Jacobites

[bobbybingo]

Hi Sonsie, History is facinating, because without it we would not be what we are today. Scottish history is especially interesting. It could be argued that the Jacobite situation would not arisen if James the VI of Scotland had not taken the English crown in 1603 and thrust Scotland into the wider influence of Britain. The Highlands were to suffer most from this because after the 15/16th centuries, it became clear that this area was one with a great resource-fighting men. It has long been exploited for this reason. Bonnie Prince Charlie was one of the worst-he used the fighting strength of the Highlanders and then left them to their own devices after Culloden. Since then, the British army has also been exploiting the militaristic talents of the Highlanders.
bob.

[Kelly]

From what I know, these particular group fought for what they believed in. I guess it's like the saying "Damned if you do and damned if you don't"

[Seagull]

Hello Neil

I'm a Swiss woman and for many years, I'm very much interested in Scottish and Irish culture and history. So far, I've been not yet in Scotland, only in Ireland, but I feel like coming home when I'm there.
I have following question to you: Do the famous family clans (like McKenzie, Fraser) still exist or have they been destroyed since the battle of Culloden?
Does the Clan system still work, if yes, what are the chief characteristics of it?
Thank you very much in advance for your information!
Greetings, Margrit

[scott_kennedy]

Hello jacobites, this isn't really a continuation of the topic (i apologize for that) however really a question. My last name is obviously Kennedy and i have been trying to go into website after website to find my scotish background (e.g. family tree) and have come up short in everything. I was just wondering if you had any ideas on how to remedy this for me? Seeing as how it seems you are really into history, if you knew any shortcuts or websites in scotland that i dont. I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you,
Scott.

[Lindha]

To Neil
A little note to something you said:

"Those who forgett the message of history, are domed to repeat them"
said by an english journalist after
World War I...

And about the jacobites...I've got the impression the Bonnie Prince Charlie is somewhat of a hero in Scotland...atleast that is what we are beeing taught and told in school in Sweden.

Lindha

------------------
Lindha Jansson

[ANDY-J]

The various Jacobite uprisings may not have been disastrous for Scotland as a whole,but they certainly contributed to the marginalisation of the Gaelic culture.At the beggining of the eighteenth century the government in England would have welcomed any opportunity for,as our national anthem puts it,'rebellious Scots to crush'.And I don't believe they necessarily drew a distinction between lowland Scots and highland Scots.This in spite of the fact that highland culture was anathema to presbyterian lowland Scots.
The various uprisings,with the possible exception of the 1715 uprising which ended ignominiously at Sherrifmuir,were ill conceived and given the antipathy(or apathy)of many Scots to the Jacobite cause,doomed to failure.Is it any wonder that the highland leaders advised Bonnie prince Charlie on his arrival in Scotland to reboard his ship and return to France?They well knew the cost of failure to their people.
The English and lowland Scots were simply given a perfect excuse for militarising the highlands and enacting legislation which would fundamentally undermine the gaelic way of life.
The Jacobite pretenders had in any case no legitimate claim to the throne.The last Stuart monarch James VII had by his conduct forfeited any claim which he or his offspring may have had to the throne.The 'Glorious Revolution'was neither particularly glorious or radically revolutionary.When William of Orange landed in England with an army of 8000,King James with a standing army of some 40000 men did what any good general with a numerical advantage of 5:1 would do.He ran away!Evidently fearing that he would suffer the same fate on the scaffold as his father Charles I.Almost certainly however had he chosen to fight it out the English parliament would have chosen the lesser of two evils and supported him rather than face the prospect of dragging Britain into another civil war.
He in fact left on the first available France bound ship.He wasn't removed by overwhelming military force.He didn't abdicate.He simply left.And in so doing forfeited his entitlement to be King.