In the summer of 1745, a young man with a claim to three thrones landed secretly on a remote Scottish island, carrying little more than ambition, a modest war chest, and the hopes of an exiled dynasty. Prince Charles Edward Stuart—known to history as Bonnie Prince Charlie—would launch what became the final and most dramatic chapter of the Jacobite struggle. The Jacobite Rising of 1745 represents one of Scotland's most pivotal moments: a bold attempt to restore the Stuart line that would ultimately reshape the Highlands and end an era of clan power. This is the story of a prince's audacious gamble and the consequences that would echo through Scottish history for generations.
Understanding the Jacobite Cause
To understand why Bonnie Prince Charlie's arrival in 1745 sparked such fervent support, we must first grasp what the Jacobite movement represented. The term "Jacobite" derives from Jacobus, the Latin name for James, and referred to those who supported the restoration of the exiled Stuart line. The movement began in 1688 when King James VII of Scotland and II of England—a Roman Catholic—was deposed during the Glorious Revolution, replaced by the Protestant William of Orange and subsequently by the Hanoverian dynasty under George I and George II.
For nearly sixty years, Jacobites across Scotland, England, and the Continent plotted and dreamed of restoring their rightful king. Charles Edward Stuart represented a new generation of hope. As the son of James Francis Edward Stuart (the "Old Pretender"), Charles embodied the Stuart claim and, crucially, he was young, energetic, and willing to take extraordinary risks. Bonnie Prince Charlie believed that the thrones of the three kingdoms were his birthright, and he had one singular aim: to use the Jacobite movement to defeat and remove the Hanoverian "usurper" George II.
The Secret Landing and Early Momentum
From France to the Hebrides
Charles's path to Scotland was born of frustration and opportunity. A planned French invasion of Britain in early 1744 had been abandoned due to severe weather, leaving the young prince kicking his heels in Paris whilst his chief supporter, King Louis XV of France, showed little appetite for renewed commitment. Losing patience, Charles made a characteristically bold decision: he would gather arms and a modest war chest, and launch his own invasion without waiting for French support.
On 23 July 1745, Charles secretly set sail from Brittany with a small party, landing at Eriskay in the Outer Hebrides. His audacious—or reckless—plan was to gain a foothold in the western Highlands, rally support en route south, meet up with a French invasion force at London, and remove George II. With luck and the element of surprise, for a time it proved almost as straightforward as that.
Raising the Standard at Glenfinnan
On 19 August 1745, Charles launched the rebellion formally by raising the Royal Standard at Glenfinnan in the Scottish Highlands. Witnessed by approximately 700 Highlanders, this moment marked the official beginning of what would become the final Jacobite rising. The small Jacobite force, using the new government-built roads to their advantage, reached Perth on 4 September, where they were joined by more sympathisers, including Lord George Murray, a seasoned military commander previously pardoned for participation in the 1715 and 1719 risings.
The early campaign demonstrated remarkable success. Edinburgh surrendered on 17 September without significant resistance, and on 21 September, Charles achieved an unexpected and resounding victory against Sir John Cope and his British army troops at Prestonpans. The key to their success was the Highland charge—a fast and furious manoeuvre that regular troops had little or no experience of. For a moment, it seemed the impossible might be possible.
The March into England and the Turning Point
Emboldened by their victories, the Jacobite army marched south-east towards England. At a council in October, the Scots agreed to invade England after Charles assured them of substantial support from English Jacobites and a simultaneous French landing in Southern England. On that basis, the Jacobite army entered England in early November, but neither of these assurances proved accurate. The promised English rising never materialised, and no French invasion force appeared.
By early December, the Jacobite army had reached Derby—just 125 miles from London—but the absence of English support and the growing strength of government forces pursuing them created a crisis of confidence. On 4 December, at a council of war, the decision was made to retreat. This moment, more than any other, sealed the fate of the rising. The army that had seemed unstoppable began its withdrawal northward, and with each mile travelled away from London, the psychological advantage shifted decisively to the government.
The Catastrophe at Culloden
The Final Battle
The Jacobite army retreated to Scotland, where they hoped to regroup and renew their campaign. However, on 16 April 1746, near Inverness, the two armies faced each other at Culloden. The government forces, commanded by the Duke of Cumberland (King George II's son), numbered approximately 9,000 men and were equipped with superior artillery. The Jacobite army, numbering around 5,000, was exhausted, hungry, and demoralised.
The battle itself was brief and catastrophic. Pounded by artillery, the outnumbered Jacobites launched a fearsome Highland sword charge—the traditional tactic that had served them so well at Prestonpans. But this time, Cumberland's soldiers held firm with their bayonets. The Highland charge, for all its ferocity, could not overcome disciplined infantry armed with modern weapons. Charles's army was routed, and the Bonnie Prince was forced to make a dramatic escape to France.
The Aftermath and Pacification
The defeat at Culloden was crushing, but it is a common misconception that it instantly ended the Jacobite threat. The British government and army commanders alike believed that with Charles in France agitating for troops and money to renew his campaign, and whilst France was still at war with Britain, the Jacobite threat remained very much alive. The Duke of Cumberland believed that another battle could occur in the months following Culloden.
However, the various acts introduced after the battle—particularly the Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act of 1746, which abolished the traditional judicial rights afforded to Scottish clan chiefs—worked in concert with the pacification of the Highlands to make another rising extremely unlikely. The old clan system, which had sustained Jacobitism, was being systematically dismantled.
The Lingering Hope and Final Abandonment
What truly ended the 1745 rising was the peace reached between Great Britain and France in 1748, with one of the terms being that Charles was to be removed from French territory. Yet even this did not extinguish the prince's hopes entirely. In 1750, whilst still in his twenties, Bonnie Prince Charlie made a secret visit to London to attempt to stimulate another uprising—a plot that later became known as the Elibank plot. During this time, it is believed, he converted to the Church of England, a remarkable and controversial act for a man whose cause was so intimately bound to Catholic restoration.
Without French support, however, there was little hope for the Stuart cause. Charles's behaviour during the Seven Years' War (1756–63) was disappointing to the French, particularly his drunkenness. After the Royal Navy prevented a French invasion attempt in 1759 by winning the Battle of Quiberon Bay, the French abandoned him and his cause for good. The Jacobite threat, which had seemed so potent in 1745, had finally and irrevocably passed into history.
The Clans and the Rising
The success of the 1745 rising depended entirely upon the support of the Scottish clans. Among the Scottish Jacobite army commanders, there were many Catholic leaders, such as James Drummond, Duke of Perth, and his brother Lord John Drummond. But most of the other commanders, such as Lieutenant-General Lord George Murray and the Life Guards commander David Wemyss, Lord Elcho, were Protestant, demonstrating that Jacobitism transcended religious divisions.
The great clans of the Highlands—including the Camerons, the MacDonalds, and the Frasers—provided the backbone of Charles's army. These were men fighting not merely for a distant prince, but for their way of life, their clan honour, and their independence. The aftermath of Culloden would prove catastrophic for Highland clan culture, as the government systematically dismantled the feudal structures that had sustained it for centuries.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Jacobite Rising of 1745?
The Jacobite Rising of 1745 was an armed rebellion led by Prince Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) to restore the Stuart dynasty to the thrones of Scotland, England, and Ireland. It began with the raising of the Royal Standard at Glenfinnan on 19 August 1745 and ended with the catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Culloden on 16 April 1746. It was the final and most famous of the Jacobite risings, representing the last serious attempt to overturn the Hanoverian succession.
Who was Bonnie Prince Charlie?
Charles Edward Stuart (1720–1788), known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or the Young Pretender, was the son of James Francis Edward Stuart and grandson of King James VII of Scotland and II of England. Born in Rome, he represented the Stuart claim to the British thrones and became the figurehead of the Jacobite movement. He is best remembered for his role in the 1745 rising and his subsequent escape to France, where he spent the remainder of his life in exile, his cause ultimately abandoned by his French supporters.
Which clans supported the Jacobites in 1745?
Many of the great Highland clans provided crucial support to the Jacobite cause in 1745. The Camerons, the MacDonalds, and the Frasers were among the most prominent, contributing significant numbers of fighting men to Charles's army. Other notable supporters included the Drummonds, the Murrays, and the Macphersons. These clans saw in the Jacobite cause not merely a dynastic struggle, but an opportunity to preserve their traditional way of life against the encroaching power of the Hanoverian state.
Why did the Jacobite Rising of 1745 fail?
The rising failed for several interconnected reasons. The promised English Jacobite uprising never materialised, and the expected French invasion force never arrived. The retreat from Derby in December 1745, though strategically necessary, represented a psychological turning point from which the Jacobites never recovered. The government forces, better equipped and more numerous, defeated the Jacobites decisively at Culloden in April 1746. Ultimately, the loss of French support—which had been essential to any hope of success—sealed the fate of the Stuart cause.
What happened to Bonnie Prince Charlie after Culloden?
After his defeat at Culloden, Charles escaped to France with the help of loyal supporters. He spent the remainder of his life in exile, first in France and later in Italy. He made a secret visit to London in 1750 in an attempt to stimulate another uprising (the Elibank plot), but without French support, the cause was hopeless. His behaviour deteriorated over time, particularly his struggles with alcoholism, and he was eventually abandoned by the French, who had been his only realistic hope for renewed support. He died in Rome in 1788, the Stuart cause extinguished.
Visiting the Sites of the Rising
For those wishing to understand the 1745 rising more deeply, Scotland offers remarkable opportunities to walk in the footsteps of history. The Glenfinnan Monument stands on the site where Charles raised the Stuart standard, a solitary kilted Highlander atop an 18-metre column commemorating the Jacobite clansmen who fought to defend the Highland way of life. Edinburgh Castle and the surrounding city witnessed the Jacobite occupation in September 1745. Stirling Castle, strategically vital throughout Scottish history, played a role in the campaign. The battlefield at Culloden, now a poignant memorial, allows visitors to stand where the final chapter of the Jacobite story was written.
The Jacobite Rising of 1745 remains one of the most compelling episodes in Scottish history—a moment when a young prince's audacious gamble came tantalizingly close to success before collapsing into tragedy. It marks the end of one era and the beginning of another, the point at which the old Highland clan system gave way to the modern British state. To understand this rising is to understand Scotland itself. Explore our extensive collection of clan histories, castle guides, and detailed historical resources at ScottishShields.com to deepen your knowledge of this transformative period in Scottish heritage.