Battle of Annan

The Battle of Annan, also referred to in contemporary sources as the Camisade of Annan, took place on 16 December 1332 in the town of Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Edward Balliol had seized the Scottish crown three months earlier following his victory at the Battle of Dupplin Moor (10–11 August 1332). In October of that year, Sir Archibald Douglas, Guardian of Scotland, negotiated a truce with Balliol, ostensibly to allow the Scottish Parliament to convene and determine the rightful monarch. Believing the truce secure, Balliol dismissed most of his English forces and relocated to Annan, on the northern shore of the Solway Firth. While at Annan, Balliol issued public letters proclaiming that, with England's support, he had regained the Scottish throne. In these declarations, he acknowledged Scotland as a fief of the English crown, pledged fealty to Edward III of England, and promised him territorial concessions, including Berwick-upon-Tweed. In the early hours of 16 December 1332, a force of Bruce loyalists launched a surprise attack on Balliol’s position. The assault was led by Sir Archibald Douglas, John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray, Robert Stewart, and Simon Fraser, 1st Laird of Lovat. Most of Balliol’s men were killed in the attack. Balliol himself narrowly escaped by fleeing, reportedly through a hole in the wall, and rode allegedly in his nightclothes or naked across the border to Carlisle, England. The rout at Annan effectively brought an end to Balliol’s first attempt to claim the Scottish throne during the Second War of Scottish Independence. Balliol’s younger brother and designated heir, Henry Balliol, later died from wounds sustained in the battle. His death marked the end of the Balliol line in Scotland, as Edward Balliol died childless in 1364. At the time of the battle, Robert Stewart, the future King Robert II of Scotland, was approximately sixteen years old. The Bruce loyalists were acting in support of David II of Scotland, the eight-year-old son of Robert the Bruce, who had died on 7 June 1329. Douglas had previously sent the young king to Dumbarton Castle for protection.

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Battle of Annan Moor

The Battle of Annan Moor took place during the Scottish civil war, part of the intertwined Wars of the Three Kingdoms that took place in England, Ireland, and Scotland between 1639 and 1651. The Royalist army led by Lord Digby and Marmaduke Langdale had been trying to force a passage north to link up with the Marquis of Montrose. The battle took place on 20 and 21 October 1645 when the experienced cavalry commander Sir John Brown of Fordell and his newly raised Scots cavalry regiment defeated the Royalists army. The Royalists lost more than half of their 600 men as casualties or prisoners. The remainder of the Royalist were driven back into England.

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Kimmeter Park Green

Kimmeter Park Green was a football ground in Annan, Scotland. It was the home ground of Solway Star from 1921 until 1939, and hosted Scottish Football League matches between 1923 and 1926.

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Annan Hospital

Annan Hospital is a health facility in Stapleton Road, Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Dumfries and Galloway.

Annan Shawhill railway station

Annan Shawhill was a station on the Solway Junction Railway at Annan in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The branch line ran between a junction with the Caledonian Railway Main Line at Kirtlebridge, across the Glasgow South Western Line, over the Solway Viaduct into Cumberland, England. The station opened for passenger services in 1870. Passenger services were withdrawn in the early 1930s when the cost of maintaining the Solway Viaduct was deemed too high to sustain. Although the line to England was removed, the Scottish part of the branch to Annan Shawhill remained opened for freight until it was finally closed in the 1950s.