The Battle of Flodden: Scotland's Great Tragedy

In September 1513, King James IV led Scotland's largest ever army into Northumberland, confident of victory. By nightfall, he was dead on the field of Flodden, along with twelve earls, a bishop, two abbots, and the flower of the Scottish nobility. This episode tells the story of the Battle of Flodden — how James's quarrel with his brother-in-law Henry VIII drew him into a war with England, the tactical mistakes that left the Scots exposed to English artillery and billmen, and the devastating aftermath that plunged Scotland into a long minority. We explore why James chose to fight on ground that favoured the English, the role of the Scottish ‘pike schiltron’ against English ‘bills’, and how the loss of a king and an entire generation of leaders reshaped Scottish politics for decades. Drawing on contemporary accounts like the poem ‘The Flowers of the Forest’ and the letters of Thomas Howard, we piece together a battle that ended Scotland's medieval age. #BattleOfFlodden #JamesIV #HenryVIII #FloddenField #ScottishHistory #TudorHistory #WarOfTheRoses #Branxton #ThomasHoward #CatherineOfAragon #TheFlowersOfTheForest #Pike #Bill #Artillery #BorderReivers #Scotland #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo