On August 22 the Scottish army occupied Twisel, and on the following day began the siege of Norham, which had often defied the strength of Scotland in bygone days. But James brought his guns to bear upon the walls, and breaches soon began to appear. The garrison fought desperately and repelled three assaults, but, in the effort to keep down the Scottish cannonade, rapidly expended their stock of ammunition. On the 29th, without further means of defence, the castle surrendered. This was a considerable success for James, and was improved by the capture of Etal and Ford Castles. The next object of attack would probably have been Berwick, but already the English Army of the North was on the way. James therefore took up a strong position west of the Till, and awaited attack, his own quarters being for some days at Ford. Round this latter circumstance has gathered the time-honoured but baseless legend that he wasted weeks in dalliance with Lady Heron. Surrey heard of the Scottish advance on August 25, and promptly ordered his forces to assemble at Newcastle. He directed his son Thomas, who commanded the fleet on the coast, to join him with his marines. On September 1 he advanced, but the weather was so bad that not until the 3rd did he reach Alnwick, where he halted to close up. On the 4th the Admiral joined with 1,000 men. The army was now 26,000 strong. [Illustration: WEAPONS NOW PRESERVED IN BAMBOROUGH CASTLE TYPICAL OF BORDER WARFARE. 1 and 6. Axes. 2. A partizan. 3. A trident. 4. Lochaber axe. 5. A bill. 7. A spear.] Surrey organized his force in two corps. The Vanguard was commanded by the Admiral, who led his main body in person, with his brother Edmund in charge of his right wing and the venerable Sir Marmaduke Constable[G] leading his left. The Rearguard was under Surrey’s personal control. Lord Dacre led its right wing, composed mainly of Border horsemen; and Sir Edward Stanley its left, consisting chiefly of the fine archers of Lancashire and Cheshire. The artillery train was under Sir Nicholas Appleyard. For the last time the famous banner of St. Cuthbert was carried into action. [G] This ancient warrior was buried in Flamborough Church seven years later, and in his long and quaint epitaph appear the lines: ‘At Brankiston feld, wher the kyng of Scottys was slayne, He, then beyng of the age of three score and tene, With the gode duke of Northefolke yt jurney he haye tayn.’ On September 6 Surrey reached Wooler, ‘three lytel miles, from the King of Scots,’ says Hall. Counting upon James’s reputation for rash chivalry, he sent him a formal challenge to fight on the 9th. The Admiral added a provocative message of his own, informing James that he was there in person to answer for the death of Barton. All this ‘quarrelling by the book’ was quite in the style of the times, a fact which Mr. Andrew Lang and other modern writers who have commented upon the ‘insolence’ of the Howards, appear to have forgotten.