folly and danger of exasperating clans powerful from their union, and
from the inaccessibility of the country which they inhabited. The
tenderness of conscience, the fidelity to an exiled monarch, were made,
the writers urged, a plea for every species of oppression and petty
tyranny. The late massacre of Glencoe justified, they said, the measures
of precaution they were taking; and, finally they threatened, should
their petition be refused to take refuge in France, carrying with them
their young hostages, there to proclaim the impolicy and injustice of
the English Government. This address was dispatched, not to the Privy
Council, but to the relations and friends of the young prisoners, who
were interested in procuring a favourable reception for its negotiation;
and the chiefs who subscribed to this address reasonably expected that
the fear of their power, exaggerated in the sister kingdom, where a
total ignorance of the manners and character of the Scottish
mountaineers existed, would prevail to lend force to their arguments.
This negotiation was never made public; it proved, however, effectual,
as far as the comfort of some of the parties engaged in it were
concerned.
By the influence of the rising party, who, espousing the interests of
the Princess Anne, were gaining ground in the country during the decline
of William, Sir Ewan Dhu and Glengarry, who were jointly considered as
the promoters of this affair, remained unpunished for a manoeuvre on
which public opinion in England was not inclined to pass a very severe
judgment, after the recent massacre of Glencoe.[253] Some secret
negotiations placed everything on a secure footing; and, during the
reign of Queen Anne; the two chieftains lived in tranquillity, their
mutual regard continuing undiminished during their lives, and becoming
the subject, after their deaths, of the lays composed in their honour by
their native bards.
During his latter days, Sir Ewan Dhu had the consolation of seeing his
son happy in the choice of a wife. Beautiful and good, the young
Quakeress soon established herself in the good opinions of all those who
were acquainted with her; and there seems every reason to conclude that
she inherited the virtues, without the peculiarities of her father,
Robert Barclay of Urey. That eminent man was descended from a Norman
family which traced its ancestry to Thomas de Berkley, whose descendants
established themselves in Scotland. By his mother's side, Barclay was
allied to the house of Huntley; and by his connection with the heiress
of the mother's family, a considerable estate in Aberdeenshire was added
to the honours of antiquity. Unhappily for the lovers of the old Norman
appellations, the name of de Berkley was changed, in the fifteenth
century, into that of Barclay. One of Robert Barclay's sons, who became
a mercer in Cheapside, had the rare fortune of entertaining three
successive monarchs when they visited the City on the Lord Mayor's
Day,--George the First, George the Second, and George the Third; whose
heart, as it is well known, was touched by the beauty of one of the fair
descendants of Robert Barclay.
Previously to the marriage between Lochiel and the young Quakeress, the
family into which he entered had been impoverished, and the estate of
Mathers, from which the Barclays derived their name, sold to defray
debt.
The career of Robert Barclay was singular. He was first converted to
Popery during his residence in Paris, when he was fifteen; and he
changed that faith for the simple persuasion of the Quakers when he had
attained his nineteenth year. He adopted the tenets of the Friends at a
period when it required much courage to adhere to a sect who were
vilified and ridiculed, not only in England but in Scotland. It was to
refute these attacks against the Quakers that Barclay wrote the book
entitled, "Truth cleared of Calumnies." His ability and sincerity have
never been doubted; but some distrust of his reason may be forgiven,
when we find the Quaker, a grave and happily married man, walking
through the streets of Aberdeen, clothed in sackcloth and ashes, under
the notion that he was commanded by the Lord to call the people unto
repentance; he appealed to witnesses to prove the "agony of his spirit,"
and how he "had besought the Lord with tears, that this cup might pass
away from him."
This singular act of humiliation was contrasted by frequent visits to
the Court of Charles the Second, and to Elizabeth of Bohemia. To the
house of Stuart, Barclay was ever fondly attached. His father had
suffered in the civil wars; and the doctrines of non-resistance and
passive obedience, avowed by the Quakers, were favourable to the Stuart
dynasty. The last visit which Barclay paid to London was rendered
memorable by the abdication of James the Second. As he was standing
beside that monarch, near a window, the King looked out, and remarked
that "the wind was fair for the Prince of Orange to come over." "It is
hard," replied Barclay, "that no expedient can be found to satisfy the
people." James answered, that "he would do anything becoming a
gentleman, except parting with liberty of conscience, which he would
never do while he lived." Barclay only survived that eventful period two
years. His children, singular as it may seem, were all living fifty
years after their father's death.
To the daughter of this inflexible and courageous man was Cameron of
Lochiel united. During the first years of their marriage, even before
the death of Sir Ewan Dhu, they lived peacefully in the home of their
ancestors; and whilst Anne reigned, that happy tranquillity was
undisturbed. The name of Anne was long cherished in the Highlands on
account of the rare intervals of peace and plenty which her rule, and as
it was thought, her pious prayers, afforded to a ravaged and oppressed
country. Seven years' famine, during the reign of William, were charged
upon the monarch's head: plenteous crops and peaceful abundance were
ascribed to the merits of Queen Anne.[254] Meantime, the gentle and
happy Lady of Lochiel won all hearts: she was distinguished, as
tradition reports, for prudence, activity and affability. "One great
defect," adds Mrs. Grant, "she had, however, which was more felt as such
in the Highlands than it would have been in any other place. She did
not, as a certain resolute countrywoman of hers was advised to do,
'bring forth men-children only;' on the contrary, daughters in
succession, a thing scarce pardonable in one who was looked up to and
valued in a great measure as being the supposed mother of a future
chief. In old times women could only exist while they were defended by
the warriour and supported by the hunter. When this dire necessity in
some measure ceas'd, the mode of thinking to which it gave rise
continued. And after the period of youth and beauty were past, woman was
only consider'd as having given birth to man. John Locheil's mind was
above this illiberal prejudice: he loudly welcomed his daughters and
caress'd their mother on their appearrance as much as if every one of
them had been a young hero in embryo. His friends and neighbours us'd on
these occassions to ask in a sneering manner, "What has the lady got?"
To which he invariably answered, "A lady indeed:" this answer had a more
pointed significance there than with us. For in the Highlands no one is
call'd a lady but a person named to the proprietors of an estate. All
others, however rich or high-born, are only _gentlewomen_. How the
prediction intentionally included in the chief's answer was fulfill'd,
will hereafter appear.
"Besides the family title, every Highland chieftain has a patronymic
deriv'd from the most eminent of their ancestors, probably the founder
of the family, and certainly the first who confer'd distinction on it.
Thus Argyle is the son of Colin, Breadalbane the son of Archibald, &c.;
and the chief of the Camerons was always stil'd son of Donald Dhu, Black
Donald, whatever his name or complexion may be, as well as the
appellation deriv'd from it, because it would appear hereditary in the
family, and at length it became a tradition or prophesy among the clan
that a fair Lochiel should never prosper."
At length, after the birth of twelve daughters, a son and heir made his
appearance. But the satisfaction of the clans was dashed by hearing that
the ill-starred little laird was fair, like his sisters. The prophecy
that a fair Lochiel should never prosper, was recalled with dismay; and,
unhappily, the fears of superstition were too mournfully realized by
fact. The young Cameron was named Donald: his birth was followed by the
appearance of two other boys,--Archibald, afterwards the ill-fated Dr.
Cameron, and John, who was called Fassefern, from an estate. "The proud
prediction of their father," continues Mrs. Grant, "was soon amply
fulfilled with regard to the daughters of this extraordinary family."
"Their history," she adds, "unites the extravagance of romance with the
sober reality of truth."
The twelve daughters of Lochiel were admirably educated, and the fame of
their modest virtues soon extended through the Highlands. The great
point in matrimonial alliances in those rude regions was to obtain a
wife well born, and well allied; and little fortune was ever expected
with the daughter of a chief. Ancestry was the great point with a
Highlander, for he believed that defects of mind, as well as of person,
were hereditary. All, therefore, sought the daughters of Lochiel, as
coming of an untainted race. The elder ones were married early, and
seemed, as Mrs. Grant expresses it, by the solicitude to obtain them, as
ever to increase, like the Sibyl's leaves, in value, as they lessened in
number. Of the daughters, one, the youngest and the fairest, was
actually married to Cameron of Glendinning, in the twelfth year of her
age. She became a widow, and afterwards married Maclean of Kingasleet,
so that she was successively the wife of two heads of houses. Another,
Jean Cameron, who was the least comely of her family, but possessed of a
commanding figure and powerful understanding, was married to Clunie, the
Chief of the Clan Macpherson. She is said to have been celebrated in the
pathetic poem, entitled "Lochaber no More," the poet, who laments his
departure from Lochaber, and his farewell to his Jean, having been an
officer in one of the regiments stationed at Fort William.
By the marriage of his twelve daughters with the heads of houses, the
political importance of Lochiel was considerably enhanced, and a
confederacy, containing many noted families who were bound together by
opinion and kindred, formed a strong opposition to the reigning
Government. The sons-in-law of Lochiel were the following chiefs:
Cameron of Dungallan, Barclay of Urie, Grant of Glenmoriston, Macpherson
of Clunie, Campbell of Barcaldine, Campbell of Auchalader, Campbell of
Auchlyne, Maclean of Lochbuy, Macgregor of Bohowdie, Wright of Loss,
Maclean of Ardgour, and Cameron of Glendinning. All the daughters became
the mothers of families; "and these numerous descendants, still,"
observes Mrs. Grant, "cherish the bonds of affinity, now so widely
diffused, and still boast their descent from these female
worthies."[255]
Among most of the influential chieftains who espoused the daughters of
Lochiel, was the celebrated Macpherson of Clunie, who afterwards took a
very important part in the Rebellions of 1715 and 1745. The career of
Clunie affords a melancholy, but rare, instance of indecision, if not of
double dealing, in the Jacobites. Before the battle of Culloden, anxious
to retrieve his affairs and to ensure his safety, he took the oaths to
the English Government, and was appointed to a company in Lord Loudon's
Highlanders. His clan, nevertheless, were eager to join Charles Edward,
and urged him to lead them to his standard. Clunie hesitated between
the obligation to his oath, and his secret devotion to the Stuarts. His
defection irritated the British Government: he became one of those whose
life was forfeited to the laws. After the battle of Culloden he secreted
himself, and lived for nine years in a cave, at a short distance from
the site of his own house, which had been burned by the King's troops.
The cave was in front of a woody precipice, the trees, &c., completely
concealing the entrance. It was dug out by his own people, who worked at
night, or when time had slackened the rigour of the search. Upwards of
one hundred persons knew of this retreat, and one thousand pounds were
offered as a reward to any who would discover it. Eighty men were
stationed there to intimidate the tenantry into a disclosure, but it was
all in vain; none could be found so base as to betray their chief.[256]
For two years Sir Hector Monro in vain remained in Badenoch, for the
purpose of discovering Clunie's retreat. The Macphersons remained true
to their chieftain. At times he emerged from his dark recess, to mingle
for awhile in the hours of night with his friends, when he was protected
by the vigilance and affection of his clansmen, unwearied in their work
of duty. At last, broken-spirited, and despairing of that mercy which
was accorded by the English Government to so few of the insurgents,
Clunie escaped to France, and there died, ten years after the fatal
events of 1745.[257] The estate of this unfortunate chieftain was
restored to his family, who claim to be the ancient representatives of
the clan Chattan; with what justice it would be dangerous to declare,
since no risk could be more rashly encountered than that which is
incurred in discussing Highland prerogative.
Surrounded by his powerful relatives and fair daughters, Lochiel hailed
with no very sanguine spirit the coming troubles which quickly followed
the accession of the house of Hanover. Already was the Jacobite
association busily at work in the south of Scotland; and it was
impossible, from the temper of the populace in both nations, not to
augur, in a short time, some serious popular outbreak. In the minds of
the Highland chieftains a hatred of English dominion, and a desire of
independence, constituted even a more potent source of adherence of the
Stuarts than any personal feeling towards that line. Most of these
chiefs languished to see a king of their own nation reign over them. To
such a ruler they would, as they considered, be viewed not as a
secondary object. Their interests had been neglected in the Treaty of
Darien,--a settlement which had inspired the landholders of the Low
Country with aversion to William.
Expectations had also been raised, tending to the belief that Anne,
secretly well affected to her brother, had made such provisions in her
will as would ensure the descent of the Crown in the direct line; and
nothing could exceed the disgust and amazement of the Highlanders when
they beheld a foreigner seated on a throne, from which, they well knew,
it would be impossible to dispossess him. "To restore," as Mrs. Grant
observes, "their ancient race of monarchs to the separate Crown of
Scotland, was their fondest wish. This visionary project was never
adopted by the Jacobites at large, who were too well informed to suppose
it either practicable or eligible. But it serv'd as an engine to excite
the zeal of bards and sennachies, who were still numerous in the
Highlands, and in whose poetry strong traces of this airy project may
still be found."
Soon after the accession of George the First, certain of the Highland
chieftains dispatched a letter to the Earl of Mar, desiring that
nobleman to assure the Government of their loyalty and submission. Among
the names subscribed are those of Lochiel, of his friend Glengarry, and
of Clunie. The address is said to have been a stratagem of Mar's to gain
time, and to give him an opportunity of ripening his schemes.[258] But
it appears more probable that there was, at first, a spirit of
moderation and a desire for peace in the chieftains, until they were
afterwards stimulated by the intrigues of the disappointed and baffled
Earl of Mar. Lochiel, as well as many others, had little to gain, but
much to lose, in any change of dynasty or convulsion in the state.
Prosperous, beloved, secure, his fidelity to that which he believed to
be the right cause was honourable to the highest degree to his
character. That he was not sanguine in his hopes, is more than probable.
Before he went to the battle of Sherriff Muir, he arranged his affairs
so as to be prepared for the worst result that might befal his family.
The frequent occurrence of feuds and civil wars in Scotland had taught
the higher classes the use of stratagem and manoeuvre in these
domestic disturbances. It was not unusual for a son and a father often
to affect to take opposite sides, in order that the estate, happen what
might, should be preserved to the family; and this was considered as
consulting the general good of the clan. Lochiel, although he did not
pursue this plan, yet left his affairs so arranged that, in the most
fatal results of the Rebellion of 1715, his estate might be protected.
His sons-in-law, powerful and devoted to the same cause, were well
qualified to aid and to protect those members of the family who were
entrusted to their friendly guidance. John Cameron was still styled
"Cameron the younger, of Lochiel," for the renowned Sir Ewan Dhu was
living when Mar summoned the chieftains to the hunting-field of Braemar.
The aged chieftain had, at this time, attained his eighty-seventh year;
it had been his glory, in early life, to defend a pass near Braemar
against Cromwell's troops, until the royal army had retired; and, in
fact, to be the instrument of saving Glencairn's troops, keeping himself
clear of those cabals which at that time fatally harassed the
disorganized Royalists. It was now his fate to send forth, under the
guidance of his son, his gallant Camerons, to the number of eight
hundred, to espouse the cause of the Stuarts.[259] No jealousies
disturbed the confidence reposed on the one side, nor alienated
affection on the other. The affection of the Highlanders for their
children was one of the softened features in the national character. It
was usually repaid with a decree of reverence, of filial piety, which,
however other qualities may have declined and died away in the Highland
character, have remained, like verdant plants amid autumnal decay. The
appalling spectacle of a parent forsaken, or even neglected, by a child,
is a sight never known in the Highlands: nor is the sense of duty
lessened by absence from the mountains where first the sentiment was
felt. The Highland soldier, far from his country, is accompanied by this
holy love, this inexhaustible stimulus to exertion, which induces him to
save with what may be unjustly called a niggard hand his earnings, to
support, in their old age, those who have given him birth. "I have
been," says General Stewart, "a frequent witness of these offerings of
filial bounty, and the channel through which they were communicated; and
I have generally found that a threat of informing their parents of
misconduct, has operated as a sufficient check on young soldiers, who
always received the intimation with a sort of horror."[260]
Blessed, doubtless, with the approval of his father, Sir Ewan Dhu,
Lochiel quitted his home. He left a wife whom he loved, a parent whom
he reverenced, and whose span of life could not be long extended; he
left a numerous and prosperous family, upon a sense of duty, a principle
of loyalty, an adherence, so fixed and so sure among the Highlanders, to
his engagements. The name of Cameron does not appear among the
chieftains who were assembled at Braemar; but it appears probable that
he attended the Earl of Mar's summons, since he was cited, by the
authority of an act passed on the thirtieth of August, to appear at
Edinburgh, as well as a number of other disaffected chieftains and
noblemen, to give bail for his allegiance to the Government. The summons
was not answered by a single individual, and the preparations for the
fatal insurrection continued in unabated activity.
The details of the hopeless struggle contain no especial mention of John
Cameron of Lochiel; but, from manuscript sources, we learn that, after
the battle of Sherriff Muir, he continued with the Jacobite army,
conducted by General Gordon, to whom James Stuart had entrusted the
command of that remnant of his gallant and deserted adherents. The
Jacobite army having marched to Aberdeen, were there informed by General
Gordon of the flight of the Chevalier, of that of Lord Mar, and of the
other principal leaders. A letter was then read to them from James,
declaring that the disappointments which he had met with, especially
from abroad, had obliged him to leave the country. He thanked his
subjects for their services, and desired them to advise with General
Gordon, and to consult their own safety, either by keeping in a body,
or separating, and encouraged them to hear from him again in a very
short time. A singular scene ensued. General Gordon and the chief
officers of the army, are said to have pretended surprise at this
disclosure, although they were previously in the secret; but the
indignation of the soldiers was extreme.
"We are basely betrayed," they cried out; "we are all undone; we have
neither King nor General left!"
Shortly after this crisis, the Jacobite army dispersed; two hundred of
them, amongst whom were many chieftains, went towards Peterhead,
intending to embark, in vessels which they knew were waiting for them,
for France; but the main body of the army marched westward, to
Strathspey and Strath-dore to the Hills of Badenoch, where they
separated. The foot-soldiers dispersed into the mountains, near Lochy,
and the horse went to Lochaber, agreeing to reassemble, such was their
undaunted fidelity and courage, on receiving notice from the
Chevalier.[261] But such a summons never came, to arouse those brave men
from the repose of their glens and fortresses.
Lochiel had entrusted the guidance of his clan to his son, afterwards
well known by the name of "gentle Lochiel," and the faithful promoter of
Charles Edward's ill-starred enterprise. Persuaded that the safety and
honour of his house were safe in the hands of this promising young man,
who had been purposely kept in ignorance of the projected rising, and
had taken no part in it, Lochiel resolved to consult his own safety, and
to follow his royal master to France. After wandering for some time near
Braemar, and in Badenoch, he escaped by means of one of the French
frigates which were cruising near the coast of Scotland.[262]
In 1719 Sir Ewan Dhu expired, having witnessed the rise and fall of that
attempt to restore the Stuarts, which was only succeeded by a more
desperate and melancholy undertaking. He lived to see his son an exile,
but he had the consolation of reflecting that the honour of his clan,
the great desideratum with a chieftain, was yet unstained either by
cowardice or disloyalty.
The Camerons do not appear to have had any participation in the abortive
attempt in 1718 to revive the Stuart claim. Considered by the English
Government as a proscribed rebel, and deemed of too much importance to
be forgiven, Lochiel passed henceforth most of his days in the
melancholy court of St. Germains, where he soon perceived how little
faith there was to be placed in the energy and determination of James
Stuart. At times his weary exile was relieved by secret visits to his
own home at Achnacarry, where he found his son, dutiful and amiable,
holding his possessions as in trust for his father. Lochiel was enabled
by the power and alliance of his sons-in-law to remain in safety, as
long as he pleased, during these visits; yet he professed to renounce
Scotland until a change of Government should facilitate his return as a
chieftain to his clansmen. In every district he found kindred ready to
protect him, and he derived much importance from the influence he
possessed through his children. His sons-in-law were mostly the heads of
clans, and they all looked up to Lochiel with affectionate reverence.
Had Lochiel been a remorseless partisan of James, instead of a true
lover of his country, he might easily have stimulated his kindred, and
set into motion the whole of that powerful connection of which he was
the centre. But he perceived too plainly the risk of such a proceeding,
and wisely declined involving the peaceful and the prosperous in the
dangers of another contest. His moderate sentiments were confirmed by
the early wisdom of his son,--one of those bright patterns of human
excellence, gifted with every charm which attends a noble and gallant
chieftain.