Roy had provided us with some history prior to our visit to Culloden to help us put the battle in perspective. I've tried to capture some of that information if you're interested.
Early in the 17th Century, 1603, the crowns of England and Scotland where united under the Stuart King James VI (Scotland) and James I (England) (same person), but not the governments. With the death of James VI in 1625 his son Charles I inherited the throne. He married the Roman Catholic French princess Henrietta Maria and proposed the use of more formal rituals of the Church of England, which were unpopular, especially with the Scots, as this was viewed as an attack against their Presbyterian principles. In 1649 King Charles was tried for treason, found guilty and condemned to be put to death. As a result, England was declared a republic, but the Scots accepted Charles I’s son as king of both England and Scotland and crowned him Charles II in 1651. Following a defeat at the hands of Oliver Cromwell, Charles II was forced into exile on the Continent. A decade later England restored its monarchy with Charles II as King. Charles II tried to introduce tolerance of Roman Catholics. By 1673, the Test Act excluded Roman Catholics from both Houses of Parliaments. Charles II died in 1685 and his brother James, 51 and a convert to Catholicism came to the throne as James VII of Scotland and II of England & Ireland. Three years later, his Catholic wife, Mary, gave birth to a son, James Francis Edward Stuart. But within 5 months they were sent into exile and fled to France. In their place, the Protestant William of Orange and his wife Mary were invited to rule. In the constitutional upheaval, Presbyterianism became the state religion in Scotland, ousting the Episcopal Church and threatening its supremacy in England.
Early in the 17th Century, 1603, the crowns of England and Scotland where united under the Stuart King James VI (Scotland) and James I (England) (same person), but not the governments. With the death of James VI in 1625 his son Charles I inherited the throne. He married the Roman Catholic French princess Henrietta Maria and proposed the use of more formal rituals of the Church of England, which were unpopular, especially with the Scots, as this was viewed as an attack against their Presbyterian principles. In 1649 King Charles was tried for treason, found guilty and condemned to be put to death. As a result, England was declared a republic, but the Scots accepted Charles I’s son as king of both England and Scotland and crowned him Charles II in 1651. Following a defeat at the hands of Oliver Cromwell, Charles II was forced into exile on the Continent. A decade later England restored its monarchy with Charles II as King. Charles II tried to introduce tolerance of Roman Catholics. By 1673, the Test Act excluded Roman Catholics from both Houses of Parliaments. Charles II died in 1685 and his brother James, 51 and a convert to Catholicism came to the throne as James VII of Scotland and II of England & Ireland. Three years later, his Catholic wife, Mary, gave birth to a son, James Francis Edward Stuart. But within 5 months they were sent into exile and fled to France. In their place, the Protestant William of Orange and his wife Mary were invited to rule. In the constitutional upheaval, Presbyterianism became the state religion in Scotland, ousting the Episcopal Church and threatening its supremacy in England.
Jacobitism was the political movement dedicated to restoring the Stuart Kings to the thrones of Scotland and England. They took their name from the Latin form of James, Jacobus, after their deposed King James VII. Under pressure, the Scottish parliament accepted the 1707 Act of Union. This was a further irritant to those in Scotland who opposed a government based in London and thereby further English domination (which strikes a common thread with the Independence vote to be held in the Fall of 2014 in Scotland). The Jacobites hoped that a Stuart king would end the discriminatory laws against Catholics.
Fast forward to 1745 and James Francis Edward Stuart’s son, Charles Edward Stuart, as so known as “Bonnie Prince Charlie” crosses the English Channel from France to claim the throne of Scotland. |
During 1745 he successfully amasses troops under the Jacobite name, takes control of Scotland and heads south into England. He promises that as these Scots head south their numbers will swell with addition of Jacobites in England and additional support from the Continent. They got within 125 miles of London when the lack of additional support from Europe and limited English Jacobites conscripts disheartens many of their key leaders. They stop short of London and return to the Highlands of Scotland for the winter and where their knowledge of the terrain would give them an advantage in a future fight.
This gave the English the opportunity to call troops home from battles abroad and “the Redcoats” followed the Jacobites back to Scotland. Many think of the Battle of Culloden as a fight between the English and the Scots, but this is an oversimplification. The Jacobites were composed of mostly Scots, but there were supporters from England and Ireland as well. They were fighting the Government troops who were composed of many British soldiers, but also many from Scottish regiments as well. In many cases members of the same families and clans were fighting each other.
Against the advice of his best military advisor s, Bonnie Prince Charles marches his men onto Drummossie Moor (Culloden) and take up a position in anticipation of the Duke of Cumberland’s Red coats arriving for a battle from their camp some 12 miles away. But they receive word that Cumberland’s troops are not coming that day, possibly because it is Cumberland’s birthday and his men have received a ration of spirits to celebrate. Prince Charles has the idea that they should surprise them while they are sleeping off the effect of their spirits and suggests a night attack. However, in order to avoid the obvious sentries on the road they must traverse the 12 miles, through the woods, at night, in order to reach the Government troops by 2 am. The Jacobites are hungry and tired and the trek through the woods turns out to be folly and they end up returning to the Moor without ever reaching the enemy.
The next morning Prince Charles’ forces were tired from their night march and hungry as they were running low on provisions. The 5,500 men marched out in the rain to the battlefield to face the 7,500 men who had made the 12 mile march to the Moor, well rested and well fed.
A number of factors, including the soggy wet conditions of the Moor, the terrain and the constant bombardment from the Government cannons and riflemen, led to the battle lasting less than an hour. With 1,250 Jacobites being killed, the same number injured and nearly 400 being taken prisoner, the rest, including Prince Charles fled. In contrast, the Government troops lost 50 men with another 300 injured.
To make an example of this resistance to the Government, the following weeks and months were spent rounding up Jacobites and administering justice. In many cases it was not easy to tell a Jacobite from a Scot wearing a kilt, so the Government forces treated them equally harshly. So it became dangerous to wear a kilt for fear of being labelled as Jacobite. Eventually the Government forbid the wearing of kilts and the speaking of the Gaelic language.
The site of the battle has been remembered with a wonderful interpretive center and you can walk out on the battlefield with a GPS triggered audio guide that will take you through many of the events of the battle. You can see Deana walking along the Red coats line, marked by a line of flag poles with the red flags.
This gave the English the opportunity to call troops home from battles abroad and “the Redcoats” followed the Jacobites back to Scotland. Many think of the Battle of Culloden as a fight between the English and the Scots, but this is an oversimplification. The Jacobites were composed of mostly Scots, but there were supporters from England and Ireland as well. They were fighting the Government troops who were composed of many British soldiers, but also many from Scottish regiments as well. In many cases members of the same families and clans were fighting each other.
Against the advice of his best military advisor s, Bonnie Prince Charles marches his men onto Drummossie Moor (Culloden) and take up a position in anticipation of the Duke of Cumberland’s Red coats arriving for a battle from their camp some 12 miles away. But they receive word that Cumberland’s troops are not coming that day, possibly because it is Cumberland’s birthday and his men have received a ration of spirits to celebrate. Prince Charles has the idea that they should surprise them while they are sleeping off the effect of their spirits and suggests a night attack. However, in order to avoid the obvious sentries on the road they must traverse the 12 miles, through the woods, at night, in order to reach the Government troops by 2 am. The Jacobites are hungry and tired and the trek through the woods turns out to be folly and they end up returning to the Moor without ever reaching the enemy.
The next morning Prince Charles’ forces were tired from their night march and hungry as they were running low on provisions. The 5,500 men marched out in the rain to the battlefield to face the 7,500 men who had made the 12 mile march to the Moor, well rested and well fed.
A number of factors, including the soggy wet conditions of the Moor, the terrain and the constant bombardment from the Government cannons and riflemen, led to the battle lasting less than an hour. With 1,250 Jacobites being killed, the same number injured and nearly 400 being taken prisoner, the rest, including Prince Charles fled. In contrast, the Government troops lost 50 men with another 300 injured.
To make an example of this resistance to the Government, the following weeks and months were spent rounding up Jacobites and administering justice. In many cases it was not easy to tell a Jacobite from a Scot wearing a kilt, so the Government forces treated them equally harshly. So it became dangerous to wear a kilt for fear of being labelled as Jacobite. Eventually the Government forbid the wearing of kilts and the speaking of the Gaelic language.
The site of the battle has been remembered with a wonderful interpretive center and you can walk out on the battlefield with a GPS triggered audio guide that will take you through many of the events of the battle. You can see Deana walking along the Red coats line, marked by a line of flag poles with the red flags.