To find out more about the Jacobite cause.

Who was fighting who?

• The Government Army

  The regiments were named after their commanders. Many Scots fought in the government army and did not support the Jacobite cause;

  • Cavalry
    Cobham's, Lord Mark Kerr's, Kingston's Horse, Ligonier's Horse,

  • Infantry
    St Clair's, The Royals, Howard's, Barrel's, Wolfe's, Pulteney's, Price's, Bligh's, Campbell's, Sempill's, Blakeney's, Cholmondeley's, Fleming's, Munro's, Conway's, the Argyll Militia, Battereau's.
  

• The Jacobite Army

  Many clansmen fought for the Prince against the wishes of their clan chief. There were men present from these clans;

  Cameron, Chisholm, Drummond, Farquharson, Ferguson, Fraser, Gordon, Grant, Innes, MacDonald, MacDonell, MacGillivray, MacGregor, MacInnes, MacIntyre, Mackenzie, MacKinnon, Mackintosh, MacLachlan, MacLeod of Raasay, MacPherson, Menzies, Murray, Ogilvy, Robertson, Stewart of Appin.

  	The Prince's Progress Bonnie Prince Charlie's campaign was doomed from the start. Follow the Prince's route to Culloden to see where things went wrong; 25 July 1745 The Prince lands at Arisaig on the west coast of Scotland. His ship carrying troops and weapons from France had been turned back by a British warship. 19 August 1745 The Jacobite standard (flag) is raised at Glenfinnan. Local chiefs, Cameron of Lochiel and MacDonald of Clan Ranald, rally the clans to support the prince. An army of 1200 men is raised. General John Cope, commander of government troops in Scotland heads for Edinburgh to meet the Jacobites and scatter the rebels. 17 September 1745 The Jacobite army captures Edinburgh, but not the Castle. 21 September 1745 The Jacobites defeat Cope's army at Prestonpans, near Edinburgh, in a surprise attack. Colonel Gardiner, a popular Scots officer, is killed by the rebels. The Prince heads for London. Many clansmen return home for the winter but others join the rebellion 8 November 1745 The Jacobites cross into England and are joined by English Jacobite supporters, but not as many as they had hoped for. late November 1745 The rebels capture Carlisle then Manchester. It seems to be going their way. 4 December 1745 General Wade is closing on them with a large army. The Jacobites pretend to head for Wales, and trick Wade into following them. They march to Derby instead. 6 December 1745 Black Friday. With 30,000 government troops on their tail, the rebels decide to return to Scotland. Unknown to them, London is on red alert and King George II is ready to sail to Germany. If they had marched on London, would history have been different? 20 December 1745 The Jacobites arrive back in Scotland. They now have 8,000 men. 17 January 1746 The Jacobites defeat the government army at Falkirk. The British government sends the Duke of Cumberland (King George II's son, William) and his army to crush the rebellion. 17 February 1746 The Prince and his army capture Inverness and stay there for two months, waiting for Cumberland. 14 April 1746 Cumberland and his army finally reach Nairn, not far from Culloden. 15 April 1746 The rebel army has dwindled to 5,000 men. Leaving their food supplies in Inverness M, they head for Culloden. Cumberland does not appear. After a failed surprise attack on Cumberland's camp in Nairn (they run out of time) the Jacobites return to Culloden, weary from marching all night, and hungry. 16 April 1746 The Day of the Battle Against better advice, Bonnie Prince Charlie lines up his men on the battlefield. They are exhausted. They face an army of 8,000 men, 800 horses and many guns.

  
  The Battle of Culloden
  At 11am, the government army opened fire on the rebels. The Jacobites charged too late and, hindered by the boggy ground, their charge was not the usual terrifying rush.

  The government used grapeshot, a mixture of lead balls, nails, and iron scrap which ripped through flesh. The bloodshed was awful but the Jacobites fought with a bravery still admired today. In less than an hour, the Jacobites had been routed.

  A Bloody Massacre
  The government troops were ordered to show no mercy and a horrific slaughter began. On the battlefield, wounded Jacobites were stabbed or clubbed to death, or left to die in agony. In the land around Culloden, innocent men, women and children were brutally murdered and their homes burned. The killing continued for days.

  Stinking Willie
  Cumberland returned to London in triumph. Songs were written about his success, and the flower 'Sweet William' was named after him. The Scots, instead, named a weed 'Stinking Willie'.

  The Prince's Fate
  The loyal clans made sure that Prince Charles escaped from the government troops. Even with a price of £30,000 on his head, nobody betrayed him. With the help of Flora MacDonald, he reached Skye and, eventually, made his way back to France. He died in Rome in 1788, a sad and bitter old man.

  	Jacobite supporters were hunted down and executed or thrown in jail. Not all the clans supported the Jacobite cause, but all Highland people were punished. Find out more in the Jacobites and the Clearances.

  Old Leanach Cottage
  Close to this cottage, government troops found thirty wounded Jacobites sheltering in a barn. They barricaded the door and set it alight. The Jacobites burned to death.

  This is a traditional Scottish song about Bonnie Prince Charlie's escape to Skye.

  The Skye Boat Song
  Chorus
  Speed bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
  Onward the sailors cry!
  Carry the lad that is born to be king,
  Over the sea to Skye!

  Loud the winds howl,
  Loud the waves roar, thunder claps rend the air,
  Baffled our foes stand on the shore,
  Follow they will not dare.

  Though the waves leap, soft shall ye sleep,
  Ocean's a royal bed;
  Rocked in the deep, Flora will keep
  Watch by your weary head.

  Chorus

  Many's the lad fought on that day,
  Well the claymore could wield
  When the night came, silently lay
  Dead on Culloden's field

  Chorus

  Burned are our homes, exile and death
  Scatter the loyal men;
  Yet, e're the sword cool in the sheath,
  Charlie will come again.

  Chorus