There was scarcely a
Scottish family of distinction that did not lose at least one, and
some of them lost all the male members who were capable of bearing
arms. The body of the King was found, much disfigured with wounds,
in the thickest of the slain. Abercromby, on the authority of
Crawford, includes, in a list of those killed at Flodden, "Kenneth
Mackenzie of Kintail, ancestor to the noble family of Seaforth."
This is an undoubted error for it will be seen that John, not Kenneth
was chief at the time of Flodden. It was he who joined the Royal
army, accompanied by his brave and gallant uncle, Hector Roy of
Gairloch and it is established beyond dispute that though almost
all their followers fell, both John and Hector survived and
returned home. They, however, narrowly escaped the charge of Sir
Edward Stanley in rear of the Highlanders during the disorderly
pursuit of Sir Edward Howard, who had given way to the furious and
gallant onset of the mountaineers.
John was made prisoner, but afterwards escaped in a very remarkable
manner. When his captors were carrying him and others of his
followers to the south, they were overtaken by a violent storm
which obliged them to seek shelter in a retired house occupied by
the widow of a shipmaster.
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