before he could produce a commission, and it is no small proof of the
people's zeal for their country that so great a number followed his
advice and obeyed his orders before he could produce one. It must,
though, be owned, and it is the less to be wondered at, that his
authority being thus precarious, some were not so punctual in joining
him, and others performed not so effectually the service they were sent
upon, which, had they done, not only Scotland, but even part of England,
had been reduced to the Chevalier's obedience, before the Government had
been in a condition to make head against us."[90]
The commission was, however, at that time written, although it had not
been sent over to Scotland. It is dated the seventh of September, 1715,
and is superscribed James R.[91] The Earl of Mar was doubtless aware
that such an instrument was in preparation.
When the Earl had first arrived in Scotland, he found, as he himself
alleges, the people far more eager to take arms than his instructions
allowed him to permit; but before actual steps were commenced, that
ardour was cooled by two circumstances: first, by the Chevalier's not
landing in England, as the Jacobites had confidently hoped; and,
secondly, by the Duke of Berwick's not coming to Scotland.[92] The
vigorous measures adopted by Government made, therefore, a far greater
impression on the public mind than could have been expected had the Earl
of Mar been boldly seconded by him who was most of all interested in the
event of the contest. The Lord Advocate summoned all the principal
Jacobites to appear at Edinburgh within specified periods, in order to
give bail to Government for their allegiance. "Many," says Lord Mar,
"seemed inclined to comply." Yet the number of those who did comply with
the summons was inconsiderable; the rest, including the most honoured
names in Scotland, rushed into the insurrection. The different heads of
noble houses dispersed, and each in the district in which he had most
power, and in the principal towns proclaimed the Chevalier King. The
Fiery Cross was sent throughout the country, with blood at one end, and
fire at the other; and it was afterwards asserted by some of the rebels
who were tried at Liverpool, that they were forced into the service of
the Chevalier, the person who bore that cross assuring them that, unless
they hastened to Mar's camp, they were to perish by blood and fire.[93]
Intelligence of the death of Louis the Fourteenth, which had happened
during the preceding August, reached Scotland at this time, and cast an
universal gloom over his party. It was even disputed whether the
Jacobite leaders should not disperse until news of the Chevalier's
landing should reassure them, or the certainty of a rising in England
should give vigour to their proceedings. At this critical moment Lord
Mar published a declaration which has been printed in most of the
histories of the period, exhorting all those who were well-affected to
the good cause to put themselves under arms, and summoning his
confederates to the Tower of Braemar, on the eleventh of September,
promising them, in the name of the King, their pay from the moment of
setting out.
"Now is the time," said the Earl, "for all good men to show their zeal
for his Majesty's service, whose cause is so deeply concerned, and the
relief of our native country from oppression and a foreign yoke too
heavy for us and our posterity to bear.
"In so honourable, good, and just a cause," he added, "we cannot doubt
of the assistance, direction, and blessing of Almighty God, who has so
often rescued the royal family of Stuart, and our country from sinking
under oppression.
"Your punctual observance of these orders is expected, for the doing of
all which, this shall be to you, and all you employ in the execution of
them, a sufficient warrant."
In a very different tone was a letter, written the same night by the
Earl to his baillie of Kildrummie: from this epistle, so characteristic
of the politic Earl of Mar, it was manifest that his own followers were
more tardy in the field than those of the other chieftains of the
Highlands. The means taken to intimidate and compel them are strongly
characteristic of the state of society in Scotland at that period.[94]
The reluctance of his clan must have been a subject of deep
mortification to Lord Mar, when, in one evening, the summons of the
Fiery Cross, paraded round Loch Tay, a distance of thirty-two miles,
could assemble five hundred men, at the bidding of the Laird of
Glenlyon, to join the Earl of Mar.[95]
A few days after the assembling of the forces, the Earl of Mar, assisted
by his Jacobite friends, published a manifesto, asserting the right of
James the Eighth, by the grace of God, King of Scotland, &c., and
pointing to the relief of the kingdom from oppression and
grievances.[96]
Whilst the adherents of James were thus assembling in the North, a brave
but unsuccessful attempt was made to surprise the castle of Edinburgh.
Ninety chosen men, under the command of Lord Drummond, were engaged in
this undertaking, of which the design was, to seize the citadel and to
place it under the command of Lord Drummond; then the artillery within
the castle was to be employed in firing their rounds by way of signal to
different posts, in concert. Fires were to be lighted up on the hills as
a signal to Lord Mar to march and take possession of the city. The
failure of this design was owing to the disclosure of one Dr. Arthur, a
physician in Edinburgh, to his wife, who gave information of the whole
plan to the Lord Justice Clerk, to whom she sent an unsigned letter the
evening she had gained from her unwilling husband intelligence of the
scheme. This failure, the first of those adverse events which
disheartened the spirits of the Jacobites, was, however, less deplored
than it would have been, had not the progress of the Earl of Mar's
exertions borne the most flattering aspect. In September, the Earl
marched to Logaret, where his forces still increased, and thence into
the beautiful region around Dunkeld; here he was joined, with fourteen
hundred men, by the Marquis of Tullibardine, and by five hundred
Campbells from the Breadalbane territory, headed, not by their chief,
but by Campbell of Glenderule, Campbell of Glenlyon, and John Campbell,
the Earl's chamberlain. Enforced also by the addition of two hundred
Highlanders from different quarters, the Earl of Mar resolved to make
the town of Perth his head-quarters.
This was a wise resolution: the situation of that fine city presented
the most important advantages to the General of the Jacobite forces.
Seated on the river Tay, and near the sea-coast, it gave the Earl the
control of the East Lowlands, of the rich counties of Angus, the Carse
of Gowrie, Mearns, Murray, Aberdeen, and Banff, and also of the Shire of
Fife. It also cut off the communication between the north and the south
of Scotland, so that the friends of Government could neither act nor fly
from the enemy. Thus all the usual posts were stopped. The revenues of
the public fell into the hands of the insurgents who gave receipts for
them in the name of James the Eighth, and the landowners in the counties
subject to the Earl were taxed at whatever rate he chose to impose.
Perth continued to be the head-quarters of the Lieutenant General until
a few days before this disastrous contest was finally closed.
At the first general review at Perth, the forces of Lord Mar amounted
only to five thousand men; but a few weeks afterwards, by the accession
of his friends in the north, they were increased to the number of twelve
thousand, both horse and foot, of well appointed men. That Lord Mar's
hopes were high, and, at this period, not without reason of, at any
rate, a partial success, the following letter addressed by him to
Captain Henry Straiton,[97] at Edinburgh, is a proof. It relates, in the
first instance, to the insurrection in Northumberland, under the
guidance of Mr. Forster, a gentleman of suspected zeal and little
discretion, to whom Lord Mar unwisely trusted the conduct of the gallant
but ill-fated bands who fell at Preston:--
"From the Camp of Perth, October 12th, 1715."[98]
"Sir,
"It was yesterday afternoon as I got yours of the ninth, which you
may be sure was very acceptable, and also the others you sent me.
Tom Forster tells me in his of the sixth, that they had taken the
field that day with a hundred and sixty horse; that he had sent to
the gentelmen of Lancaster who he expected to join him, and also the
gentilmen from the scots side, that he expected two thousand foot
from my camp and five hundred horse, that the town of Newcastle had
promist to open their gates to them, and that they intended to take
possession of Tinmouth.
"They have been better than their word in coming together so soon,
and I would fain hope it has been occasioned by some consort with
our friends further south, who are to join them, and that the Duke
of Ormond is in England before this time, as I have reason to
believe he is.
"My letters by M^{r}. E----ne[99] had not then reached those on the
boarder, but when they do, I hope it will put the project of
shooting themselves up in Tinmouth out of their thoughts; what good
could they do there? I have wrote so fully by M^{r}. E----ne upon
the subject of the way of their disposeing of themselves, that I
need say little of it now. You certainly know of the detachment of
two thousand foot, lying these severall dayes on the coast of Fife,
to get over, if possible; but now that there's five men of warr in
the Firth, I'm afraid it is not; however, they are stile about it,
and will do what they can: but for finding horse that way, you will
easily see is impracticable, unless the passage were open, and I
hope our friends on the boarder will not want horse from us. I was
very fond of the project of getting the passage of the whole armie
opened, when I wrote by Mr. E----ne; but since that time, beside
that of more men of warr comeing into the Firth, there's another
thing I know since, which makes me alter my thoughts about it, at
least of doing it soon, were it in my power. Mr. Ogilvie of Boin
arrived here from France on the sixth, as perhaps you have heard,
with my new commission, of which I send you a copie inclosed, and
letters from Lord Bolingbroke; but I know you have accounts of a
latter date at Edinb. so I need say the less of them. Lord
Bolingbroke tels me, that in all probability, the King wou'd land
very quickly in the north of Scotland; so until we be so happie that
he comes to us, or at least we hear from him again, which by those
letters I expect every day, I judge it were not prudent for me to
pass the armie at Leith or Queensferry, were it in my power, for
that wou'd be leaveing the enimie bewint the King and us, and he
might have difficulty in passing over to us, and being in danger of
the enimie; but this of passing the whole armie at any of these
places seems not likely to be in our power.
"Lord Huntly and Earl Marishall are come up to us with their people
in very good order, but Lord Seafort is not, being deteaned by
forceing Earl Sutherland to submitt before he left that country,
which he has done by this time, and will be with us soon. I make
his not being come up the reason of our lying still here, but that
of our expecting the King or one from him, is the true one; and I
think we must do, until that happen, so as long as we loose no
credit by it. I thought it was necessary to let you know this, the
better to advise our friends in the South what meassurs to take;
which they had best determine by the success of our detachment
getting over to them,--what expectation they have of friends in
England joining them, and what is to be expexted about Edinburgh. If
they should be prest in England, which I hope will not be the case,
and could do nothing at Edinbrugh, they can march throw the south
and west of Scotland to Dumbartonshire, where before they can be,
Generall Gordon's armie or a considerable detachment of it, will be
before they can reach it, which they will aply join and be saif til
we meet them. Glengarry is actually marcht from Auchalator that way
alreddy. I have taken care to have detachments at all the places on
the coasts, where I judge the King can land, so I hope all is safe
for him when he comes on it; and so many of the cruisers being in
the Frith make the coast pretty clear, which is one good our
detachment in Fife has done, should they do no more. We have this
day sent two gentelmen to France (I hope) a safe way with a letter
to the Regent from the noblemen and gentelmen here, which we had
resolved on before Boin arrived; but should the King be come off
before it arrives in France it can do no hurt and may do good.
"I have wrote to Lord Bolingbroke (who is to remain in France to
negotiate the King's affairs there during his absence,) a full
account of things here; and if the King be come off, which I hope in
God he is, he is to lay it before the Queen, to whom I have likewise
wrote. I'm exceeding sorry for the loss of honest Keith's son, but
these gentelmen will have it yet payd home to them.
"As to your going to the South, or staying at Edinbrugh, I scarce
know what to say. I wish you could be in both places; but since that
cannot be, I leave it to yourself to do which you think will be of
most use to the service. If you go South I beg you may settle a
correspondence 'twixt Edin^{b} and this, and acquaint me with it.
"I heard to-day that my letters to our friends in the West,
desireing they might go immediately South to join Lord Kenmore, came
safe to hand, so I hope they will be with him soon. I have sent you
some of the manifestos which were printed at Aberdeen, and are
finely done: I wish they may come to you saif. I also send you
encloset a letter to Sir Rich. Steele, which I leave open for you to
read and take a copie of. Pray seal it and get it put into the
post-house; and I wish you could get it printed at Edinburgh, tho'
let me not seen it; and if you send a copie to any of your
correspondants at London and Newcastle, to get if printed there it
would do no hurt. I'm endeavouring to get a correspondence settled
by barks from the point of Fife to Newcastle, which may be of use
to us, especially if the communications twixt us and Ed^{r} should
be stopt."
On the very day of the Earl's arrival at Perth, Mr. James Murray, second
son of Lord Stormont arrived from St. Germains, bringing assurances of
support, and letters from the Chevalier, who had appointed him Secretary
of State for the affairs of Scotland. Mr. Murray is said also to have
presented the Earl of Mar with a patent, creating him Duke of Mar,
Marquis of Stirling and Earl of Alloway: "And though," observes an
historian, "there was little more said about it, yet the relation seems
justified by this, that in some of the papers printed at Perth, he is
styled the Duke of Mar."[100]
Extensive preparations were also declared to be in progress for the
invasion of England. Twelve large ships were actually at that time at
anchor in Havre, St. Malos, and other places. These vessels, with
several frigates of good force, were loaded with ammunition, and manned
with generals, officers, and soldiers. A particular account of the
"Pretender's Magazine" is extant. But these preparations were all
frustrated by the remonstrances of the Earl of Stair at the Court of the
Regent of France. Admiral Byng was sent with a squadron to cruise on the
coast of France, and the ships ready to sail for the enterprise against
England were obliged, by command of the Regent, in order not to
implicate the French Government, to declare that they were thus
employed without the sanction or knowledge of the Regent. Thus, even
whilst Mr. Murray was raising the sanguine hopes of the Jacobites to the
highest pitch, their evil star had again prevailed. They were, indeed,
singularly unhappy in those in whom they placed confidence. Their
schemes perpetually got wind: whether it were owing to the irresolution
of some of their partisans, or to the great participation which the
female sex took in the affairs of the Chevalier's party, it is difficult
to determine.
The Jacobite ladies were as fearless as they were persevering. The
Duchess of Gordon, whose present of a medal to the Faculty of Advocates
denoted her principles, and whose son, the second Duke of Gordon
suffered a brief imprisonment on account of his share in the
insurrection, was one of the most approved channels of communication
between the two parties. She generally resided in Edinburgh, where she
occupied herself as a mediator between some of the Presbyterians and the
friends of James. Colonel Hooke mentions her as one of the depositories
of all that was going on during his mission.
The Earl of Mar, in his letters, refers repeatedly to different ladies
with approval of their zeal and courage, and mentions one of his fair
confederates in the north of Scotland, through whose hands many of his
letters were sent to different chieftains; but these channels may not,
in all cases, have been so secure as the Earl conceived.[101]
The proceedings of the English Government were, meantime, marked with
energy and judgment. The various movements of the insurgent party were
met in every direction by a systematic resistance, the details of which
have been minutely detailed by historians, and belong not to a narrative
which is chiefly of a personal nature.
On the fourteenth of September, the Duke of Argyle, Commander in Chief
of his Majesty's Forces in Scotland, and General of the army, arrived in
Edinburgh. The interest of this able and powerful nobleman in the
Western Highlands, his zeal for the Protestant succession, were
sufficient reasons for his appointment to this important office. The
following original letter from George the Second, then Prince of Wales,
gives an insight into the views which were entertained by George the
First upon the mode of conducting the warfare in Scotland. It is among
various other papers in the Mar Correspondence.
"St. James's, 7th October, 1715."
"I have learned, my dear Duke, by your two last expresses, the
embaras you are in through the want of regular troupes. We have used
such efforts that the King has consented last Wednesday to detach to
you four batallions from Ireland, to reinforce your camp. Orders
have been given to cause those marche who are nearest, and to cause
them embarque as they come up, without waiting for their
conjunction. It appeares yet by the departure of the Duke of
Ormond, from Paris, that the malcontents continue in their wicked
design of raiseing up troubles in this kingdom here, which is the
cause that hinders me from sending you Campbell yet, untill that I
see if he will not be necessary for his post, where I think that it
is best every body should be fixed. As soon as all appearance of
Rebellion is ended here, I shall dispatch you him, if you shall have
need of him there. With respect to the orders you demand, it would
be very difficult to give you them positive, not knowing the
situation of your affairs, as you may judge yourself. The King
remits himself entirely to your judgment, and to your conduct. All
that I can say to you is not to hazard an action without a probable
appearance of carrying it,--rather to shune an engadgment, and to
yeild to them the ground, than to expose the affairs of the King to
such ill consequences as would follow from a defeat. In case that my
Lord Mar march into England before that you receive your
reinforcement, I think you would do very well to allow him at least
with your cavalery, and to harass him untill that we march to meet
him. This last reasoneing is my own properly, but which you will
judge yourself, if practicable or not. Farewell, my dear Duke; be
assured of my esteem, and my sincere friendship."
(Signed) "GEORGE P."
The Earl of Mar now began to fortify Perth, and brought up fourteen
pieces of cannon for that purpose from Dundee and Dunotter Castle. His
time and thoughts were at this time occupied in concerting and
encouraging the movements of the southern insurrection conducted by
Viscount Kenmure. There can be no better means of showing the state of
the Earl's hopes and feelings at this time, than by giving them in his
own words.
TO VISCOUNT KENMURE.
"My Lord,
"I wish your Lordship and Mr. Forster may have gott my letters,
which I took all the care I could to send safe. I wrote last by a
lady on the twenty-third, and she is so discreet and dextrous, that
I make little doubt of its going right. I have since had two from an
indisposed friend of ours on your side the water, and with them one
of the twenty-second from Brigadier Mackintosh to him, where he
tells of his being joined by your Lordship and five hundred horse
with you,--Lords Withrington and Derwentwater, Mr. Forester, and
about six hundred English gentlemen. Your Lordship may be sure this
was very agreeable news to me, and now, with the blessing of God, if
we do not mismanage, I think our game can scarce fail. By Brigadier
Mackintosh's letter, it seems the English are all for your going to
England in a body to put into execution a certain design, and our
countrymen are for first having the Pass of Stirling opened, and our
armies joined. I apprehended there would be difference about this
before I saw that letter, as your Lordship would easily see by what
the lady carried. It is indeed a difficult point to know or advise
which of the two is the best for the King's affairs; and we on this
side Forth being so ignorant of your situation on the other side,
and also of the condition of England, that I could not take it upon
me to determine in it, or to give any positive orders what your
Lordship should do; but after stating the advantages of both, and
what might happen according as the enemy should act, I left it to be
advised and determined among yourselves on that side, who could not
but know a great deal more, as you should judge it best for the
King's interest in generall.
"I know our indisposed friend, for whose judgment I have a very
great regard, advised coming to Dalkeith, and we have a report from
Fife last night that you have done so.
"I long impatiently to know what resolution your Lordship and the
noblemen and gentlemen with you have come to. It is of great
consequence and deserves to be well weighed. If you are now come to
Dalkeith, I will adventure to tell my thoughts in it, which I was
not quite so clear in before when you were at a greater distance
from it. That place was a far way from the other, where I judge the
secret design was to be put in execution; and I am afraid before you
can get there they'll have so strengthened the place, and filled it
with troops, that the design would prove impracticable with the
small army you have,--and it might prove, too, (especially if the
Dutch troops come to England,) that you could not penetrate farther
into that country with safety, and retiring back into Scotland would
have many inconveniences.