Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of Halidon Hill

Battle of Halidon Hill was a battle fought on 19 July 1333 at Berwick-upon-Tweed, in what is now United Kingdom. It was part of the Wars of Scottish Independence, which ran from 1296 to 1357. The recorded result: English victory. Recorded strength: 15,000 against Fewer than 10,000.

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Private photo with no copyright retained. Monument on Halidon Hill to the battle.
Private photo with no copyright retained. Monument on Halidon Hill to the battle.. David Lauder at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought19 July 1333
WhereBerwick-upon-Tweed, United Kingdom55.788N, 2.050W
OutcomeEnglish victory
BelligerentsKingdom of ScotlandagainstKingdom of England
Casualties and lossesSeveral thousandandLow
Battlefield todayThe Site of The Battle of Halidon Hill battlefieldHistoric England entry 1000012, 314 ha
Part ofWars of Scottish Independence1296 to 1357

Where it sits in the Wars of Scottish Independence

Battle of Stirling Bridge, 1297Battle of Falkirk, 1298Battle of Roslin, 1303Action at Happrew, 1304Battle of Dalrigh, 1306Battle of Methven, 1306Battle of Slioch, 1307Battle of the Pass of Brander, 1308Battle of Inverurie, 1308Siege of Roxburgh Castle, 1314Battle of Bannockburn, 1314Battle of Annan, 1332Battle of Halidon Hill, 1333Battle of Culblean, 133512971335Battle of Halidon Hill, 1333
14 placed engagements of the Wars of Scottish Independence in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date19 July 1333
PlaceBerwick-upon-Tweed, United Kingdom
55.788N, 2.050W
KindBattle, medieval
Strength15,000Fewer than 10,000
Casualties and lossesSeveral thousandLow
Commanders
  • Archibald Douglas (died 1333)
Battle of Halidon HillBattle of Halidon HillCapture of BerwickSiege of BerwickCapture of BerwickCapture of BerwickCapture of BerwickSiege of BerwickCapture of BerwickCapture of Berwick5 km55.788N, 2.050W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. The dashed outline is the registered battlefield area (Historic England). Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Halidon Hill
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Halidon Hill today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-04-06. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 159 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 228 m, 228 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 41% cropland, 34% grassland, 12% water.

cropland: 41%grassland: 34%water: 12%tree cover: 9%built-up: 4%cropland 41%grassland 34%water 12%tree cover 9%built-up 4%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 162 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 159 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 5 times between 1296 and 1482.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1333

Historic England registers this as the The Site of The Battle of Halidon Hill battlefield (entry 1000012), 314 hectares, under the Open Government Licence.

Battle of Halidon Hill is one of 566 engagements of the 14th century in the atlas and one of 695 in present-day United Kingdom.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1887057, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Halidon Hill, revision 1376845321, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Battlefield boundary and area from Historic England (Open Government Licence). Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.