It's the 27th of July. What do you think was the critical point in the fortunes of
the Jacobite Highland clansmen? Bonnie Prince Charlie turning back at
Derby? The choice of battleground at Culloden?
I've got another suggestion for you, and two songs for you,
if you watch this video. Hiya, I'm Bruce Fummey. If you're interested in
the people, places and events in Scottish history
then why not subscribe to my YouTube channel Scotland History Tours?
Oh, also click the notification bell to make sure you're notified every time
there's a new video. In the meantime let me tell you a story.
If you don't already know the causes of the Jacobite conflicts
of the late 17th and early 18th century then you might want to go back and watch
my video Jacobite Rebellion... Or Was It?
There's a link up there just now. Otherwise today I'm going to mention two
songs and give you links to them in the
description below. Now in the comment section please let me
know if you already know the songs, and their meaning. Now if you've watched
my video Jacobite Rebellion... Or Was It? then you'll know that the
rightful king had been overthrown in London. Now I'm not an hereditary monarchist.
I don't even want my kids to inherit my house.
But if you were an hereditary monarchist and loyal to the king
then you would have been pretty hacked off.
And that was the case for John Graham of Claverhouse.
Some members of the English house of Lords had invited the protestant
Dutchman William of Orange to invade and on the
18th of December 1688 James VII (second of your English)
headed for the continent. I think he just knew Brexit was coming
and didn't want to take any chances. So England have changed their king,
but what will Scotland do? You see Scotland and England may have had the
same king, but for a while they were still
different countries. Somebody in Scotland needs to make a
decision. So from the 16th of march 1689 the
Convention of Estates met in Edinburgh. It was a bit like a parliament but,
without the full powers of a parliament. Imagine the Welsh
Assembly. Joke! The convention met behind closed
doors, guarded by troops of the Presbyterian
majority. Claverhouse smelled a stitch up, with rat scented
thread, because you can buy anything on Amazon
these days can't you? Anyway Claverhouse stormed out of
Edinburgh with 50 dragoons. Now the act is recounted in the Walter Scott
poem Bonnie Dundee, which has now become a rousing song.
For those of you that don't know it I'll leave a link,
all right? The Corries version that is. Now let me know if you know it or
if you knew it okay? On the 11th of April the Convention
ended James's reign but John Graham of Claverhouse, Bonnie
Dundee had already been away for a month,
raising the clans. The country was dividing into
Williamites and Jacobites.
this is blair castle it was held by the Dukes of Athol.
Now the first Duke of Athol took the Williamite side in this newly divided
Scotland. The problem was that some of his
underlings didn't. They occupied and fortified a castle for
King James. John Murray of Athol was barred from
his own house and had to lay sage to try and gain entry.
I've had to do that myself after a Sunday afternoon down the boozer I'll be
honest with you. You're not getting in this house. I don't
care who you think the king of this castle is.
Murray of Athol's baillie inside sent word to Bonnie Dundee
to come and rescue them from their besieging boss outside.
The boss sends word to the government side. Two armies both underprepared
hot foot it to get to the castle first. A Williamite force under General Mackay
was sent by the new official government. Bonnie Dundee
represented the rightful king deposed in a coup less than
six months ago. They were both in the right.
Bonnie Dundee got here first with way less men
than he hoped. Mackay had to approach through the Killicrankie Pass behind me
without the cavalry for which he had hoped. And when he came through the pass
Bonnie Dundee was waiting. It would be a clash of Highland and Lowland,
Gaelic vs English, the rightful king against the chosen one.
It was also professional soldiers, some crack troops returning fresh from wars
in the continent, against enthusiastic amateurs fresh from
their highland glens. If you like your whisky with a twist of
irony. Bonnie Dundee was a Lowlander leading the Highland army
and Mackay was a Highlander leading a Lowland army.
Bonnie Dundee had lured MAckay perfectly into his web so that the Highlanders
looked down on the red coated troops below.
The day began with skirmishes and standoff
Lowlanders shouting: 'Yer Maw!' and Highlanders shouting: 'Ur Mahair.!' It's the same thing.
The Williamite troops were twice their number, but eventually
each clan group threw down their garments, charged downhill,
fired one shot, and then hell pell into the hardened British troops.
Mounted in the front line Bonnie Dundee stood up in a stirrups,
raised his hand and waved his hat to encourage reluctant horsemen.
The hardened Williamite troops turned and fled.
Yah fannies! That trivialises the situation.
They reckon there were 1800 dead redcoats and 600 dead
Jacobites by the time it was finished, but there was no doubt that it was a
rout. Now the most famous of the fleeing
government troops was a guy called Donald MacBean.
As he ran from his Jacobite pursuers he reached the River Gary here.
He was trapped, with no escape. What does he do?
He looked across the gap and in desperation he took a run and jump, and
made it to the other side of what is now called
the soldier's leap.18 feet. That's more than 5.4 meters if you're French.
Cinque vergule quatre if you're a pedant. The point is it's a death-defying leap,
but Duncan MacBean would survive. Back at the battle site Bonnie Dundee
would not.
At the point that he'd raised his arm to wave on and encourage his troops
it revealed a chink of unarmored cloth. Now the chances of a musket ball making
it through that minute gap were tiny, but the consequences were massive.
And as he laid dying Bonnie Dundee reputedly asked the soldier: 'How goes
the day?' The Highlander replied: 'Well for king
James, but I'm sorry for your Lordship.'
The dying words of Bonnie Dundee were: 'If it goes well for him
it matters the less for me.' John Graham of Claverhouse, Bonnie
Dundee, was buried in the vault here at St Brides chapel in the grounds
of Blair Castle, whose staff had called on him for aid.
And as he rests in here and he's commemorated here
John Graham of Claverhouse might consider that the Jacobites had won the
day, but they'd lost their inspirational
leader. And without him they failed to press home
the siege of Dunkeld to the south. The Battle Killicrankie
was early on in a fragile Williamite regime that hadn't yet established
itself. If Bonnie Dundee hadn't raised his hand
to wave on his troops, might the Jacobite cause have turned out
differently? If the day had gone well for James and
Bonnie Dundee, would it have changed history? Would we be
singing about him today? If you enjoyed this video then like it
and share it. If you want to help me making more of these,
then there's a link in the description below to tell you how.
In the meantime, Tha mi an dochas gum bith lath math leibh
Tiorridh an drasda