Battle of Solway Moss 1542

Details

BATTLE OF SOLWAY MOSS
1542

In 1542, relations between King Henry VIII and King James V of Scotland had deteriorated. In October, the Duke if Norfolk led 20,000 men into Scotland and burnt Roxburgh and Kelso. The next month King James retaliated by sending 17, 000 troops into England to burn the countryside north of Carlisle. The local English commander mustered 3,000 men to oppose the Scots.

The Scots first saw the flags of the small English force on the hilltop above them, and feared that it was part of a much larger force. Their army began to march on the English but hesitated, turned, and retreated, the English cavalry harrying their rear. A rearguard stand was made by the Scots at the ford across the Esk, but many were taken prisoner. Those who crossed took refuge in the vast marsh known as Solway Moss, which gives the battle its name.

The morale of the Scottish army was low and it possessed no recognised commander. Disunity amongst its leaders precipitated the break-up of the army almost as soon as the battle began. The shameful nature of the defeat so shocked King James that he died within a month at the age of only 30.

The battle took place in a heathland landscape which was not improved and enclosed until the nineteenth century except around the by-then decayed settlement of Arthuret. A second hillock at Arthuret was quarried away in World War II.

AMENITY FEATURES
There are a number of good viewpoints over the battlefield, which are publicly accessible. The Tourist Information Centre is in the northern edge of the battlefield area. St Michael's church was largely rebuilt in 1609 and modified again later. There is a holy well at the church.

OTHER DESIGNATIONS
The Arthuret Knowe is an Area of Local Landscape Significance, whilst the surroundings are an Area of Landscape Improvement in the Local Plan. The battlefield lies within a Tourism Priority Area.

KEY SOURCES
Bain, J (ed.), 1890, The Hamilton Papers: Letters and Papers illustrating the political relations of England and Scotland in the XVI century
McIntire, W T, 1941, 'Solway Moss', in Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmoreland Archaeological and Antiquarian Society, xli

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment to the Selected Sources on 10/04/2019

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

35

Legacy System:

Battlefields

Sources

Websites
English Heritage Battlefield Report: Battle of Solway Moss 1542 (Published 1995), accessed 10th April 2019 from https://historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/listing/battlefields/solway-moss/

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.