Anglo - Scottish Wars The Anglo - Scottish Wars were a series of wars fought between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland following the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century , and culminating with the Union of the Crowns in 1603 . After the Wars of Scottish Independence , England and Scotland fought several times during the 14th , 15th and 16th centuries . In most cases , one country attempted to take advantage of weakness or instability in the other . For example , James II of Scotland attempted to regain Berwick during the Wars of the Roses in England . Border wars . During the mid - 15th century there were many conflicts on the border of England and Scotland , most notably the Battle of Sark . Flodden campaign . England under Henry VIII declared war on France in 1512 ( as part of the larger conflict known as the War of the League of Cambrai ) . James IV of Scotland invaded England in fulfilment of his alliance with France ( even though married to Henry ' s sister Margaret ) . In 1513 , after preliminary raids by borderers came to grief , James ' s main army invaded England . His artillery quickly subdued English castles such as Norham and Wark . However , James ' s overdeveloped sense of chivalry prompted him to issue a formal challenge to the English army under the Earl of Surrey and await him in position . Surrey ' s army manoeuvred around the Scottish army and attacked from the rear . In the resulting disastrous Battle of Flodden Field , James IV was killed , along with many of his nobles and gentry , the " Flowers of the Forest " . 1514 - 1523 . James V of Scotland was an infant barely a year old at his father ' s death . Various factions among the Scottish nobles contended for power , and custody of the young king . While Henry VIII secretly encouraged some of them , English armies and some families of English and nominally Scottish Border Reivers repeatedly forayed and looted in south west Scotland , to maintain pressure on Scotland . Eventually , after the faction of the Earl of Angus gained control , peaceful relations were restored between England and Scotland . ( Part of the reason for Henry ' s mellowing was that the disorders he had provoked in Scotland threatened to spill south of the border . ) Solway Moss campaign . When James V came of age and assumed control , he overthrew the Angus faction , and renewed Scotland ' s Auld Alliance with France . He married first a daughter of Francis I of France , and when she died a few months later of tuberculosis , he married Mary of Guise . Tension between England and Scotland increased once again ; not least because Henry had already broken with the Roman Catholic church and embarked upon the Dissolution of the Monasteries , whereas James held to Rome and gave authority to powerful prelates such as Cardinal Beaton . War broke out in 1541 . Once again there were preliminary border skirmishes , but when James sent a large army into England , its leadership was weak and divided and it suffered a humbling defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss . The Rough Wooing . The disaster caused James ' s health to fail and he died shortly afterwards . Once again , Scotland ' s monarch was an infant , this time Mary , Queen of Scots . Henry tried to pressure a divided Scotland into an alliance , and secure the marriage of Mary to his son Edward ( the " Rough Wooing " ) . When Cardinal Beaton gained control of the government of Scotland and renewed the alliance with France , Henry reacted in 1544 by sending an army under the Earl of Hertford , Edward ' s uncle , to systematically devastate and slaughter throughout southern Scotland , as a means of inducing a change of heart . Campaigning continued next year , but some Scottish factions reconciled , and won a victory at the Battle of Ancrum Moor , which temporarily halted English attacks . Henry died in 1547 . Hertford , now Protector and Duke of Somerset , renewed the attempt to enforce an alliance , and also to impose an Anglican Reformation on Scotland . He won a great victory at the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh , but Mary was smuggled to France to be betrothed to the Dauphin Francis . Fighting continued for some more years , but French troops assisted the Scots . Without lasting peace , Somerset ' s regime could not stand the expense of the war . He was overthrown and eventually executed . The Reformation in Scotland . Pinkie Cleugh was the last pitched battle between England and Scotland . Beaton was murdered in 1546 , and within a few years , Scotland underwent a major religious reformation which was , unlike most European countries , remarkably peaceful and was never seriously threatened by counter - reformation , though neighbouring England was to undergo a counter - reformation under Queen Mary I . For a while , both countries were distracted by internal troubles . Eventually , Queen Elizabeth I came to rule England and restore stability . Scotland remained divided . The Catholic faction under the queen mother , Mary of Guise , held Leith and Edinburgh . Elizabeth was able to ensure victory for the Protestant faction by using her fleet to blockade the Catholics and prevent French aid reaching them . For the later part of the 16th century , peace was ensured by the probability that James VI of Scotland , who was raised as a Protestant and was the son of Mary , Queen of Scots , would become King of England on the death of Elizabeth . There was perennial trouble from Border Reivers , but Elizabeth was inclined to forgive even their depredations rather than pick a quarrel with her Protestant neighbour .