The family of Burnett of Leys, with collateral - Electric Scotland

52 TIIK FAMILY OF BURNETT OK LI
inlcncy. In the early part of 1644 Aberdeen was visited first by a
Cavalier army under Huntly, who, as usual, pillaged both the town and
the country around. Young Irvine of Drum, who was one of the more
fiery spirits of the party, "
plunderit his own cusing John Irving of
Kincouseis annes out of Auchquhorties, and James Burnett of Cragmyllis
at this time as one of
armis out of Blackhillis." Craigmyle also figures
four Commissioners from the Committees of War for Angus and Mearns,
whose mission was to bring pressure on Huntly to disband his troops.
The Cavalier army had hardly left the town when a Covenanting force
arrived under Argyll and the Earl Marischal, a visitation which brought
still further miseries in its train. During that occupation, a Committee
of the Estates for Northern Business met at Aberdeen, to which a
petition was presented by Lord Eraser, Sir Thomas Burnet of Leys, his
brother of Craigmyle, Patrick Leslie, provost, and Alexander Jaffray,
bailie of Aberdeen, and the provosts of Banff and Montrose, complaining
of their losses in victual, horses, household plenishing, etc., by the
quartering of troops, and desiring redress out of the first and readiest
effects of the "malignants" that should come to hand. The matter
was remitted to the next meeting of the same Committee at Aberdeen,
which took place on 25th July following, but with what result does
not appear.
Later in the year Montrose, now a Marquis, and devoted to the
King, marched northwards, no longer to enforce the Covenant, but to
suppress it, the Covenant, however, not being now that of 1638, but the
Solemn League and Covenant, one of whose provisions was that a Scots
army should be despatched into England against the King. After
fording the Dee at Mills of Drum, on nth September, he encamped at
Crathes, and, as the Aberdeen Town Clerk informs us, "with his gaird
soupit with the laird of his house." He did
Leyis, after
no harm, but
he had summoned him to render
took some arms and horses and
promise of some men. "Leyis offerit him som five thousand merks of
money, which he nobly refused." Lord Airlie and his sons, Lord
Dupplin and the Master of Spynie, we elsewhere learn, were of the party.
Again, a month later, Montrose, with his forces, arrived by the same
route at Crathcs, spent the night with his
same chronicler tells us that the laird of
hospitable opponent, and the
Leys "gave contentment to
Montrose." We next find Montrose passing through Aberdeenshire,