+Source.+--_The History of the Rebellion rais'd against His Majesty
King George I. by the Friends of the Popish Pretender_, p. 187, by
the Reverend Mr. Peter Rae. Second edition. (London: 1746.)
The Earl of Mar, then at London, not finding how to form his own
interest at court, had resolved on those wicked and traitorous measures
he afterwards followed; and in order to raise and carry on the
rebellion, had, by some means or other, received from abroad, no less
than the sum of one hundred thousand pounds sterling, together with
letters and instructions under the Pretender's own hand, and a
commission appointing him Lieutenant-General and Commander in Chief of
his forces, as he called them, in Scotland: And fearing lest his
traitorous designs against his lawful sovereign prince,[50] to whom he
had so early and solemnly promised fidelity, might possibly be
discovered, and he himself secured by the government, he resolved to
make a sudden tour into Scotland, as the likeliest mean to prevent this
fate, and in order to make some speedy advances in this his pernicious
and bloody undertaking. Wherefore on the 2nd of August, or as some say,
the 1st, in the evening, his lordship, in the dress of a private person,
embark'd with Major-General Hamilton, Colonel Hay, and two servants on
board of a collier in the Thames, and arriving in two or three days at
Newcastle, hired there a vessel belonging to one Spence, which set him
and his company on shore in the Ely, from whence he got over to
Creil[51] in the shire of Fife. Soon after his landing he was attended
by Sir Alexander Areskine, Lord Lyon, and others of his friends in Fife,
to whom he made known the design of his coming, and then went forward to
Kinoul, where he staid on Wednesday the 17th, and on the 18th he passed
the river Tay, about two miles from Perth, with 40 horse on his way to
the north. Next day he sent letters to all the Jacobites round the
country, inviting them to meet him in haste at Brae-Mar, where he
arrived on Saturday the 20th of August.
There is no room to doubt, that he had before-hand concerted measures
with them; and that they were previously advised of his coming, before
he arrived in Scotland: For, on Saturday the 6th of August, their
friends at Edinburgh were apprized of it; and early next morning Captain
John Dalziel, a half-pay officer, who, in view of this rebellion had
thrown up his commission to the Earl of Orkney, was sent out to give the
alarm to his brother, the Earl of Carnwath, then at Elliock, where he
arrived that night; and, early next morning, expresses were sent to the
Earl of Nithsdale, the Viscount of Kenmure, and others of their friends
in those parts; the Earl himself went down that same day to meet them,
in order to forward their measures; and after some time spent in
preparing others, whose inclinations they knew, to embark with them in
that bloody project, they repaired to Lothian; and 'twas then given out,
that they were gone to a hunting in the north. This was indeed a
plausible pretence for their getting to the Highlands, and the more that
the Earl of Mar, to cover his design, too black to be owned at the
first, in calling the chiefs of the clans together, had proposed a
hunting in his own country. Accordingly, in a few days after he arrived
at Brae-Mar, he was there attended by a great number of gentlemen, of
the best quality and interest of all his party: And particularly at
their Great Council, which was held about August 26, there appeared the
Marquis of Huntley, eldest son to the Duke of Gordon; the Marquis of
Tullibardine, eldest son to the Duke of Athol; the Earls of Nithsdale,
Marischal, Traquair, Errol, Southesk, Carnwath, Seaforth, Linlithgow,
and several others; the Viscounts of Kilsith, Kenmure, Kingston and
Stormount; the Lords Rollo, Duffus, Drummond, Strathallan, Ogilvie and
Nairn, with a good many gentlemen of interest in the Highlands, amongst
whom were the two Generals, Hamilton and Gordon, Glenderule, Auldbair,
Auchterhouse, Glengary, and others from the clans....
... Moreover, we are told, that he shew'd them the letters he had
received from Lorraine, under the Pretender's own hand, promising to
come over to them in person, and put himself upon the valour and
fidelity of his Scots subjects; and that in the mean time, they should
be sure of ships, with arms, ammunition, and all military stores, with
officers, engineers, and volunteers, as soon as they could give him an
account to what port they would direct them to be sent: As also, that he
shew'd them his commission under the Pretender's own hand, appointing
him Lieutenant-General, Commander in Chief, and Director of the War; and
assur'd them, that he was furnish'd with money, and would, from time to
time, be supplied with sufficient sums to levy men, and to pay the
troops regularly that should be raised; so as no gentlemen should be at
any expence to subsist their men, but that both they, and the country
should be eased of all such burthens.
With these and other such arguments, which he proposed unto them with a
popular air, he at length prevailed upon them to embrace his project;
and some say, they engaged by oath to stand by him, and one another, and
to bring over their friends and dependants to do the like. However, the
noblemen and gentlemen did not immediately after this meeting draw
together their men, but went every man back to his own estate, to take
their measures for appearing in arms, when they should hear again from
the Earl of Mar, who remain'd, in the mean time, in his own country,
with some few attendants only. These noblemen and gentlemen being
returned home, began to draw together their servants and dependants, in
all the places where they had interest, making several pretences for
doing so, but did not discover the real design till things were in
readiness to break out. And indeed it was but a few days after, that the
Earl of Mar summon'd them all, at least such as were near at hand, to a
general meeting at Aboyne in Aberdeenshire, on the third of September,
in order to concert farther measures for their appearing in arms: And
having there directed the drawing together their forces without any loss
of time, he returned to Brae-Mar, and continued some days gathering the
people, till their number was increased considerably; but the accounts
being so various, while some say there were then two thousand men, most
of them horse, and others but sixty, I shall not condescend on the
particular number: However, with those he had got together, he set up
the Pretender's Standard at Brae-Mar, on the sixth of September, 1715,
and there proclaim'd him King of Scotland, England, France, and Ireland,
etc. 'Tis reported, that when this standard was first erected, the ball
on the top of it fell off, which the superstitious Highlanders were very
much concern'd at, taking it as an omen of the bad success of the cause
for which they were then appearing, and indeed, the event has proven
that it was no less. Thereafter they went to a small town named
Kirkmichael, where having proclaim'd the Pretender, and summon'd the
people to attend his standard, they staid some few days, and then
proceeded to Moulin, another small town in the shire of Perth, where
they likewise proclaim'd him, and rested some short time, gathering
their forces; and where by the coming in of others of their party, their
number was considerably increased.