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Black Agnes
(c.1312-1369)
Defender of Dunbar Castle
1 Most sources write her surname as Randolph, but R.R. Stodart’s Scottish arms: Being a Collection of Armorial Bearings, A.D. 1370-1678 is insistent that her surname is Ranulph.3 It is my personal assumption that the main sources are Scottish-slanted. The main source is John Parker Lawson’s Historical Tales of the Wars of Scotland, and of the Border Raids, Forays, and Conflicts, Volume 1, about which I was not able to determine much, historiography-wise.2 She was named Black Agnes for her “dark complexion,” which most historians seem to think means hair color in this context.
4 The Agnes and Salisbury quotes seem to me to be too on-the-nose to be historically accurate (who busts out rhymes on the spot?) – they come from Parker’s book, and Clive Kristen’s Ghost Trails of Edinburgh and the Borders.
5 In Kristen’s telling, multiple maids came out in their Sunday best.
6 Okay, it was probably named the Sow because it bore a lot of “children,” and not because of an ahead-of-its-time love of Miss Piggy.
7 I was legitimately confused as to why he was quipping at this point, but according to Parker’s telling, that’s what happened. Could not have been great for morale.
8 Yes, that’s a Leeroy Jenkins reference. The actual soldier was named Copeland.
9 The main source of backup was a guy named Ramsay of Dalhousie – I am unsure which of Clan Ramsay this was. He showed up with forty guys, snuck past the English barricade, and attacked the English advance guard until they had to retreat to camp. He continued to be a pain in the tuchus for many years. 
10 He didn’t actually leave his helmet there, at least I don’t think so. I just wanted Agnes to have a trophy on the last page.
Footnotes
| ↑1 | Most sources write her surname as Randolph, but R.R. Stodart’s Scottish arms: Being a Collection of Armorial Bearings, A.D. 1370-1678 is insistent that her surname is Ranulph. |
| ↑2 | She was named Black Agnes for her “dark complexion,” which most historians seem to think means hair color in this context. |
| ↑3 | It is my personal assumption that the main sources are Scottish-slanted. The main source is John Parker Lawson’s Historical Tales of the Wars of Scotland, and of the Border Raids, Forays, and Conflicts, Volume 1, about which I was not able to determine much, historiography-wise. |
| ↑4 | The Agnes and Salisbury quotes seem to me to be too on-the-nose to be historically accurate (who busts out rhymes on the spot?) – they come from Parker’s book, and Clive Kristen’s Ghost Trails of Edinburgh and the Borders. |
| ↑5 | In Kristen’s telling, multiple maids came out in their Sunday best. |
| ↑6 | Okay, it was probably named the Sow because it bore a lot of “children,” and not because of an ahead-of-its-time love of Miss Piggy. |
| ↑7 | I was legitimately confused as to why he was quipping at this point, but according to Parker’s telling, that’s what happened. Could not have been great for morale. |
| ↑8 | Yes, that’s a Leeroy Jenkins reference. The actual soldier was named Copeland. |
| ↑9 | The main source of backup was a guy named Ramsay of Dalhousie – I am unsure which of Clan Ramsay this was. He showed up with forty guys, snuck past the English barricade, and attacked the English advance guard until they had to retreat to camp. He continued to be a pain in the tuchus for many years. |
| ↑10 | He didn’t actually leave his helmet there, at least I don’t think so. I just wanted Agnes to have a trophy on the last page. |
Art Notes
- Most depictions have Agnes’s hair in little cages to the side — but as I did that with Philippa of Hainault (whose husband, Edward III, was leading the English raids of the time)
- Everything is a simplified version of the clothing of the time — in particular, Salisbury’s outfit. While most of it is accurate, the main depiction of him had him wearing some ostentatious shoulder pieces and a truly wacky helmet, which was not conducive to emoting.
- Many thanks to Anne Barlow for providing medieval clothing reference! Any errors here are mine and not hers. :)
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