Work on a tapestry to mark the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh at Musselburgh is underway.

Stitchers are invited to attend another workshop at the Old Town Hall.

It follows a successful bid to attract volunteers to join the community project which is expected to take two years to complete.

Andrew Crummy, the artist behind the Great Tapestry of Scotland and Battle of Prestonpans Tapestry, spoke at a recent event in the Old Town Hall as did Melissa Viguier from the School of Ancient Crafts.

The Battle of Pinkie Cleugh, which took place between Wallyford, Musselburgh and Dalkeith on September 10, 1547, has been described as the largest and bloodiest conflict ever fought on Scottish soil.

It began after the English king Henry VIII’s attempts to secure an alliance with Scotland through the marriage of his young son Edward to the infant Mary, Queen of Scots, failed.

Part of a conflict known as the Rough Wooing, it is considered to be the first modern battle in the British Isles and a catastrophic defeat for Scotland.

 

Now the Pinkie Cleugh Battlefield Group is working with Mr Crummy to make sure the last pitched battle between Scottish and English armies, in which 10,000 were killed, is not forgotten.

The tapestry will be loosely based on the Marian Hangings stitched by Mary, Queen of Scots. Ms Viguier and a team of Edinburgh stitchers crafted a complete replica of the Marian hangings which can be seen at Edinburgh Castle.

The Battle of Pinkie Cleugh tapestry will take the form of a series of embroideries hung on velvet which, it is hoped, will find a permanent home at The Brunton in Musselburgh.

 

The Pinkie Cleugh Battlefield Group has already secured £10,000 from the Musselburgh Common Good Fund, which will pay for the first phase of the tapestry. Chief stitcher Liz Neilson and her team will lead the work.

Volunteer stitchers are welcome to attend future workshops at the Old Town Hall from 10am to 1pm on October 13 and 27, November 10 and December 8.

Alister Hadden, treasurer of the Pinkie Cleugh Battlefield Group, said: "We were delighted with how well attended the launch event was. It is really good to see so much work being done and we are sure the tapestry will be a huge success, and highlight this important battle."