Aberdeen 1644
Sep 4 Montrose left Perth with his small force. 

Dundee refused to surrender and Montrose, knowing that the large army of Argyle was behind him, decided he could not afford to spend the time on a lengthy siege. He marched on to Aberdeen, gathering some recruits on the way.

The Marquis of Argyle arrives at Stirling.

 Many of the Highlanders had returned home with their booty after Tippermuir - a problem Montrose was to frequently have!
Sep 10 Argyle arrives at Perth
Sep 11 Montrose's forces arrive at a heavily fortified bridge over the river Dee. Avoiding confrontation, they move westwards and cross at a ford at the Mills of Drum. They camp at Crathas with a force of only 1500 infantry and 44 horse.

The Covenanters draw up their forces at Two Mile Cross just outside the town.
Sep 12 The Covenanters retire into the town in the evening. That night Montrose moves onto the ground where the defenders had recently stood.
Sep 13 11am - The Covenanters marched out of the town to meet the attackers. A messenger and a drummer boy were sent under a flag of truce to demand the surrender of the city. Aberdeen's chief citizens rejected this ultimatum. A shot rang out and the drummer boy lay dead at a place called Justice Mills. Montrose was so angered by this that he immediately ordered an attack and issued the order not to spare any of the enemy.

Montrose drew up an extended line of men (to prevent being out-flanked) - James Hay and Sir Nathaniel Gordon on the right, Sir William Rollock on the left. He placed a small group of horsemen at each end.

 "otherwise, if they would disobey, that then he desired them to remove old aged men, women, and children out of the way, and to stand to their own peril".
The battle began with a cannonade from the Covenanters field guns.

Lord Gordon on the Covenanters' left wing attacked with his cavalry. Montrose moved Rollock's horse to assist on the right flank, and this small group of 44 horsemen repulsed and routed the attack of 300 men. Montrose quickly ordered these horsemen back into lines as they were now needed on the left where an attack was developing. Sweeping across to the other side they fell on the flanks of the Covenanters forces and forced them to flee.
Montrose now gave the order to attack in the centre. The Covenanters were stunned by the ferocity of the attack and started fleeing back towards the town. "Come on, then, my brave fellow soldiers, fall down upon them with your swords and muskets, drive them before you, and make them suffer the punishment due to their perfidy and rebellion."
Lord Burleigh's 2500 defenders were soon overwhelmed - 160 men were killed. The Irishmen and Highlanders then wreaked havoc in the town for three days, murdering and pillaging - and this soon spread to neighbouring villages. "and nothing was heard but pitiful howling, crying, weeping, mourning, through all the streets."
Royalist : Montrose, James Hay, Sir Nathaniel Gordon, Sir William Rollock (1500 foot, 44 cavalry)

Parliamentarian(Covenanters) : Lord Burleigh, Lord Lewis Gordon, Forbes of Craigievar, Forbes of Boyndlie (2500 foot, 500 horse)
Sep 14 Argyle leaves Perth.

Montrose sends a part of his forces to Kintore to try to persuade the people to join him.
Sep 16 Montrose leaves Aberdeen and heads for the Highlands to raise forces among the clans which supported the Royalist cause. He knows he cannot confront the powerful army of Argyle. Arriving at Kintore, Montrose sends Sir William Rollock to Oxford to inform the King of his situation and to ask for supplies.
Sep 19 Argyle arrives at the devastated town of Aberdeen and offers a £20,000 reward for Montrose, dead or alive.
Sep 22 Argyle sets off towards Kintore to find Montrose. Montrose moves off quickly westwards. When Montrose hears of Argyle's approach, he hides his cannon in the bog.
When Montrose arrives at the river Spey he camps at Rothiemurchus. The boats used for crossing are on the far shore where a considerable band of hostile men awaits. He leads his men into the forest of Abernethy. Argyle wastes some time letting his men plundering the Gordons' properties around Strathbogie (Huntly)
Sep 27 Argyle musters his troops at the Bog of Gicht (Huntly Castle) - he had about 4000 men.
Oct 1 Montrose reaches Athole.
Argyle attends a meeting of Covenanters at Forres to discuss tactics. He then went on to Inverness before returning to his army, which he then marched south in pursuit of Montrose.
The pursuit continues...