Julia Brannan's Blog, page 6

  In my previous blog I wrote about Highland houses, how they were designed and built, taking into account the weather conditions and the materials available locally. But the subject wouldn’t be complete without saying something about the furniture that was inside the houses.   One of the most fascinating aspects of Highland furniture is that, unlike in England and other countries, there was no separate distinctive style of furniture (or in fact clothing) between the clan chief or wealthier members of clans, and the poorest clansman. The furniture differed only in the amount of it, and in the fact that […]

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  The Highland houses of the eighteenth century were built for a completely different lifestyle from the one we enjoy today, and were in fact very practical. When building them people had to take account of the materials locally to hand and the climate that the house had to protect them from. Not only by today’s standards, but even by the standards of many 18th century travellers, the Highlanders’ cottages were dark and dingy, dirty and full of smoke. All these things are true, and yet the design of the houses gave the maximum warmth and protection from the elements […]

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  Following his return from Scotland, the Duke of Cumberland was hailed as a national hero, and it seemed that his future was bright. Beloved of his people and the monarch’s favourite son, he was the perfect choice to retrieve the somewhat hopeless situation in Europe. While Cumberland and most of the British troops had been dealing with the Jacobite rising, their allies the Dutch and Austrians had been left in a greatly weakened position in Flanders, having been forced into a series of retreats. In February 1747, after a winter spent enjoying the adulation of his people, Cumberland headed […]

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  By the time the Duke of Cumberland arrived home from Flanders, Prince Charles Stuart had taken Scotland for his father, assembled over 5,000 followers, and was clearly intent on heading south for England. Cumberland was given a tumultuous welcome in London, and immediately set about preparing his troops to address the menace of his ambitious cousin. In November the Jacobite Army crossed into England, taking the town and castle of Carlisle within a few days before continuing southward. Cumberland took command of the forces stationed in the Midlands to intercept Prince Charles’ army, but by a series of feints […]

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  In the Jacobite Chronicles Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland features as a villain, his personality and actions being mainly viewed from the Jacobite perspectives of Beth and Alex. In this series of blogs about the life of the duke, I try to take a more impartial view. Prince William Augustus was born on 15th April 1721 at Leicester House in England, the long-awaited second son of his parents George, Prince of Wales, and Princess Caroline. The Prince of Wales and his father King George I did not get on at all, but the king appears to have taken […]

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  On 19th August 1745, Prince Charles Edward Stuart sailed to Glenfinnan at the head of Loch Shiel with the 300 men of Clanranalds, which at that moment comprised the whole of the Jacobite Army. He waited there for over two nailbiting hours, before he finally heard the skirl of the pipes heralding the arrival of 300 Keppochs and 700 Camerons, led by Lochiel himself. With him were two of his brothers, Dr Archie, and the priest Alexander, who acted as chaplain.  Prince Charles gave a short but inspiring speech, and a toast was given with brandy from the Du […]

The post DONALD CAMERON OF LOCHIEL, CHIEF OF CLAN CAMERON (PART TWO) appeared first on Julia Brannan.

  If you know anything about the ’45 you will have heard of Bonnie Prince Charlie, of Flora MacDonald and the dramatic escape over the sea to Skye, immortalised in the Skye Boat Song. You will probably heard of the Duke of Cumberland too, the Butcher of Culloden. But unless you’re a Cameron, you may not know about Donald Cameron of Lochiel, who played a crucial role in the rising, risking and losing all in the process in his support for Prince Charles Edward Stuart. He features in the Jacobite Chronicles as a minor character, but he was certainly not […]

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  Ever since the decision was taken by Prince Charles’ council on 5th December 1745 to turn back at Derby instead of continuing on to London, a decision that ultimately led to the catastrophic defeat at Culloden, historians have debated whether or not the Stuarts could have taken the throne back had they continued. In Book Four of the Jacobite Chronicles, my hero Alex MacGregor is wholeheartedly in favour of continuing to London, and on the decision going against him, states that everything he’s fought his whole life for was for nothing. I don’t always agree with my characters’ opinions, […]

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If you listen to all the legends about the Jacobite Rising of 1745-6, there are two main answers to the question – firstly because they were driven purely by loyalty to the House of Stewart, which was a Scottish royal house, or secondly that Prince Charles was so incredibly charismatic that after landing in Scotland in July 1745, he managed to single-handedly persuade all the clan chiefs to bring their clansmen out for him. Either way, the image conjured up is of hordes of kilted clansmen descending on Glenfinnan from all over the Highlands, armed to the teeth and eager […]

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  Over the next five months as a fugitive, Charles showed himself at his very best once again. Sheltered by loyal Highlanders, he had to keep on the move constantly to elude the troops that were searching for him. He endured long walks in horrendous weather, stayed in caves, ruined bothies, and even out in the open, sleeping in the heather in torrential rain while being eaten alive by the dreaded midges. He stated happily that he preferred oatbread and whisky to the finest fare, stayed wet and often cold for days on end and was in constant danger of […]

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