So I visited Solitude, and I hadn't been there for more than a little while, before a minor incident angered the guards and they drew weapons at me and chased me out of the city. So if I go back they kill me I think. Is there a way to make piece with them?

As long as you don't have an outrageously high bounty you should be able to go back and surrender and pay off your bounty or serve jail time. They need time to settle down and become passive again, so wait a while. Or if you don't want to wait you could try surrendering but I've found sometimes they've ignored that and tried to kill me over a 5 gold bounty.

i think if you go back in with your weapon drawn, when they come to attack, sheath you weapon and they will take you to jail/ confiscate any stolen items instead of killing you, no way around the bounty for whatever you did i dont think.

Buy me a sweetroll and I'll think about it.

That's what you get for killing chickens.

I actually entered to find them about to decapitate a guy. Seeing as I had been in that very same situation and I could relate I thought I'd have a chat with him. But they mistook it for an attempt to free the prisoner and before I knew it 4 or 5 of them were trying to kill me. As I was taken by surprise I managed to get a few good swings of my own in before I realised I had to run away. They chased me out through the main gate and came running up from the stables and I was forced into the wilds. I then stumbled upon a bandit camp and this Marauder actually bested me.

So I respawned outside citygates surrounded by a handful of guards who instantly began to work me over.