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May 7, 1544 - The Burning of Edinburgh
For More Events on This Day in Scottish History - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/may-7/
Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn the clock back to the 7th of May, 1544, to a devastating chapter in Scotland’s turbulent past—the Burning of Edinburgh during the campaign ominously known as the Rough Wooing. It was a time when royal marriages were weapons of war, and diplomacy often rode in the saddle of destruction. If you’d like to explore more tales from our nation’s rich and rugged past, visit my blog at bagtownclans.com/thisday. The link is in the description!
In the spring of 1544, King Henry VIII of England had a plan. His son, the young Prince Edward—future Edward VI—was to be wed to the infant Mary, Queen of Scots. But Scotland, ever wary of English ambition, had other intentions. The Scots sought to solidify their alliance with France through the Auld Alliance, and Mary’s betrothal was increasingly leaning toward a French match. Frustrated and furious, Henry abandoned diplomacy and turned to brute force.
Thus began the campaign historians would later call the Rough Wooing—a name that does little to capture the ferocity and devastation it unleashed. Henry dispatched Edward Seymour, the Earl of Hertford, to deliver a fiery message to the Scots: bend to England’s will, or suffer the consequences. Hertford landed at Leith with a formidable English force on May 3rd. Within days, Edinburgh would burn.
Leith, still a modest port town at the time, was swiftly overwhelmed. The English met little resistance there and used it as a staging ground. Then, on May 7th, Hertford’s army advanced on Edinburgh itself. The capital, still ringed by its defensive walls, braced for an attack. But it was not a siege Hertford intended—it was terror. The English stormed the city, torch in hand, with orders to destroy, not to occupy.
Edinburgh Castle, perched high on its volcanic crag, refused to yield. The garrison held firm, and the castle’s cannons roared defiantly. But the town below—undefended, unprepared—was left to the mercy of the invaders. English troops fanned out through the streets, setting fires that would rage for days. Holyrood Abbey, the seat of royal ceremonies and one of Scotland’s most sacred places, was ransacked and burned. Homes, churches, libraries, and civic buildings were reduced to smoldering ruin.
The air was thick with smoke and screams. Citizens fled or hid, clutching what few possessions they could carry. It was not simply military conquest—it was psychological warfare. Henry VIII sought to break Scotland’s spirit, to force its leaders into submission through terror. But instead of capitulation, he sowed a deeper enmity.
Though Edinburgh Castle remained untouched and defiant, the city it protected was ravaged. Contemporary accounts tell of charred streets, corpses in the wynds, and churches turned to ash. One English chronicler boasted that “neither within the walls nor in the suburbs was left any house unburnt.” The destruction was total—and calculated.
But the burning of Edinburgh did not achieve its intended goal. Rather than draw Scotland closer, it hardened resistance. The Rough Wooing would drag on for nearly a decade, causing untold suffering but failing to force the marriage union. Eventually, Mary, Queen of Scots, would be betrothed to the Dauphin of France, and the flames Henry VIII had lit would continue to smolder into future generations of conflict.
Today, the ruins of Holyrood Abbey still whisper of that day—silent stone arches blackened by fire, standing witness to a time when kings sought to woo with war. Edinburgh would rise again, of course—resilient, defiant, scarred but unbroken. The spirit of the city, much like that of Scotland itself, was not so easily extinguished.
Thank you for joining me today on This Day in Scottish History. I hope you found this episode both stirring and sobering. For more journeys into Scotland’s stormy past, visit my blog at bagtownclans.com/thisday. I’m Colin MacDonald—Haste Ye Back!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bagtown.substack.com
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By Bagtown ClansFor More Events on This Day in Scottish History - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/may-7/
Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn the clock back to the 7th of May, 1544, to a devastating chapter in Scotland’s turbulent past—the Burning of Edinburgh during the campaign ominously known as the Rough Wooing. It was a time when royal marriages were weapons of war, and diplomacy often rode in the saddle of destruction. If you’d like to explore more tales from our nation’s rich and rugged past, visit my blog at bagtownclans.com/thisday. The link is in the description!
In the spring of 1544, King Henry VIII of England had a plan. His son, the young Prince Edward—future Edward VI—was to be wed to the infant Mary, Queen of Scots. But Scotland, ever wary of English ambition, had other intentions. The Scots sought to solidify their alliance with France through the Auld Alliance, and Mary’s betrothal was increasingly leaning toward a French match. Frustrated and furious, Henry abandoned diplomacy and turned to brute force.
Thus began the campaign historians would later call the Rough Wooing—a name that does little to capture the ferocity and devastation it unleashed. Henry dispatched Edward Seymour, the Earl of Hertford, to deliver a fiery message to the Scots: bend to England’s will, or suffer the consequences. Hertford landed at Leith with a formidable English force on May 3rd. Within days, Edinburgh would burn.
Leith, still a modest port town at the time, was swiftly overwhelmed. The English met little resistance there and used it as a staging ground. Then, on May 7th, Hertford’s army advanced on Edinburgh itself. The capital, still ringed by its defensive walls, braced for an attack. But it was not a siege Hertford intended—it was terror. The English stormed the city, torch in hand, with orders to destroy, not to occupy.
Edinburgh Castle, perched high on its volcanic crag, refused to yield. The garrison held firm, and the castle’s cannons roared defiantly. But the town below—undefended, unprepared—was left to the mercy of the invaders. English troops fanned out through the streets, setting fires that would rage for days. Holyrood Abbey, the seat of royal ceremonies and one of Scotland’s most sacred places, was ransacked and burned. Homes, churches, libraries, and civic buildings were reduced to smoldering ruin.
The air was thick with smoke and screams. Citizens fled or hid, clutching what few possessions they could carry. It was not simply military conquest—it was psychological warfare. Henry VIII sought to break Scotland’s spirit, to force its leaders into submission through terror. But instead of capitulation, he sowed a deeper enmity.
Though Edinburgh Castle remained untouched and defiant, the city it protected was ravaged. Contemporary accounts tell of charred streets, corpses in the wynds, and churches turned to ash. One English chronicler boasted that “neither within the walls nor in the suburbs was left any house unburnt.” The destruction was total—and calculated.
But the burning of Edinburgh did not achieve its intended goal. Rather than draw Scotland closer, it hardened resistance. The Rough Wooing would drag on for nearly a decade, causing untold suffering but failing to force the marriage union. Eventually, Mary, Queen of Scots, would be betrothed to the Dauphin of France, and the flames Henry VIII had lit would continue to smolder into future generations of conflict.
Today, the ruins of Holyrood Abbey still whisper of that day—silent stone arches blackened by fire, standing witness to a time when kings sought to woo with war. Edinburgh would rise again, of course—resilient, defiant, scarred but unbroken. The spirit of the city, much like that of Scotland itself, was not so easily extinguished.
Thank you for joining me today on This Day in Scottish History. I hope you found this episode both stirring and sobering. For more journeys into Scotland’s stormy past, visit my blog at bagtownclans.com/thisday. I’m Colin MacDonald—Haste Ye Back!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bagtown.substack.com