comprises the remains of settlements and associated field arrangements that developed on the landscape east of Old Kinord during the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries. These settlemen…

Heugh, homestead moat and earthworks 500m SSE of
Heugh, homestead moat and earthworks 500m SSE of
Scheduled monument · ~0.9 mi

Heugh is a homestead moat and earthworks located 500 metres south-south-east of Aberdeenshire, protected as a Scheduled Monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The site comprises the characteristic defensive earthworks of a medieval or early modern farmstead, with a moat defining the residenti…

Monandavan,ring cairn 650m SW of
Monandavan,ring cairn 650m SW of
Scheduled monument · Bronze Age · ~1.1 mi

Monandavan is a Bronze Age ring cairn situated 650 metres south-west of Monandavan in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The monument consists of a circular arrangement of stones characteristic of the Bronze Age ring cairn tradition, built upon bedrock comprising an unnamed felsic igneous intrusion of Late…

Knockenzie,settlement and field system W of
Knockenzie,settlement and field system W of
Scheduled monument · Post-Medieval · ~1.9 mi

Knockenzie is a post-medieval settlement and field system located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The site occupies ground underlain by bedrock of the Argyll Group, a sequence of sedimentary rocks formed during the Neoproterozoic period, comprising psammite, semipelite and pelite. These metamorphic s…

Ferny Howe, cairn 200m ESE of
Ferny Howe, cairn 200m ESE of
Scheduled monument · ~2 mi

Ferny Howe is a cairn located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, lying approximately 200 metres east-south-east of the settlement it is named after. The monument sits upon bedrock of felsic igneous origin, formed during the Early Devonian period as part of an unnamed intrusion that cooled and solidified…

Knockargety Wood, unfinished hillfort 200m to 370m N of Upper Ruthven
Knockargety Wood, unfinished hillfort 200m to 370m N of Upper Ruthven
Scheduled monument · Iron Age · ~2.1 mi

Knockargety Wood is an unfinished Iron Age hillfort situated 200 to 370 metres north of Upper Ruthven in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The site occupies high ground composed of Ordovician to Silurian mafic igneous bedrock, an ancient volcanic formation that provides a naturally prominent position over…

Loch Kinord,cross slab
Scheduled monument · ~0.4 miles
Knock Hill, hut circle 315m NNE of Fernyhowe
Scheduled monument · ~2.2 miles
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Battle of Culblean 1335
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