Dance Haughs o' Cromdale 2812

As I came in by Achindown,
A little wee bit frae the town,
When to the highlands I was bown,
   To view the haws o’ Cromdale.
I met a man in tartan trews,
I speered at him what was the news.
Quo’ he, The highland army rues,
   That e’er we came to Cromdale.

We were in bed, sir, every man,
When the English host upon us came;
A bloody battle then began,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.
The English horse they were so rude,
They bath’d their hoofs in highland blood,
But our brave clans they boldy stood,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.

But alas we could no longer stay,
For o’er the hills we came away.
And sore do we lament the day
   That e’er we came to Cromdale.
Thus the great Montrose did say,
Can you direct the nearest way,
For I will o’er the hills this day,
   And view the haws of Cromdale.

Alas, my lord, you’re not so strong,
You scarcely have two thousand men,
And there’s twenty thousand on the plain,
   Stand rank and file on Cromdale.
Thus the great Montrose did say,
I say, direct the nearest way.
For I will o’er the hills this day,
   And see the haws of Cromdale.

They were at dinner, every man,
When great Montrose upon them came,
A second battle then began,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.
The Grants, Mackenzies, and M’kys,
Soon as Montrose they did espy,
O then they fought most vehemently,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.

The MacDonalds they return’d again,
The Camerons did their standard join,
MacIntosh play’d a bonny game,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.
The McGregors faught like lyons bold,
McPhersons, none could them control,
McLauchlins faught like loyal souls,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.

McLeans, McDougals, and McNeals,
So boldly as they took the field,
And made their enemies to yield,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.
The Gordons boldly did advance,
The Fraziers fought with sword and lance,
The Grahams made their heads to dance,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.

The loyal Stewarts, with Montrose
So boldly set upon their foes,
And brought them down with highland blows,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.
Of twenty thousand Cromwell’s men,
Five thousand went to Aberdeen,
The rest of them lyes on the plain,
   Upon the haws of Cromdale.

There is a mystery here for anyone who cares to look closely at the words to this ballad, and to clear up mysteries facts are needed.

On 9 May, 1645, a battle took place between the Highland Royalists under James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose (1612–1650), and the Covenanters under Major-General Sir John Hurry (or Urry). The small Royalist army defeated the superior force of Covenanters. This was the battle of Auldearn which took place near the village of the same name a few miles east of Nairn.

On 1 May, 1690, a battle took place between the Highland Royalist forces of James VII (II) under General Thomas Buchan and the Covenanting army of William II (III) under Sir Thomas Livingstone. This time the Royalist army was defeated by the Covenanting army. The Great Montrose was not at this battle because he had been dead for forty years. This was the battle or rout of the Haughs of Cromdale, on the bank of the River Spey in Morayshire, some twenty miles as the bullet flies from Auldearn.

To add to the confusion both the Marquess of Montrose and General Hurry changed sides many times during the course of their military careers. Both Montrose and Hurry were executed in Edinburgh in 1650, Montrose by hanging and Hurry by beheading.

What we have in this anonymous ballad, then, is a jumble of fact and fancy, a combination of two battles fought nearly forty years apart, an interchangeable cast of characters and a roll-call of the clans. Written in the time-honoured ballad tradition – “As I came in by Achindown”, “As I cam in by Dunidier”, ”As I cam thro the Garrioch land” – “The Haughs of Cromdale” is set to the pipe tune of the same name that has sent many a gallant Scottish soldier into battle.

Many authorities have theorised about the historic events described in ths ballad and since the various theories are as confusing as the ballad itself, it is best to take “The Haughs o’ Cromdale” simply at face value.