Although a small action, involving only a few hundred troops, it was the decisive battle in a civil war between the king and the Black Douglases, the most powerful aristocratic family in the country.

As the king's supporters won it was a significant step in the struggle to establish a relatively strong centralised monarchy in Scotland during the Late Middle Ages.

The king's supporters had taken their castle at Abercorn, and some allies such as the Hamiltons had defected.

[3] Shortly after the battle the Black Douglases were attainted, the last few castles held by them fell, and they ceased to be a serious force in Scotland.

A song about the battle has been recorded by The Corries, with words by George Weir and music by Roy Williamson.