Initially, the siege was a rather loose blockade as the Scots and Parliamentarians concentrated the north and the Scots were the largest single contingent in the Army, but Leven was also a respected veteran of the Thirty Years' War.
Initially, the siege was a rather loose blockade as the Scots and Parliamentarians concentrated on capturing smaller Royalist garrisons which threatened their communications with Hull. It was politic to make the Scots pre-eminent in the north and the Scots were the largest single contingent in the Army, but Leven was also a respected veteran of the Thirty Years' War.