marching into Wales instead of returning to Carlisle; but this
proposal was also opposed by all present. His royal highness at last
reluctantly yielded to the opinion of his council. In conducting the
retreat, Lord George Murray offered to remain always in the rear
himself, and proposed that each regiment should take it by turns
till the army reached Carlisle; and that it should march in such
order, that if Lord George was attacked he might be supported as
occasion required, and without stopping the army unless assailed by
a great body of the enemy. He also stipulated that the cannon and
carriages, with the ammunition, should be placed in the van, and that
he should not be troubled with the charge of them.[1044]
To prevent any unpleasant feeling on the part of the army on account
of the retreat, and to conceal the intelligence of their movements
as long as possible from the enemy, the council agreed to keep
the resolution to retreat secret; but it was divulged to Sir John
Macdonald, an Irish gentleman, and an officer in the French service,
who had come over with the prince. In the course of the afternoon,
Lord George Murray, Keppoch, and Lochiel, while walking together,
were accosted by this gentleman, who had just dined heartily, and
made free with his bottle, and were rallied by him a good deal about
the retreat. “What!” addressing Keppoch, “a Macdonald turn his
back!” and turning to Lochiel, he continued, “For shame! A Cameron
run away from the enemy! Go forward, and I’ll lead you.” The two
chiefs and Lord George endeavoured to persuade Sir John that he was
labouring under a mistake; but he insisted that he was right, as he
had received certain information of the retreat.[1045]
Disappointed at the result of the deliberations of the council,
Charles was exceedingly dejected. To raise his spirits, or
to ingratiate themselves with him, some of the council, and
particularly Sir Thomas Sheridan and Secretary Murray, though they
had approved highly of the motion to retreat in the council, now
very inconsistently blamed it. They were, however, aware that the
retreat would, notwithstanding their opposition, be put in execution,
and to excuse themselves for agreeing to it, they alleged that they
did so, because they knew the army would never fight well when the
officers were opposed to its wishes. The prince was easily persuaded
that he had consented too readily to a retreat, but he would not
retract the consent he had given unless he could bring over those
to whom he had given it to his own sentiments, which he hoped he
might be able to do. With this view he called another meeting of the
council in the evening, and in the meantime sent for the Marquis of
Tullibardine, who had been absent from the meeting in the morning, to
ask his opinion. The marquis finding the prince bent upon advancing,
declared himself against a retreat; but after hearing the arguments
of the advocates of that measure at the meeting in the evening, the
marquis retracted his opinion, and declared himself fully satisfied
of its necessity. Having been informed of the conduct of those who
had tampered with the prince, the rest of the officers told him at
meeting, that they valued their lives as little as brave men ought to
do, and if he was resolved to march forward, they would do their duty
to the last; but they requested, for their own satisfaction, that
those persons who had advised his royal highness to advance, would
give their opinion in writing. This proposal put an end to farther
discussion, and Charles, finding the members of council inflexible in
their opinion, gave way to the general sentiments.[1046]
Hitherto the French court had not come under any written engagement
to support the enterprise of Charles; but after the news of the
capture of Edinburgh reached France, a treaty was entered into with
the French crown. By this treaty, which was signed at Fontainebleau,
on the 24th of October, by the Marquis D’Argenson, on the part of the
French king, and by Colonel O’Bryen, on the part of Prince Charles,
as regent of Scotland, the French king among other things agreed to
furnish the prince with a body of troops to be taken from the Irish
regiments in the service of France, along with other troops, to serve
under his royal highness, to defend the provinces.
Lord John Drummond, who commanded a regiment in the French service,
known by the name of Royal Scots, was appointed to the command of the
troops destined for Scotland. Preparations were immediately made to
fit out the expedition, and Lord John received written instructions,
dated from Fontainebleau, October 28th, and signed by the French
king, requiring him to repair immediately to Ostend, to superintend
the embarkation of the troops. By these instructions, Lord John was
directed to disembark the troops if possible upon the coast between
Edinburgh and Berwick, and as soon as he had landed to give notice
of his arrival to Prince Charles, and that the succours which he had
brought were entirely at the disposal of the orders of the prince, to
which Lord John himself was directed to conform, either by joining
his army, or acting separately, according to the views of Charles.
Lord John was also instructed to notify his arrival to the commander
of the Dutch troops lately arrived in England, and to intimate to
him to abstain from hostilities, agreeably to the capitulations
of Tournay and Dendermonde. He was required to ask a prompt and
categorical answer as to how he meant to act without sending to the
Hague, as the states-general had declared to the Abbé de la Ville,
that they had given positive orders to the commanders of these troops
not to infringe the said capitulations; and if, notwithstanding
such notification, the Dutch troops should commit acts of hostility
against those of the King of France, his lordship was ordered to
confine closely such Dutch prisoners he might make, and to listen to
no terms which would recognise a violation of the capitulations, or
dispense the King of France from enforcing the engagement that had
been entered into with the Dutch, as to the exchange of prisoners of
war.[1047]
Lord John Drummond accordingly proceeded to the coast, and having
completed the embarkation of the troops, he set sail from Dunkirk
about the middle of November, carrying along with him his own
regiment, a select detachment from each of the six Irish regiments in
the service of France, and Fitz-James’s regiment of horse, so called
from the Duke of Berwick, natural son of James the Second, who had
been their colonel. Along with these troops were embarked a train of
artillery and a considerable quantity of arms and ammunition. The
forces embarked amounted to about 1,000 men, but they did not all
reach their destination, as some of the transports were taken by
English cruisers, and others were obliged to return to Dunkirk.
From Montrose, where he arrived about the end of November, Lord
John despatched part of his forces to Aberdeen to aid Lord Lewis
Gordon, and proceeded with the rest to Perth, where he established
his head-quarters. In terms of his instructions, he sent a messenger
to England with a letter to Count Nassau, the commander-in-chief of
the Dutch auxiliaries, notifying his arrival, and requiring him to
observe a neutrality. He also carried letters to the commanders of
the royal forces. The bearer of these despatches, having obtained an
escort of eight dragoons at Stirling, proceeded to Edinburgh, and
having delivered a letter to General Guest, the commander of the
castle, went on to Newcastle, and delivered letters to the Count and
Marshal Wade. The Marshal, however, refused to receive any message
“from a person who was a subject of the king, and in rebellion
against his majesty.” At the same time his lordship sent another
messenger with a letter to Lord Fortrose, announcing his arrival,
and urging him to declare for the prince as the only mode he had of
retrieving his character. To induce him to join, Lord John informed
his lordship that the prince had entered Wales, where he had about
10,000 friends, and that “his royal highness, the Duke of York,”
accompanied by Lord Marischal, would immediately join him at the head
of 10,000 men.[1048]
Apprehensive that Lord John would cross the Forth above Stirling,
two regiments of foot, and Hamilton’s and Gardiner’s dragoons, which
had arrived at Edinburgh from Berwick, on the 14th of November,
began their march to Stirling, on the 7th of December, to guard the
passages of the Forth, and were joined at Stirling by the Glasgow
regiment of 600 men, commanded by the Earl of Home. Lord John
Drummond, however, it appears, had no intention of crossing the Forth
at this time.
Almost simultaneously with Lord John Drummond’s expedition, the
French ministers appear to have contemplated a descent upon England
under Lord Marischal, preparatory to which, Prince Henry repaired, by
invitation, to Paris. Twelve thousand men were to have been employed
upon this expedition; but the retreat of Charles from Derby, and the
difficulty of transporting such a large force to England, seem to
have prevented its execution.
On arriving at Derby, Charles had sent forward a party on the road to
London to take possession of Swarkstone bridge, about six miles from
Derby. Orders had been given to break down this bridge, but before
these orders could be put in execution, the Highlanders had possessed
themselves of it. The Duke of Cumberland, who, before this movement,
had left Stafford with the main body of his army for Stone, returned
to the former place, on the 4th of December, on learning that the
Highland army was at Derby. Apprehending that it was the intention
of Charles to march to London, he resolved to retire towards
Northampton, in order to intercept him; but finding that the young
Chevalier remained at Derby, his royal highness halted, and encamped
on Meriden Common in the neighbourhood of Coventry.[1049]
Agreeably to a resolution which had been entered into the previous
evening, the Highland army began its retreat early on the morning of
the 6th of December, before daybreak. Scarcely any of the officers,
with the exception of those of the council, were aware of the
resolution, and all the common men were entirely ignorant of the
step they were about to take. To have communicated such a resolution
to the army all at once, would, in its present disposition,
have produced a mutiny. To keep the army in suspense as to its
destination, a quantity of powder and ball was distributed among the
men, as if they were going into action, and by some it was insinuated
that Wade was at hand, and that they were going to fight him; whilst
by others it was said that the Duke of Cumberland’s army was the
object of their attack.[1050] At the idea of meeting the enemy, the
Highlanders displayed the greatest cheerfulness; but as soon as they
could discriminate by daylight the objects around them, and could
discover by an examination of the road, that they were retracing
their steps, nothing was to be heard throughout the whole army, but
expressions of rage and lamentation. Had it sustained a defeat,
the grief of the army could not have been more acute. Even some of
those who were in the secret of the retreat, and thought it the only
reasonable scheme that could be adopted, could scarcely be reconciled
to it when about to be carried into effect.[1051]
Charles himself partook deeply of the distress of his men. Overcome
by the intensity of his feelings, he was unable for a time to proceed
with the army, and it was not until his men had been several hours on
their march that he left Derby. Forced in spite of himself to give
a reluctant assent to a measure, which, whilst it rendered useless
all the advantages he had obtained, rendered his chance of gaining
the great stake he was contending for extremely problematical;
his spirits sunk within him, and an air of melancholy marked his
exterior. In marching forwards, he had always been first up in the
morning, put his men in motion before break of day, and had generally
walked on foot; but in the retreat, his conduct was totally changed.
Instead of taking the lead, he allowed the army to start long before
he left his quarters, kept the rear always behind waiting for him,
and when he came out, mounted his horse, and rode straight forward to
his next quarters with the van.[1052]
After the first burst of indignation had in some degree subsided,
and when the men began to speculate upon the reasons which could
have induced the retreat, a statement was given out that the
reinforcements expected from Scotland were on the road, and had
already entered England,--that Wade was endeavouring to intercept
them,--that the object of the retrograde movement was to effect a
junction with them,--and that as soon as these reinforcements had
joined the army, the march to London would be resumed. It was hinted
that they would probably meet these reinforcements about Preston or
Lancaster. The prospect thus held out to them of a speedy advance
upon London, tended to allay the passions of the men, but they
continued sullen and silent during the whole of the day.[1053]
The army lay the first night at Ashbourne. It reached Leek next day;
but that town being too small to accommodate the army, Elcho’s and
Pitsligo’s horse, and Ogilvy’s and Roy Stuart’s regiments of foot,
went on to Macclesfield, where they passed the night. The remainder
of the army came next day to Macclesfield, and the other division,
which had passed the night there, went to Stockport. On the 9th both
divisions met on the road to Manchester, and entered that town in a
body. There had been considerable rioting and confusion in Manchester
on the preceding day. Imagining from the retreat that the Highland
army had sustained a reverse, a mob had collected, and, being
reinforced by great numbers of country people with arms, had insulted
the Jacobite inhabitants, and seemed disposed to dispute the entrance
of the Highland army into the town; but upon the first appearance of
the van, the mob quietly dispersed, and order was restored.[1054]
In the retreat some abuses were committed by stragglers, who could
not be prevented from going into houses. As Lord George Murray
found great difficulty in bringing these up, he found it necessary
to appoint an expert officer out of every regiment to assist in
collecting the men belonging to their different corps who had kept
behind, a plan which he found very useful.[1055]
It was Charles’s intention to have halted a day at Manchester, and he
issued orders to that effect; but on Lord George Murray representing
to him that delay might be dangerous, the army left that town on the
forenoon of the 10th, and reached Wigan that night. Next day the army
came to Preston, where it halted the whole of the 12th. From Preston
the Duke of Perth was despatched north with 100 horse, to bring up
the reinforcements from Perth.[1056]
The prince arrived at Lancaster late in the evening of the 13th.
On reaching his quarters, Lord George Murray found that orders had
been given out, that the army was to halt there all the next day.
On visiting Charles’s quarters next morning, Lord George was told
by the prince that he had resolved to fight the enemy, and desired
him to go along with O’Sullivan, and reconnoitre the ground in the
neighbourhood for the purpose of choosing a field of battle. His
lordship, contrary to the expectations of those who had advised
Charles to fight, and who supposed that Lord George would have
opposed that measure, offered no advice on the subject. He merely
proposed that as the ground suitable for regular troops might not
answer the Highlanders, some Highland officers should also inspect
the ground, and as Lochiel was present, he requested that he would go
along with him,--a request with which he at once complied. With an
escort of horse and foot, and accompanied by Lochiel and O’Sullivan,
Lord George returned back about two miles, where he found a very
fine field upon a rising ground sufficiently large for the whole
army, and which was so situated, that from whatever quarter the enemy
could come, the army would be completely covered till the enemy were
close upon them. After surveying these grounds very narrowly, and
taking three of the enemy’s rangers prisoners, the reconnoitring
party returned to Lancaster. From the prisoners Lord George received
information that the corps called the rangers was at Garstang, and
that a great body of Wade’s dragoons had entered Preston a few
hours after he had left it. His lordship reported to the prince the
result of the survey, and told him that if the number of his men
was sufficient to meet the enemy, he could not wish a better field
of battle for the Highlanders; but Charles informed him that he had
altered his mind, and that he meant to proceed on his march next
day.[1057]
It is now necessary to notice the movements of the Duke of Cumberland
and Marshal Wade. By retaining possession of Swarkstone bridge for
some time after his main body left Derby, Charles deceived Cumberland
as to his motions, and the Highland army was two days’ march distant
from the duke’s army before he was aware of its departure from Derby.
As soon, however, as he was apprised of the retreat, the duke put
himself at the head of his horse and dragoons, and 1,000 mounted
volunteers, furnished by some of the gentlemen of Warwickshire, for
the purpose of stopping the Highlanders till the royal army should
come up, or, failing in that design, of harassing them in their
retreat. He marched by Uttoxeter and Cheadle; but the roads being
excessively bad, he did not arrive at Macclesfield till the night
of the 10th, on which day the Highland army had reached Wigan. At
Macclesfield the duke received intelligence that the Highlanders had
left Manchester that day. His royal highness thereupon sent orders to
the magistrates of Manchester to seize all stragglers belonging to
the Highland army; he directed Bligh’s regiment, then at Chester, to
march to Macclesfield, and, at the same time, ordered the Liverpool
Blues to return to Warrington, where they had been formerly posted.
Early on the 11th, he detached Major Wheatley with the dragoons in
pursuit of the Highlanders. Meanwhile Marshal Wade having held a
council of war on the 8th, at Ferrybridge, in Yorkshire, had resolved
to march by Wakefield and Halifax into Lancashire, in order to
intercept the insurgents in their retreat northwards. He accordingly
came to Wakefield on the 10th at night, where, learning that the
van-guard of the Highland army had reached Wigan, he concluded that
he would not be able to overtake it, and therefore resolved to return
to his old post at Newcastle by easy marches. He, however, detached
General Oglethorpe with the horse to join the duke. This officer
crossed Blackstone Edge with such expedition, that he reached
Preston on the same day that the Highlanders left it, having marched
about 100 miles in three days, over roads at any time unfavourable,
but now rendered almost impassable by frost and snow. At Preston,
Oglethorpe found the Georgia rangers, and was joined by a detachment
of Kingston’s horse, commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Mordaunt. Here
these united forces halted nearly a whole day, in consequence of
an express which the Duke of Cumberland had received from London,
announcing that a French expedition from Dunkirk had put to sea, and
requiring him to hold himself in readiness to return to the capital.
This information was afterwards found to be erroneous; but it was of
service to the Highlanders, who, in consequence of the halt of the
royal forces, gained a whole day’s march a-head of their pursuers.
[Illustration: Carlisle, from Stanwix Bank--1745.]
In his retreat, the chief danger the prince had to apprehend was
from the army of Wade, who, by marching straight across the country
into Cumberland, might have reached Penrith a day at least before
the prince; but by the information he received of the route taken
by Wade’s cavalry, he saw that the danger now was that the united
cavalry of both armies might fall upon his rear before he could
reach Carlisle. He therefore left Lancaster on the 15th; but the rear
of his army was scarcely out of the town when some of the enemy’s
horse entered it. The town bells were then rung, and the word being
given from the rear to the front, that the enemy was approaching, the
Highlanders formed in order of battle; but the alarm turning out to
be false, the army continued its march to Kendal. The enemy’s horse,
however, followed for two or three miles, and appeared frequently in
small parties, but attempted nothing. The army entered Kendal that
night, where they were met by the Duke of Perth and his party. In his
way north, the duke had been attacked in this town by a mob, which he
soon dispersed by firing on them; but in the neighbourhood of Penrith
he met with a more serious obstruction, having been attacked by a
considerable body of militia, both horse and foot, and being vastly
outnumbered, was obliged to retreat to Kendal.[1058]
As Lord George Murray considered it impossible to transport the
four-wheeled waggons belonging to the army to Shap, he proposed
to the prince to substitute two-wheeled carts for them,[1059] and
as he was afraid that no provisions could be obtained at Shap, he
suggested that the men should be desired to provide themselves with a
day’s provision of bread and cheese. Orders were accordingly issued
agreeably to these suggestions, but that regarding the waggons seems
not to have been attended to; and by some oversight, the order about
the provisions was not communicated to many of them till they were
on their march next morning. The consequence was, that the men who
were unprovided returned to the town, and much confusion would have
ensued, had not Lord George Murray sent some detachments of the rear
with officers into the town to preserve order, and to see the men
return to the army. This omission retarded considerably the march of
the army. The difficulties which Lord George Murray had anticipated
in transporting the waggons across the hills were realised, and by
the time he had marched four miles and got among the hills, he was
obliged to halt all night, and take up his quarters at a farm house
about a gun-shot off the road. The Glengarry men were in the rear
that day, and though reckoned by his lordship not the most patient of
mortals, he says he “never was better pleased with men in his life,”
having done all that was possible for men to do.[1060]
With the exception of the Glengarry regiment, the army passed the
night between the 16th and 17th at Shap.[1061] On the morning of the
17th, Lord George received two messages from Charles, ordering him
upon no account to leave the least thing, not so much as a cannon
ball behind, as he would rather return himself than that any thing
should be left. Though his lordship had undertaken to conduct the
retreat on the condition that he should not be troubled with the
charge of the baggage, ammunition, &c., he promised to do all in his
power to carry every thing along with him. To lighten the ammunition
waggons, some of which had broken down, his lordship prevailed
upon the men to carry about 200 cannon balls, for which service
he gave the bearers sixpence each. With difficulty the rear-guard
reached Shap that night at a late hour. Here he found most of the
cannon, and some of the ammunition with Colonel Roy Stuart and his
battalion.[1062] The same night, the prince with the main body
arrived at Penrith. Some parties of militia appeared at intervals;
but they kept at a considerable distance, without attempting
hostilities.[1063]
Early in the morning of the 18th, the rear-guard left Shap; but as
some of the small carriages were continually breaking, its march was
much retarded. It had not proceeded far when some parties of English
light-horse were observed hovering at some distance on the eminences
behind the rear-guard. Lord George Murray notified the circumstance
to the prince at Penrith; but as it was supposed that these were
militia, the information was treated lightly. No attempt was made to
attack the rear-guard, or obstruct its progress, till about mid-day,
when a body of between 200 and 300 horse, chiefly Cumberland people,
formed in front of the rear-guard, behind an eminence near Clifton
Hall, and seemed resolved to make a stand. Lord George Murray was
about to ascend this eminence, when the party was observed marching
two and two abreast on the top of the hill. They suddenly disappeared
to form themselves in order of battle behind the eminence, and made
a great noise with trumpets and kettle-drums. At this time two of
the companies of Roy Stuart’s regiment, which the Duke of Perth had
attached to the artillery, were at the head of the column. The guns
and ammunition waggons followed, behind the two other companies of
the same regiment. The Glengarry regiment, which marched with Lord
George Murray at its head, was in the rear of the column. Believing,
from the great number of trumpets and kettle-drums, that the English
army was at hand, the rear-guard remained for a short time at the
bottom of the hill, as if at a loss how to act in a conjuncture
which appeared so desperate. It was the opinion of Colonel Brown,
an officer of Lally’s regiment, who was at the head of the column,
that they should rush upon the enemy sword in hand, and either open
a passage to the army at Penrith, or perish in the attempt. The men
of the four companies adopting this opinion, immediately ran up the
hill, without informing Lord George Murray of their resolution; and
his lordship, on observing this movement, immediately ordered the
Glengarry men to proceed across the inclosure, and ascend the hill
from another quarter, as they could not conveniently pass the waggons
which had almost blocked up the roads. The Glengarry men, throwing
off their plaids, reached the summit of the hill almost as soon as
the head of the column, on gaining which, both parties were agreeably
surprised to find, that the only enemy in view was the light horse
they had observed a few minutes before, and who, alarmed at the
appearance of the Highlanders, galloped off in disorder. One of the
fugitives fell from his horse, and was cut to pieces in an instant by
the Highlanders.[1064]
The rear-guard resumed its march, and on reaching the village of
Clifton, Lord George Murray sent the artillery and heavy baggage
forward to Penrith under a small escort. Being well acquainted
with all the inclosures and parks about Lowther Hall, the seat of
Lord Lonsdale, about the distance of a mile from Clifton, Lord
George Murray, at the head of the Glengary regiment and some horse,
examined these parks and inclosures in the hope of falling in with
the light horse; but, although he saw several of them, he only
succeeded in making two prisoners. By these prisoners Lord George
was informed that the duke himself, with a body of 4,000 horse,
was about a mile behind him. As Clifton was a very good post, Lord
George Murray resolved to remain there; and on his return to the
village he sent Colonel Roy Stuart with the two prisoners to Penrith,
to inform Charles of the near approach of the duke, and that he
would remain at Clifton till further orders. In the event of the
prince approving of his intention of making a stand at Preston, his
lordship requested that 1,000 men might be sent him from Penrith. On
returning to Clifton from Lowther parks, Lord George found the Duke
of Perth there; and, besides Colonel Roy Stuart’s men, who amounted
to about 200, he also found the Macphersons with their chief,
Cluny Macpherson, and the Stewarts of Appin, headed by Stewart of
Ardshiel.[1065]
[Illustration: FRASER. (Tartan)]
Before the return of Colonel Roy Stuart from Penrith, the enemy
appeared in sight, and proceeded to form themselves into two lines
upon Clifton moor, about half a mile from the village. The Duke of
Perth thereupon rode back to Penrith to bring up the rest of the army
to support Lord George, who he supposed would, from the strength
of his position, be able to maintain himself till joined by the
main body. The duke was accompanied by an English gentleman who had
attended Lord George during the retreat, and, knowing the country
perfectly well, had offered to lead without discovery the main body a
near way by the left, by which movement they would be enabled to fall
upon the enemy’s flank. Had Lord George received the reinforcement
he required, his design was to have sent half of his men through the
inclosures on his right, so as to have flanked the duke’s army on
that side, whilst it was attacked on the other by the other half.
He expected that if he succeeded in killing but a small number of
Cumberland’s horse that the rest would be thrown into disorder, and
that as they would be obliged to retreat through a lane nearly a mile
long, between Lord Lonsdale’s inclosures, that they would choke up
the road, and that many of them would be unable to escape. In absence
of this reinforcement, however, the Lieutenant-general was obliged
to make the best dispositions he could with the force he had with
him, which amounted to about 1,000 men in all, exclusive of Lord
Pitsligo’s horse and hussars, who, on the appearance of the enemy,
shamefully fled to Penrith.[1066]
The dispositions of Lord George were these. Within the inclosures
to the right of the highway he posted the Glengarry men, and
within those to their left he placed the Stewarts of Appin and the
Macphersons. On the side of the highway, and close to the village of
Clifton, he placed Colonel Roy Stuart’s regiment. As some ditches
at the foot stretched farther towards the moor on the right than on
the left, and as that part was also covered by Lord Lonsdale’s other
inclosures, the party on the right could not easily be attacked; and
they had this advantage, that they could with their fire flank the
enemy when they attacked the left. To induce the enemy to believe
that his numbers were much greater than they were, Lord George, after
exhibiting the colours he had at different places, caused them to be
rolled up, carried to other places, and again unfurled.[1067]
About an hour after the Duke of Cumberland had formed his men, about
500 of his dragoons dismounted and advanced forward to the foot of
the moor, in front of a ditch at the bottom of one of three small
inclosures between the moor and the places where Roy Stuart’s men
were posted at the village. At this time Colonel Stuart returned
from Penrith, and, after informing Lord George that the prince had
resolved to march immediately to Carlisle, and that he had sent
forward his cannon, he stated that it was his royal highness’s desire
that he should immediately retreat to Penrith. From the situation
in which the Lieutenant-general was now placed, it was impossible
to obey this order without great danger. The dismounted horse were
already firing upon the Highlanders, who were within musket-shot;
and, if retreat was once begun, the men might get into confusion in
the dark, and become discouraged. Lord George proposed to attack the
dismounted party, and stated his confidence that he would be able by
attacking them briskly to dislodge them; Cluny Macpherson and Colonel
Stuart concurring in Lord George’s opinion, that the course he
proposed was the only prudent one that could be adopted, they agreed
not to mention the message from the prince.
In pursuance of this determination, Lord George Murray went to the
right where the Glengarry men were posted, and ordered them, as
soon as they should observe him advance on the other side, to move
also forward and keep up a smart fire till they came to the lowest
ditch. He observed that if they succeeded in dislodging the enemy
from the hedges and ditches, they could give them a flank fire
within pistol-shot; but he gave them particular injunctions not
to fire across the highway, nor to follow the enemy up the moor.
After speaking with every officer of the Glengarry regiment, his
lordship returned to the left, and placed himself at the head of the
Macphersons, with Cluny by his side. It was now about an hour after
sunset, and the night was somewhat cloudy; but at short intervals the
moon, which was in its second quarter, broke through and afforded
considerable light. The Highlanders had this advantage, that whilst
they could see the disposition of the enemy, their own movements
could not be observed. In taking their ground the dismounted
dragoons had not only lined the bottom inclosures which ran from
east to west, directly opposite the other inclosures in which the
Highlanders were posted, but some of them had advanced up along two
hedges that lay south and north.
The Highlanders being ready to advance, the Stewarts and Macphersons
marched forward at the word of command, as did the Macdonalds on the
right. The Highlanders on the right kept firing as they advanced;
but the Macphersons, who were on the left, came sooner in contact
with the dragoons, and received the whole of their fire. When the
balls were whizzing about them, Cluny exclaimed, “What the devil is
this?” Lord George told him that they had no remedy but to attack
the dragoons, sword in hand, before they had time to charge again.
Then drawing his sword, he cried out, “Claymore,” and Cluny doing
the same, the Macphersons rushed down to the bottom ditch of the
inclosure, and clearing the diagonal hedges as they went, fell sword
in hand upon the enemy, of whom a considerable number were killed at
the lower ditch. The rest fled across the moor, but received in their
flight the fire of the Glengarry regiment. In this skirmish only
twelve Highlanders were killed; but the royal forces sustained a loss
of about one hundred in killed and wounded, including some officers.
The only officer wounded on the side of the Highlanders was Macdonald
of Lochgarry, who commanded the Glengarry men. Lord George Murray
made several narrow escapes. Old Glenbucket, who, from infirmity,
remained at the end of the village on horseback, had lent him his
target, and it was fortunate for Lord George that he had done so. By
means of this shield, which was convex, and covered with a plate of
metal painted, his lordship protected himself from the bullets of
the dragoons, which cleared away the paint off the target in several
places.[1068] The only prisoner taken on this occasion was a footman
of the Duke of Cumberland, who stated that his master would have been
killed, if a pistol, with which a Highlander took aim at his head,
had not missed fire. This man was sent back to his royal highness by
the prince.[1069]
After remaining a short time at Clifton after the skirmish, Lord
George went to Penrith, where he found the prince ready to mount
for Carlisle. His royal highness was very well pleased with the
result of the action. The men who had been engaged halted at Penrith
a short time to refresh themselves; and the prince, after sending
Clanranald’s and Keppoch’s regiments as far back as Clifton bridge,
to induce the inhabitants to believe that he meant to fight the Duke
of Cumberland, left Penrith for Carlisle with the main body. Next
morning the whole army reached Carlisle, where the prince found
letters, though rather of an old date, from Lord John Drummond and
Lord Strathallan. Lord John gave him great encouragement from the
court of France, and informed his royal highness that it was the
desire of the King of France that the prince should proceed with
great caution, and if possible avoid a decisive action till he
received the succours the king intended to send him, which would be
such as to put his success beyond all doubt, and that, in the mean
time, he (Lord John) had brought over some troops and a train of
artillery, sufficient to reduce all the fortresses in Scotland. Lord
Strathallan gave a very favourable account of the state of the army
assembled at Perth, which he represented as better than that which
the prince had with him. As nothing positive, however, was known
at Carlisle of the operation of the Jacobite forces in the north,
Charles resolved to continue the retreat into Scotland. Contrary
to the opinion of Lord George Murray, who advised him to evacuate
Carlisle, Charles resolved to leave a garrison there to facilitate
his return into England, of which at the time he had strong hopes
when joined by the forces under Lords Strathallan and Drummond.[1070]
As Carlisle was not tenable, and as the Highland army could easily
have re-entered England independent of any obstruction from any
garrison which could be put into it, the conduct of Charles in
leaving a portion of his army behind has been justly reprehended;
but there is certainly no room for the accusation which has been
made against him, of having wilfully sacrificed the unfortunate
garrison.[1071] It was not without difficulty that Charles
could make up a garrison. The Duke of Perth was unwilling to
allow any of his men to remain; and appearing to complain in the
presence of the prince that a certain number of the Athole men had
not been draughted for that service, Lord George Murray told him,
also in the prince’s presence, that if his royal highness would order
him, he would stay with the Athole brigade, though he knew what his
fate would be.[1072] The number of men left in garrison amounted to
about 400. Mr. Hamilton was continued in the command of the castle,
and Mr. Townley was made commandant of the town.
The Highland army halted the whole of the 19th in Carlisle, and
departed next day for Scotland. The Esk, which forms part of the
boundary between England and Scotland on the west, was, from an
incessant rain of several days, rendered impassable by the nearest
road from Carlisle; but at the distance of about eight miles from
Carlisle it was still fordable. The army reached the place, where
they intended to cross, about two o’clock in the afternoon. Before
crossing the water, the following route was fixed upon by the advice
of Lord George Murray, whose opinion had been asked by Charles in
presence of some of his officers, viz., that Lord George, with six
battalions, should march that night to Ecclefechan, next day to
Moffat, and there halt a day; and after making a feint towards the
Edinburgh road, as if he intended to march upon the capital, to turn
off to Douglas, then to Hamilton and Glasgow,--that the prince should
go with the clans and most of the horse that night to Annan, next
day to Dumfries, where they should rest a day; then to Drumlanrig,
Leadhills, Douglas, and Hamilton, so as to be at Glasgow the day
after the arrival in that city of Lord George’s division.[1073]
Though the river was usually shallow at the place fixed upon for
passing, it was now swollen, by continued rains, to the depth of
four feet. The passage was not without its dangers; but as the river
might be rendered impassable by a continuation of the rain during
the night, and as it was possible that the Duke of Cumberland might
reach the Esk next morning, it was resolved to cross it immediately.
After trying the water to ascertain that the ford was good, a body
of cavalry formed in the river, a few paces above the ford, to break
the force of the stream, and another body was likewise stationed in
the river below the ford to pick up such of the infantry as might be
carried away by the violence of the current. This arrangement being
completed, the infantry entered the river a hundred men abreast,
each holding one another by the neck of the coat, by which plan they
supported one another against the rapidity of the river, leaving
sufficient intervals between their ranks for the passage of the
water. Lord George Murray, who was among the first to enter the water
in his philibeg, says, that when nearly across, there were about
2,000 men in the water at once. The appearance of the river, in the
interval between the cavalry, presented an extraordinary spectacle.
As the heads of the Highlanders were generally all that was seen
above the water, the space of water occupied in the passage looked
like a paved street. Not one man was lost in the transit; but a few
girls who had followed their lovers in their adventurous campaign,
were swept away by the current. After the army had passed, the pipes
began to play; and the Highlanders, happy on setting their feet again
on Scottish ground, forgot for a time the disappointment they had
suffered at Derby, and testified their joy by dancing reels upon the
northern bank of the Esk.[1074]
The expedition into England, though not signalised by any great
military achievement, will always hold a distinguished place in the
annals of bold and adventurous enterprise. It was planned and carried
through in all its details with great judgment; and if circumstances
had not delayed its execution, it might have terminated in success.
From the consternation into which the English people were thrown by
the invasion of the Highland army,[1075] it seems certain, that
without the aid of a regular army their militia would scarcely have
ventured to oppose the march of the Highlanders to the metropolis;
but after the return of the British forces from Flanders, the arrival
of the Dutch auxiliaries, and the assembling of the armies under
Wade and Ligonier, the attempt appeared to be hopeless. It was
not, however, until the retreat from Derby that the government was
relieved from its anxiety for the safety of the monarchy.
The Duke of Cumberland halted at Penrith on the 20th of December,
and marched next day to Carlisle, which he invested the same day.
As he was under the necessity of sending to Whitehaven for heavy
cannon, the fire from his batteries did not commence till the morning
of the 28th. During the blockade the garrison fired repeatedly upon
the besiegers, but with little effect. A fire was kept up by the
besiegers from a battery of six eighteen-pounders, during the 28th
and 29th. Another battery of three thirteen-pounders was completed
on the 30th; but on the first fire from the old battery that day,
the besieged hung out a white flag, and offered hostages for a
capitulation. The Duke of Cumberland, on observing this signal, sent
one of his aides-de-camp with a note, desiring to know its meaning;
to which Governor Hamilton answered, that the object was to obtain
a cessation for a capitulation, and desiring to know what terms his
royal highness would grant to the garrison. The only condition the
duke would grant was, that the garrison should not be put to the
sword, but be reserved for the king’s pleasure; and Hamilton, seeing
the impossibility of holding out, surrendered the same day. The
garrison, including officers, consisted of 114 men of the Manchester
regiment; of 274 men, also including officers, chiefly of the Scotch
low country regiments, and a few Frenchmen and Irishmen. The number
of cannon in the castle was sixteen, ten of which had been left by
the Highland army on its return to Scotland. Among the prisoners were
found twelve deserters from the royal forces, who were immediately
hanged. The officers were kept prisoners in the castle, but the
privates were confined in the cathedral and town-jail. The whole were
afterwards dispersed in several jails through England. The Duke of
Cumberland, after putting Bligh’s regiment in garrison at Carlisle,
returned to London, in consequence of an order from court.[1076]
FOOTNOTES:
[988] _Kirkconnel MS._ Lord George Murray’s Narrative, in _Jacobite
Memoirs_, p. 47.
[989] _Kirkconnel MS._
[990] _Kirkconnel MS._
[991] The Highland army about the middle of November, according to a
list then published, was thus composed:--
_Regiments._ _Colonels._ _Men._
Lochiel, Cameron, younger of Lochiel, 740
Appin, Stewart of Ardshiel, 360
Athole, Lord George Murray, 1,000
Clanranald, Macdonald, yr. of Clanranald 200
Keppoch, Macdonald of Keppoch, 400
Glencoe, Macdonald of Glencoe, 200
Ogilvy, Lord Ogilvy, 500
Glenbucket, Gordon of Glenbucket, 427
Perth, { Duke of Perth (including } 750
{ Pitsligo’s foot), }
Robertson, Robertson of Strowan, 200
Maclauchlan, Maclauchlan of Maclauchlan, 260
Glencairnock, Macgregor of Glencairnock, 300
Nairne, Lord Nairne, 200
Edinburgh, John Roy Stewart, 450
Several small corps, 1,000
Horse, { Lord Elcho, } 160
{ Lord Kilmarnock, }
Horse, Lord Pitsligo’s, 140
-----
7,287
The numbers, however, are overrated.
[992] _Memoirs_, p. 113.
[993] Letters from Moor and Smart, two of the agents of the Chevalier
de St. George, will be found among the _Stuart Papers_. Smart held
an appointment in the London post-office, and is often alluded to in
the correspondence between Sempil and Drummond of Bochaldy, and the
Chevalier, as their “post-office correspondent.” Smart was furnished
with a list of the addresses, under which the correspondence between
the Chevalier’s agents on the continent, and their friends in
England, was carried on, and, as his duty appears to have been to
examine all letters passing through the post-office, he passed the
letters to such addresses without examination. When he found any
letters from abroad, giving information to the government about
the Jacobite party, he always burnt them.--Letter from Drummond to
the Chevalier de St. George, 19th October, 1745, among the _Stuart
Papers_.
[994] _Stuart Papers._
[995] Marchant, p. 161.
[996] _Kirkconnel MS._
[997] Lockhart _Papers_, vol. ii. p. 455.
[998] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 56.
[999] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 57.
[1000] Lord George Murray’s Narrative, _Jacobite Memoirs_, pp. 47, 48.
[1001] _Lockhart Papers_, vol. ii. p. 493.
[1002] Ray, p. 96.
[1003] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1004] Marchant, p. 169.
[1005] Boyse, p. 100.
[1006] Marchant, p. 169.
[1007] Ray, p. 99. Boyse, p. 100.
[1008] Maxwell of Kirkconnel.
[1009] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1010] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 49.
[1011] _Jacobite Memoirs_, pp. 49-50.
[1012] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 52.
[1013] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1014] _Scotland_, (1689-1747) vol. ii. p. 476.
[1015] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1016] Boyse, p. 101.
[1017] _Culloden Papers_, p. 255.
[1018] The Chevalier Johnstone says it did not exceed 4,500; and
Maxwell of Kirkconnel, that it amounted to 4,400.
[1019] Lord George Murray’s Narrative, _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 48.
Home’s _Rebellion_, p. 143.
[1020] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1021] So called, to distinguish them from the clan regiments, though
the greater part were Highlanders, and wore the Highland garb, which
was indeed the dress of the whole army.--_Idem._
[1022] Charles, during his stay at Carlisle, lived in the house of
a Mr. Hymer, an attorney, to whom he paid twenty guineas, being
five guineas _per diem_, for the use of his house, as noted in the
prince’s household book, published in the _Jacobite Memoirs_. James
Gib, his master of household, appears to have grudged Charles’s
liberality, as he observes that Hymer furnished nothing, not even
coal or candle; and, moreover, that he and his wife had every day
two dishes of meat at dinner, and as many at supper, at the cost of
the prince. But Charles’s liberality was not confined to landlords,
for Gib states, that whenever he happened to pass even a night in
a gentleman’s house, his ordinary custom was to give at least five
guineas of ‘drink-money’ to the servants.
[1023] _Kirkconnel MS._ _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 49.
[1024] _Lockhart Papers_, vol. ii. p. 457.
[1025] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 52.
[1026] At Wigan, Charles gave “a woman” ten guineas for one night
for the use of her house, her husband, “a squire, being from
home.”--_Household Book._
[1027] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 63. This statement of the Chevalier
Johnstone’s is corroborated in the main by a contemporary journal in
Marchant, p. 197.
[1028] Boyse, p. 103.
[1029] _Kirkconnel MS._ Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 66.
[1030] Boyse, p. 104.
[1031] Lord George Murray’s Narrative, in _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 53.
[1032] When Weir was taken, Mr. Maxwell says, “he was immediately
known to be the same person that had been employed in that
business in Flanders, the year before. It was proposed to hang him
immediately, in punishment of what he had done, and to prevent the
mischief he might do in case the prince did not succeed. But the
prince could not be brought to consent. He still insisted that Weir
was not, properly speaking, a spy, since he was not found in the army
in disguise. I cannot tell whether the prince, on this occasion, was
guided by his opinion or by his inclination. I suspect the latter,
because it was his constant practice to spare his enemies, when they
were in his power. I don’t believe there was one instance to the
contrary to be found in his whole expedition.”--_Kirkconnel MS._
[1033] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 54.--_Kirkconnel MS._
[1034] Boyse, p. 164.
[1035] Marchant, p. 202. Boyse, p. 164.
[1036] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 78.
[1037] Burton discredits these statements, there being, he says, no
contemporary evidence in their favour.--_Scotland_ (1689-1747), vol.
ii. p. 483.
[1038] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 75.
[1039] Idem, p. 67.
[1040] Burton appears to think that there was little danger of any
serious consequences following the possession of London by Charles.
“The days were long past,” he says, “when the rising of a body of
the English gentry brought a certain force into the field; and a few
wealthy peers and squires, with their lacqueys and grooms, would have
gone little way to help some five thousand janissaries in keeping
down the people of England.”--_Scotland_ (1689-1747), vol. ii. p. 485.
[1041] Lord George Murray’s _Narrative_. _Kirkconnel MS._
[1042] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 71.
[1043] There seems to be an apparent discrepancy between Lord
George’s statement, (_Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 55,) and that of the
Chevalier Johnstone, (_Memoirs_, p. 71,) relative to the conduct
of the Duke of Perth: but the account in the text agrees with the
account of Charles himself, (in Appendix, No. 33, to Home’s _Works_,)
who says, that with the exception of himself, all the members of the
council “were of opinion that the retreat was absolutely necessary.”
[1044] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 56.
[1045] Id. p. 57.
[1046] Idem. _Kirkconnel MS._
[1047] See these instructions in the _Stuart Papers_.
[1048] Home, Appendix, No. 35.
[1049] Boyse, p. 106.
[1050] _Kirkconnel MS._ Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 78.
[1051] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1052] Lord George Murray’s Narrative in _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 59.
[1053] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1054] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1055] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 58.
[1056] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1057] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 60. _Kirkconnel MS._
[1058] Lockhart _Papers_, vol. ii. p. 460. _Kirkconnel MS._
[1059] Maxwell of Kirkconnel gives a different version of this
matter from that of Lord George Murray. After stating that his
lordship represented to Charles the dangerous situation he might
be in if the united armies of Wade and Cumberland overtook him
before reaching Carlisle, he says that Lord George “proposed to
avoid them by sacrificing the cannon and all the heavy baggage to
the safety of the men, which was now at stake. He observed that the
country is mountainous betwixt Kendal and Penrith, and the roads,
in many places, very difficult for such carriages; but the prince
was positive not to leave a single piece of his cannon. He would
rather fight both their armies than give such an argument of fear
and weakness. He gave peremptory orders that the march should be
continued in the same order as hitherto, and not a single carriage to
be left at Kendal.”
[1060] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 63.
[1061] In the prince’s _Household Book_, printed among the _Jacobite
Memoirs_, the following entries occur:--
Dec. 17th, at Shape, Tuesday.
To ale, wine, and other provisions, £4 17
The landlady for the use of her house, 2 2
N. B. The landlady a sad wife for imposing.
[1062] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 65.
[1063] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1064] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 87.
[1065] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 66.
[1066] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 68.
[1067] Idem, p. 67.
[1068] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 72.--_Lockhart Papers_, vol. ii. p. 463.
[1069] Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 92.
[1070] _Kirkconnel MS._
[1071] Alluding to the retention of Carlisle, Mr. Maxwell observes,
“This was perhaps the worst resolution the prince had taken hitherto.
I cannot help condemning it, though there were specious pretexts
for it. It was, to be sure, much for the prince’s reputation upon
leaving England, to keep one of the keys of it, and he was in hopes
of returning before it could be taken; but he could not be absolutely
sure of that, and the place was not tenable against a few pieces of
artillery, of battering cannon, or a few mortars. It’s true he had a
good many prisoners in Scotland, and might look upon them as pledges
for the lives of those he left in garrison; but that was not enough.
He did not know what kind of people he had to deal with, and he
ought to be prepared against the worst that could happen. The lives
of so many of his friends ought not to have been exposed without an
indispensable necessity, which was not the case; for blowing up the
castle, and the gates of the town, would have equally given him an
entry into England.”
[1072] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 73.
[1073] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 73.
[1074] _Jacobite Memoirs_, p. 74.--Johnstone’s _Memoirs_, p. 99.
[1075] “The terror of the English,” says the Chevalier Johnstone,
_Memoirs_, p. 101, “was truly inconceivable, and in many cases they
seemed quite bereft of their senses. One evening as Mr. Cameron of
Lochiel entered the lodgings assigned to him, his landlady, an old
woman, threw herself at his feet, and with uplifted hands and tears
in her eyes, supplicated him to take her life, but to spare her two
little children. He asked her if she was in her senses, and told
her to explain herself; when she answered, that every body said
the Highlanders ate children, and made them their common food. Mr.
Cameron having assured her that they would not injure either her
or her little children, or any person whatever, she looked at him
for some moments with an air of surprise, and then opened a press,
calling out with a loud voice, ‘Come out children; the gentleman
will not eat you.’ The children immediately left the press where
she had concealed them, and threw themselves at his feet. They
affirmed in the newspapers of London that we had dogs in our army
trained to fight, and that we were indebted for our victory at
Gladsmuir to these dogs, who darted with fury on the English army.
They represented the Highlanders as monsters, with claws instead
of hands. In a word, they never ceased to circulate, every day,
the most extravagant and ridiculous stories with respect to the
Highlanders. The English soldiers had indeed reason to look upon us
as extraordinary men, from the manner in which we had beaten them
with such inferior numbers, and they probably told these idle stories
to the country people by way of palliating their own disgrace.” The
able editor of Johnstone’s _Memoirs_ relates in a note to the above,
that Mr. Halkston of Rathillet, who was in the expedition, stated
that the belief was general among the people of England, that the
Highlanders ate children:--“While the army lay at Carlisle he was
taken ill, and went with a few of his companions to a farmer’s house
in the neighbourhood, where he remained several days. Perceiving his
landlady to be a young woman, he asked her if she had any children,
and where they were. When she found that he was no cannibal, she told
him the truth was, that all the children were sent out of the way for
fear the Highlanders should devour them.”
A Derby gentleman, who had a party of forty men quartered in his
house, in a letter which appeared in all the newspapers of the
period, describes most of them as looking “like so many fiends turned
out of hell to ravage the kingdom and cut throats; and under their
plaids nothing but various sorts of butchering weapons were to be
seen.” He complains that they had eaten up “near a side of beef,
eight joints of mutton, four cheeses, with abundance of white and
brown bread, (particularly white,) three couples of fowls, and would
have drams continually, as well as strong-ale, beer, tea, &c.” In
the midst of this general devastation our host was convulsed with
“unavoidable laughter to see these desperadoes, from officers to the
common men, at their several meals, first pull off their bonnets, and
then lift up their eyes in a most solemn manner, and mutter something
to themselves, by way of saying grace, as if they had been so many
pure primitive Christians!!!” This is merely a specimen of the many
ridiculous stories with which the English journals of the period were
crammed.
[1076] Boyse, p. 129.