Editing Edinburgh Castle (section)

===16th century and the Lang Siege===

[[File:Sir William Kirkcaldy of the Grange by Jean Clouet.jpg|thumb|upright|right|alt=Painting of a man with a red moustache|Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange, who held the castle on behalf of Queen Mary during the Lang Siege of 1571–73. Painting by [[Jean Clouet]]]]

James IV was killed in battle at [[Battle of Flodden Field|Flodden Field]], on 9 September 1513. Expecting the English to press their advantage, the Scots hastily constructed a [[Edinburgh town walls|town wall]] around Edinburgh and augmented the castle's defences. Robert Borthwick and a Frenchman, [[Antoine d'Arces]], were involved in designing new artillery defences and fortifications in 1514, though it appears from lack of evidence that little of the planned work was carried out.<ref>MacIvor (1981), p. 105.</ref> Three years later, [[James V of Scotland|King James V]] (r.1513–1542), still only five years old, was brought to the castle for safety.<ref name=Salter47/> Upon his death 25 years later, the crown passed to his week-old daughter, [[Mary, Queen of Scots]]. English invasions followed, as King [[Henry VIII]] attempted to [[Rough Wooing|force a dynastic marriage]] on Scotland.<ref name=BoS85-86/> When the [[Burning of Edinburgh|English burnt Edinburgh in May 1544]] the gunner [[Andrew Mansioun]] firing from the castle destroyed an English cannon placed to bombard the forework.<ref>''Accounts of the Treasurer of Scotland'', vol. 8 (Edinburgh, 1908), p. 127.</ref> In 1547 disaffected members of the garrison who resented [[Regent Arran]] came to [[Norham Castle]] and offered to let the English in.<ref>Joseph Bain, ''Calendar State Papers Scotland: 1547–1563'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1898), p. 58.</ref>

Refortification in 1548 included an earthen angle-bastion, known as the Spur, of the type known as ''[[trace italienne]]'', one of the earliest examples in Britain.<ref name=tab104/> [[Brunstane Castle]] the home of the traitor [[Alexander Crichton of Brunstane|Alexander Crichton]] was demolished to provide building materials.<ref>''Accounts of the Treasurer of Scotland'', vol. 9 (Edinburgh, 1911), pp. xxviii, 161–3, 166–7, 172–3: ''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1898), p. 93.</ref> The Spur may have been designed by [[Migliorino Ubaldini]], an Italian engineer from the court of [[Henry II of France]],<ref name=tab104>Tabraham (1997), pp. 104–105.</ref> and was said to have the [[coat of arms of France|arms of France]] carved on it.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=88430 |title=Spain: July 1551, 16–31 |journal=Calendar of State Papers, Spain |volume=10 |pages=330–341 |access-date=27 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130909130218/http://british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=88430 |archive-date=9 September 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> James V's widow, [[Mary of Guise]], acted as [[regent]] from 1554 until her death at the castle in 1560.<ref name=Salter47/>

The following year, the [[Roman Catholicism in Scotland|Catholic]] Mary, Queen of Scots, returned from France to begin her reign, which was marred by crises and quarrels among the powerful [[Scottish Reformation|Protestant]] Scottish nobility. In 1565, the Queen made an unpopular marriage with [[Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley]]. On 19 June 1566 in a small room of the Palace at Edinburgh Castle, she gave birth to their son [[James VI and I|James]], who would later be King of both Scotland and England. Mary made plans to repair the castle and make it somewhat fairer than it had been.<ref>Allan J. Crosby, ''Calendar State Papers Foreign Elizabeth, 1566–1568'' (London, 1871), p. 96 no. 535.</ref> Mary's reign was, however, brought to an abrupt end. Three months after the [[murder of Darnley]] at Kirk o' Field in 1567, she married [[James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell]], one of the chief murder suspects. A large proportion of the nobility rebelled, resulting ultimately in the imprisonment and [[Act Anent the demission of the Crown in favour of our Sovereign Lord, and his Majesty's Coronation 1567|forced abdication]] of Mary at [[Lochleven Castle]]. She escaped and fled to [[Kingdom of England|England]], but some of the nobility remained faithful to her cause. Edinburgh Castle was initially handed by its captain, [[James Balfour, Lord Pittendreich|James Balfour]], to the [[James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray|Regent Moray]], who had forced Mary's abdication and now held power in the name of the infant King James VI. Shortly after the [[Battle of Langside]], in May 1568, Moray appointed [[William Kirkcaldy of Grange|Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange]] Keeper of the Castle.<ref name=Salter47/>
[[File:Edinburgh Castle during the 'Lang Siege' (May 1573).jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.15|alt=A bird's-eye view of the castle surrounded by artillery|Detail from a contemporary drawing of Edinburgh Castle under siege in 1573, showing it surrounded by attacking batteries]]

Grange was a trusted lieutenant of the Regent, but after Moray's murder in January 1570 his allegiance to the King's cause began to waver. [[Marian civil war|Intermittent civil war]] continued between the supporters of the two monarchs, and in April 1571 [[Dumbarton Castle]] fell to "the King's men". Under the influence of [[William Maitland of Lethington]], Mary's secretary, Grange changed sides, occupying the town and castle of Edinburgh for Queen Mary, and against the new regent, the [[Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox|Earl of Lennox]].<ref>Potter, p. 56.</ref> The stand-off which followed was not resolved until two years later, and became known as the "Lang Siege", from the [[Scots language|Scots]] word for "long". Hostilities began in May, with a month-long siege of the town, and a second short siege in October. Blockades and skirmishing continued meanwhile, and Grange continued to refortify the castle. The King's party appealed to [[Elizabeth I]] of England for assistance, as they lacked the artillery and money required to reduce the castle, and feared that Grange would receive aid from France and the [[Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba|Duke of Alba]] in the [[Spanish Netherlands]].<ref>Potter, p. 100.</ref> Elizabeth sent ambassadors to negotiate, and in July 1572 a truce was agreed and the blockade lifted. The town was effectively surrendered to the King's party, with Grange confined to the castle.<ref>Potter, p. 105.</ref>

The truce expired on 1 January 1573, and Grange began bombarding the town. His supplies of powder and shot, however, were running low, and despite having 40 cannons available, there were only seven gunners in the garrison.<ref name="Potter, p.131">Potter, p. 131.</ref> The King's forces, now with the [[James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton|Earl of Morton]] in charge as regent, were making headway with plans for a siege. Trenches were dug to surround the castle, and St Margaret's Well was poisoned.<ref>Potter, pp. 121–122.</ref> By February, all Queen Mary's other supporters had surrendered to the Regent, but Grange resolved to resist despite water shortages within the castle. The garrison continued to bombard the town, killing a number of citizens. They also made sorties to set fires, burning 100 houses in the town and then firing on anyone attempting to put out the flames.<ref>Potter, p. 125.</ref>

[[File:Sir William Drury from NPG.jpg|thumb|upright|right|alt=Painting of a man with dark hair and large moustache|Sir William Drury, commander of Elizabeth I of England's Protestant troops who brought the Lang Siege to an end in 1573. Unknown artist]]

In April, a force of around 1,000 English troops, led by [[William Drury|Sir William Drury]], arrived in Edinburgh. They were followed by 27 cannons from [[Berwick-upon-Tweed]],<ref name="Potter, p.131"/> including one that had been cast within Edinburgh Castle and captured by the English at Flodden.<ref name=Salter47/> The English troops built an artillery emplacement on Castle Hill, immediately facing the east walls of the castle, and five others to the north, west and south. By 17 May these batteries were ready, and the bombardment began. Over the next 12 days, the gunners dispatched around 3,000 shots at the castle.<ref name=Potter137/> On 22 May, the south wall of David's Tower collapsed, and the next day the Constable's Tower also fell. The debris blocked the castle entrance, as well as the Fore Well, although this had already run dry.<ref name=Potter137>Potter, p. 137.</ref> On 26 May, the English attacked and captured the Spur, the outer fortification of the castle, which had been isolated by the collapse. The following day Grange emerged from the castle by a ladder after calling for a ceasefire to allow negotiations for a surrender to take place. When it was made clear that he would not be allowed to go free even if he ended the siege, Grange resolved to continue the resistance, but the garrison threatened to mutiny. He therefore arranged for Drury and his men to enter the castle on 28 May, preferring to surrender to the English rather than the Regent Morton.<ref>Potter, pp. 139–140.</ref> Edinburgh Castle was handed over to [[George Douglas of Parkhead]], the Regent's brother, and the garrison was allowed to go free.<ref>Gray, p. 45.</ref> In contrast, Kirkcaldy of Grange, his brother James and two jewellers, [[James Mosman|James Mossman]] and [[James Cockie|James Cokke]], who had been minting coins in Mary's name inside the castle, were hanged at the [[Mercat Cross, Edinburgh|Cross in Edinburgh]] on 3 August.<ref>Potter, p.146: Pitcairn, vol.2, pp.45–46: {{cite journal |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=44252 |title=Elizabeth: August 1573, no.713 |journal=Calendar of State Papers, Scotland |volume=4 |page=604 |year=1905 |access-date=7 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821163339/http://british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=44252 |archive-date=21 August 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>