Edinburgh Under Siege: 1571 - 1573

by Harry Potter

In 1571 Edinburgh was at the centre of a bloody three-year siege in which many men sacrificed their lives in support of the dethroned Queen Mary. William Kirkcaldy, as keeper of the ancient fort and regal palace, with his allies defiantly held the castle against a succession of regents. In despair Regent James Douglas, the Earl of Morton, turned to Scotland’s oldest enemy, the English, to overthrow the Castle rebels. Within 10 days the English cannons and a thousand men brought the rebels to their knees and the majestic towers of the citadel crumbling around them. The siege was an embodiment of the hatred and rivalry between Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I.

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2003

About the author

Harry Potter is a lawyer and writer. Publications include:

Hanging in Judgment: Religion and the Death Penalty from the Bloody Code to Abolition, SCM, 1993.
Hanging and Heresy, Kent University Press, 1994.
Father Diamond of Deptford, (ed) Ditchling Press, 1994.
Blood Feud: The Stewarts and Gordons at War in the Age of Mary Queen of Scots, Tempus 2002.
Edinburgh Under Siege 1571-1573, Tempus, 2003.

Professional Memberships:
Criminal Bar Association

Interests:
Classical languages and culture, Egyptology, Opera, Bridge, Numismatics, Astronomy, History, American Studies.

Positions of Responsibility:
1984 Ordained priest in the Church of England
1984-7 Fellow, Selwyn College Cambridge
1992- Vice Chair of Trustees of the 999 Club, Deptford
2002-6 Liberal Democrat Councillor in Greenwich
Governor of Christ's Hospital and Eltham Green Specialist Sports College.

Reviews

[Graeme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harry Potter gives a fascinating account of a little-known episode following the abdication of Mary, Queen of Scots in favour of her son, James VI. William Kirkcaldy of Grange and William Maitland of Lethington were unlikely allies in the Marian cause. The hot-headed Kirkcaldy, appointed Keeper of Edinburgh Castle by Regent Moray, had been one of the assassins of Cardinal Beaton. The ailing Maitland was an intellectual, religious sceptic and gifted civil servant who had previously broken with Mary over her marriage to Bothwell. Their doomed decision to hold Edinburgh Castle for the deposed queen cost many lives and inflicted serious damage on the city.

Potter sees Scottish revulsion at the slaughter of the French Calvinists in the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in August 1572 as having an important bearing on the outcome of the conflict. It brought a final end to French influence on Scottish politics and strengthened the hand of Elizabethan England.

[Errol Cavan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fine book from Potter, and a spin-off from Bloodfeud. As far as I know this is the only comprehensive study of that little-known episode in Scottish History known as the Marian Civil War. After Mary Queen of Scots's abdiaction and flight to England her supporters, led by Maitland of Lethington and William Kirkaldy of Grange, seized Edinburgh and held pout against the regents of James VI for three years. It was a classic case of the French always promising to come into the fray the Marians behalf buit never dpoing so, while El;izbeth of England was detyermined not to get involved but finally doid so. Shje sent to Scotland her weapons of mass destruction (her artillery) which reduced Edinburgh Castle to rubble (the present one rose its its predecessor's ashes). This was all potrayed in a contemporary depiction of the siege which is included in this fine boo.

As one would expect from the author it is very well-written and make a compelling read

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Found the flow of the book difficult. Could not pin down why. Must be something to do with Potters style. His explanation of the factional politics did not stick with me in the slightest after reading over the relevant chapters a few times.

Some of the chapters specifically covering the siege of Edinburgh castle were brilliant. The wider narrative had major shortcomings. As a casual read it was mediocre.

Unfortunately, the source material (particularly the archaeological evidence) was out of date and not always good quality.

He makes a bizarre comment to a figure of Queen Mary which made me uncomfortable. There is a lack of standardisation for terminology, notably ’hackbutts’ to which about 5 different terms are used. This could confuse a casual reader easily.

So, good if cherry picked for specific narratives for Edinburgh Castle but I would not recommend for a casual reader.

[Banbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

In his introduction, the author states that he has tried to describe the events from the point of view of the participants, "uncoloured by our knowledge of the final denoument." Like most Americans, I actually did not know anything about the Siege, much less how it turned out. In this short book, I learned a great deal about that tumultuous period of Scottish history, the individuals involved, and the geography (helped by having visited Edinburgh). The story is told deftly, with the author able to keep the events clear and exciting, even though there are many complicated details and a great number of individuals who play a role. I could not wait to find out exactly what happened (although a big hint is given at the beginning when the author tells us that one of the characters will end in the gallows). This book is an example of how history should be written.