The Battle of Balloch occurred in 879 AD when the army of King Aed mac Cinaeda of Scotland decisively defeated Jarl Sigurd Eysteinsson of Orkneyar in a battle fought near present-day Inverness. The battle marked the culmination of Sigurd's invasion of Scotland and enabled King Aed to conquer Orkney's unprotected territories in Sutherland and Caithness.
Background[]
In 878 AD, Jarl Sigurd Eysteinsson of Orkneyar declared war on the Scottish kingdom of Fortriu, leading to King Domnall mac Causantin of Fortriu pleading to his uncle, King Aed mac Cinaeda of the Picts, for help. Aed responded by entering the war and convincing Domnall to let him annex Fortriu, uniting eastern and north-central Scotland. He then marched his army from Aberdeenshire to Inverness-shire in the north, although his men suffered attritional losses due to a horrific nationwide famine, and public order fell as disgruntled peasants grew angry with King Aed. As King Aed entered Inverness-shire, Jarl Sigurd sacked the village of Inber Nise (Inverness) and plundered its mines. Aed continued his march to confront Sigurd, who, in turn, met his army between Inber Nise and Forais (Forres).
Battle[]
The Orcadians routing
Both armies had suffered attritional losses and had depleted units; some of Orkneyar's troops had died of sea sickness during their seaborne journey from Blascona (Birsay) on Orkney to Torfness (Tarbat Ness) in Ross. The Scottish army arrayed itself at a forest clearing, concealing their left flank (including their cavalry) in the trees. Their archers and skirmishers inflicted heavy losses on the Orcadian skirmishers, routing them after showering them with projectiles. The Orcadians then decided to charge, so the entire Scottish center charged the advancing Orcadians from the left, right, and center, while the Scottish right - composed of spearmen - charged against the Orcadian scout horsemen and the Scottish cavalry on the left charged against the rear of the advancing Orcadian axemen and raiders. The Orcadian army was outflanked and broken, and the Scots furiously pursued them. 935 of the 1,026 Orcadian troops were killed or captured, and Jarl Sigurd was among their losses. That winter, the Scots pursued the remaining 100 Orcadians under Maccus and destroyed them, eliminating their only major field army.
Aftermath[]
The Scottish army took advantage of the Orcadians' weakness to destroy King Guthorm Sigurdsson's small band of bodyguards outside of Ros Maircind (Rosemarkie) in Ross-shire in the spring of 880, occupying the village without opposition. In the autumn of 880, the Scots occupied Torfness, and the conquest of these new lands alleviated the Scottish famine, as they came to own new farmlands. The Scottish realm was soon full of large farms which were built at the King's initiative, supplying its armies with plentiful rations. In the spring of 882, Aed destroyed Rognvald Eysteinsson's ship in the Moray Firth to prevent him from threatening his realm. That summer, he also took Latharn (Latheron, Caithness) after Anund and his band of bodyguards fled the town. In 883, he killed Anund in a naval battle on the high seas.