Chapter XXV: A.d. 1715 (1)

BRITISH SOVEREIGN:--George I., 1714-1727.

Measures of the government--Attempt to surprise Edinburgh
Castle--Duke of Argyle appointed to the command of the government
forces--Expedition of General Gordon into Argyle--Proceedings
of the Earl of Mar--Insurrection in England--Affair at
Keith--Rising in the south of Scotland--Expedition of Brigadier
Mackintosh--Marches to Edinburgh and occupies Leith--Duke of
Argyle marches to Leith--Retreat of Mackintosh--Joins the forces
under Forster--Disputes among the insurgents and secession of 500
Highlanders--Rebels march into England--Battle of Preston.

While the Earl of Mar was thus busily engaged exciting a rebellion in the north, the government was no less active in making preparations to meet it. Apprehensive of a general rising in England, particularly in the west, where a spirit of disaffection had often displayed itself, and to which the insurrection in Scotland was, it was believed, intended as a diversion; the government, instead of despatching troops to Scotland, posted the whole disposable force in the disaffected districts, at convenient distances, by which disposition, considerable bodies could be assembled together to assist each other in case of need. The wisdom of this plan soon became apparent, as there can be no doubt, that had an army been sent into Scotland to suppress the rebellion in the north, an insurrection would have broken out in England, which might have been fatal to the government.[686]

To strengthen, however, the military force in Scotland, the regiments of Forfar, Orrery, and Hill, were recalled from Ireland. These arrived at Edinburgh about the 24th of August, and were soon thereafter despatched along with other troops to the west, under Major-general Wightman, for the purpose of securing the fords of the Forth, and the pass of Stirling. These troops being upon the reduced establishment, did not exceed 1,600 men, a force inadequate for the protection of such an important post. Orders were, therefore, sent to the Earl of Stair’s regiment of dragoons and two foot regiments, which lay in the north of England, to march to the camp in the park of Stirling with all expedition, and at the same time, Evans’s regiment of dragoons, and Clyton’s and Wightman’s regiments of foot were recalled from Ireland.[687]

During the time the camp was forming at Stirling, the friends of the Chevalier at Edinburgh formed the daring project of seizing the castle of Edinburgh, the possession of which would have been of vast importance to the Jacobite cause. Lord Drummond, a Catholic, was at the head of this party, which consisted of about 90 gentlemen selected for the purpose, about one half of whom were Highlanders. In the event of success, each of the adventurers was to receive £100 sterling and a commission in the army. To facilitate their design, they employed one Arthur, who had formerly been an ensign in the Scotch guards, to corrupt some of the soldiers in the garrison, and who by money and promises of preferment induced a sergeant, a corporal, and two sentinels to enter into the views of the conspirators. These engaged to attend at a certain place upon the wall, on the north, near the Sally-port, in order to assist the conspirators in their ascent. The latter had prepared a scaling ladder made of ropes, capable of holding several men abreast, and had so contrived it, that it could be drawn up through means of pulleys, by a small rope which the soldiers were to fasten behind the wall. Having completed their arrangements, they fixed on the 9th of September for the attempt, being the day after the last detachment of the government troops quartered in camp in St. Anne’s Yards, near Edinburgh, had set off for Stirling. But the projectors of this well-concerted enterprise were doomed to lament its failure when almost on the eve of completion.

Arthur, the officer who had bribed the soldiers, having engaged his brother, a physician in Edinburgh, in the Jacobite interest, let him into the secret of the design upon the castle. Dr. Arthur, who appears to have been a man of a timorous disposition, grew alarmed at this intelligence, and so deep had been the impression made upon his mind while contemplating the probable consequences of such a step, that on the day before the attempt his spirits became so depressed as to attract the notice of his wife, who importuned him to inform her of the cause. He complied, and his wife, without acquainting him, sent an anonymous letter to Sir Adam Cockburn of Ormiston, Lord-Justice-Clerk, acquainting him with the conspiracy. Cockburn received this letter at ten o’clock at night, and sent it off with a letter from himself to Lieutenant-colonel Stuart, the deputy-governor of the castle, who received the communication shortly before eleven. Stuart lost no time in ordering the officers to double their guards and make diligent rounds; but probably supposing that no attempt would be made that night he went to bed after issuing these instructions. In the meantime, the conspirators had assembled at a tavern preparatory to their attempt, but unfortunately for its success they lingered over their cups far beyond the time they had fixed upon for putting their project into execution. In fact, they did not assemble at the bottom of the wall till after the deputy-governor had issued his orders; but ignorant of what had passed within the castle, they proceeded to tie the rope, which had been let down by the soldiers, to the ladder. Unhappily for the whole party, the hour for changing the sentinels had arrived, and while the traitorous soldiers were in the act of drawing up the ladder, one Lieutenant Lindsay, at the head of a party of fresh sentinels, came upon them on his way to the sally-port. The soldiers, alarmed at the approach of Lindsay’s party, immediately slipt the rope, one of them at the same time discharging his piece at the assailants to divert suspicion from himself. The noise which this occurrence produced told the conspirators that they were discovered, on which they dispersed. A party of the town-guard which the Lord Provost, at the request of the Lord-Justice-Clerk, had sent to patrol about the castle, attracted by the firing, immediately rushed from the West-Port, and repaired to the spot, but all the conspirators, with the exception of four whom they secured, had escaped. These were one Captain Maclean, an officer who had fought under Dundee at Killiecrankie, whom they found lying on the ground much injured by a fall from the ladder or from a precipice; Alexander Ramsay and George Boswell, writers in Edinburgh; and one Lesly, who had been in the service of the same Duchess of Gordon who had distinguished herself in the affair of the medal. This party picked up the ladder and a quantity of muskets and carbines which the conspirators had thrown away in their flight.[688]

Such was the result of an enterprise which had been matured with great judgment, and which would probably have succeeded, but for the trifling circumstance above mentioned. The capture of such an important fortress as the castle of Edinburgh, at such a time, would have been of vast importance to the Jacobites, inasmuch as it would not only have afforded them an abundant supply of military stores, with which it was then well provided, and put them in possession of a considerable sum of money, but would also have served as a rallying point to the disaffected living to the south of the Forth, who only waited a favourable opportunity to declare themselves. Besides giving them the command of the city, the possession of the castle by a Jacobite force would have compelled the commander of the government forces to withdraw the greater part of his troops from Stirling, and leave that highly important post exposed to the northern insurgents. Had the attempt succeeded, Lord Drummond, the contriver of the design, was to have been made governor of the castle, and notice of its capture was to have been announced to some of the Jacobite partisans on the opposite coast of Fife, by firing three cannon-shots from its battlements. On hearing the report of the guns, these men were instantly to have communicated the intelligence to the Earl of Mar, who was to hasten south with all his forces.[689]

As the appointment of a person of rank, influence, and talent, to the command of the army, destined to oppose the Earl of Mar, was of great importance, the Duke of Argyle, who had served with distinction abroad, and who had formerly acted as commander-in-chief of the forces in Scotland, was pitched upon as generalissimo of the army encamped at Stirling. Having received instructions from his majesty on the 8th of September, he departed for Scotland the following day, accompanied by some of the Scottish nobility, and other persons of distinction, and arrived at Edinburgh on the 14th. About the same time, the Earl of Sutherland, who had offered his services to raise the clans in the northern Highlands, in support of the government, was sent down from London to Leith in a ship of war, with orders to obtain a supply of arms and ammunition from the governor of the castle of Edinburgh. He arrived on the 21st of September, and after giving instructions for the shipment of these supplies, departed for the north.

When the Duke of Argyle reached Edinburgh, he found that Mar had made considerable progress in the insurrection, and that the regular forces at Stirling were far inferior in point of numbers to those of the Jacobite commander. He, therefore, on the day he arrived in the capital, addressed a letter to the magistrates of Glasgow, (who, on the first appearance of the insurrection, had offered, in a letter to Lord Townshend, one of the secretaries of state, to raise 600 men in support of the government, at the expense of the city,) requesting them to send forthwith 500 or 600 men to Stirling, under the command of such officers as they should think fit to appoint, to join the forces stationed there. In compliance with this demand, there were despatched to Stirling, on the 17th, 18th, and 19th of September, three battalions, amounting to between 600 and 700 men, under the nominal command of the Lord Provost, who deputed the active part of his duties to Colonel Blackadder. On the arrival of the first battalion, the duke addressed a second letter from Stirling to the magistrates of Glasgow, thanking them for their promptitude, and requesting them to send intimation, with the greatest despatch, to all the friends of the government in the west, to assemble all the fencible forces at Glasgow, and to hold them in readiness to march when required. In connexion with these instructions, the duke, at the same time, wrote letters of a similar import to the magistrates of all the well affected burghs, and to private individuals who were known to be favourably disposed. The most active measures were accordingly adopted in the south and west by the friends of the government, and in a short time a sufficient force was raised to keep the disaffected in these districts in check.[690]

Meanwhile the Earl of Mar and his friends were no less active in preparing for the campaign. Pursuant to an arrangement with the Jacobite chiefs, General Gordon, an officer of great bravery and experience, was despatched into the Highlands to raise the north-western clans, with instructions either to join Mar with such forces as he could collect at the fords of the Forth, or to march upon Glasgow by Dumbarton. Having collected a body of between 4,000 and 5,000 men, chiefly Macdonalds, Macleans, and Camerons, Gordon attempted to surprise Fort-William, and succeeded so far as to carry by surprise some of the outworks, sword in hand, in which were a lieutenant, sergeant, and 25 men; but as the garrison made a determined resistance, he withdrew his men, and marched towards Inverary. This route, it is said, was taken at the suggestion of Campbell of Glendaruel, who, at the first meeting of the Jacobites, had assured Mar and his friends that if the more northern clans would take Argyleshire in their way to the south, their numbers would be greatly increased by the Macleans, Macdonalds, Macdougalls, Macneills, and the other Macs of that county, together with a great number of Campbells, of the family and followers of the Earl of Breadalbane, Sir James Campbell of Auchinbreck, and Sir Duncan Campbell of Lochnell; all of whom, he said, would join in the insurrection, when they saw the other clans in that country at hand to protect them against those in the interest of the Duke of Argyle.[691]

When the Earl of Islay, brother to the Duke of Argyle, heard of General Gordon’s movements, he assembled about 2,500 men to prevent a rising of the clans in Argyle, and of the disaffected branches of the name of Campbell. On arriving before Inverary, General Gordon found the place protected by entrenchments which the earl had thrown up. He did not venture on an attack, but contented himself with encamping at the north-east side of the town, at nearly the distance of a mile, where he continued some days without any hostile attempt being made on either side. It was evidently contrary to Gordon’s plan to hazard an action, his sole design in entering Argyleshire being to give an opportunity to the Jacobite population of that district to join his standard, which the keeping of such a large body of men locked up in Inverary would greatly assist.

During the continuance before Inverary of the “Black Camp,” as General Gordon’s party was denominated by the Campbells, the Earl of Islay and his men were kept in a state of continual alarm from the most trifling causes. On one occasion an amusing incident occurred, which excited the fears of the Campbells, and showed how greatly they dreaded an attack. Some time before this occurrence, a small body of horse from Kintyre had joined the earl: the men were quartered in the town, but the horses were put out to graze on the east side of the small river that runs past Inverary. The horses disliking their quarters, took their departure one night in search of better pasture. They sought their way along the shore for the purpose of crossing the river at the lower end of the town. The trampling of their hoofs on the gravel being heard at some distance by the garrison, the earl’s men were thrown into the utmost consternation, as they had no doubt that the enemy was advancing to attack them. As the horses were at full gallop, and advancing nearer every moment, the noise increasing as they approached, nothing but terror was to be seen in every face. With trembling hands they seized their arms and put themselves in a defensive posture to repel the attack, but they were fortunately soon relieved from the panic they had been thrown into by some of the horses which had passed the river approaching without riders; so that “at last,” says the narrator of this anecdote, “the whole was found only to be a plot among the Kintyre horse to desert not to the enemy, but to their own country; for ’tis to be supposed the horses, as well as their owners, were of very loyal principles.”[692]

Shortly after this event, another occurrence took place, which terminated not quite so ridiculously as the other. One night the sergeant on duty, when going his rounds at the quarter of the town opposite to the place where the clans lay, happened to make some mistake in the watchword. The sentinel on duty supposing the sergeant and his party to be enemies, discharged his piece at them. The earl, alarmed at the firing, immediately ordered the drums to beat to arms, and in a short time the whole of his men were assembled on the castle-green, where they were drawn up in battalions in regular order by torch or candle light, the night being extremely dark. As soon as they were marshalled, the earl gave them orders to fire in platoons towards the quarter whence they supposed the enemy was approaching, and, accordingly, they opened a brisk fire, which was kept up for a considerable time, by which several of their own sentinels in returning from their posts were wounded. Whilst the Campbells were thus employed upon the castle-green, several gentlemen, some say general officers, who liked to fight “under covert,” retired to the square tower or castle of Inverary, from the windows of which they issued their orders. When the earl found that he had no enemy to contend with, he ordered his men to cease firing, and to continue all night under arms. This humorous incident, however, was attended with good consequences to the terrified Campbells, as it had the effect of relieving them from the presence of the enemy. General Gordon, who had not the most distant intention of entering the town, on hearing the close and regular firing from the garrison, concluded that some forces had entered the town, to celebrate whose arrival the firing had taken place, and alarmed for his own safety, sounded a retreat towards Perthshire before day-light.[693]

No sooner, however, had the clans left Inverary, than a detachment of the Earl of Breadalbane’s men, to the number of about 500, entered the county under the command of Campbell of Glenlyon. To expel them, the Earl of Islay sent a select body of about 700 men, in the direction of Lorn, under the command of Colonel Campbell of Fanab, an old and experienced officer, who came up with Glenlyon’s detachment at Glenscheluch, a small village at the end of the lake called Lochnell, in the mid division of Lorn, about 20 miles distant from Inverary. Both sides immediately prepared for battle, and to lighten themselves as much as possible, the men threw off their plaids and other incumbrances. Whilst both parties were standing gazing on each other with fury in their looks, waiting for the signal to commence battle, a parley was proposed, in consequence of which, a conference was held by the commanders half-way between the lines. The result was, that the Breadalbane-men, to spare the effusion of the Campbell blood, agreed to lay down their arms on condition of being allowed to march out of the country without disturbance. These terms being communicated to both detachments, were approved of by a loud shout of joy, and hostages were immediately exchanged on both sides for the due performance of the articles. The Earl of Islay, on coming up with the remainder of his forces, was dissatisfied with the terms of the capitulation, as he considered that he had it in his power to cut off Glenlyon’s party; but he was persuaded to accede to the articles, which were accordingly honourably observed on both sides.[694]

In the meantime, the Earl of Mar had collected a considerable force, with which he marched, about the middle of September, to Moulinearn, a small village in Athole, where he proclaimed the Chevalier. On entering Athole, he was joined by 500 Athole-men, under the Marquis of Tullibardine, and by the party of the Earl of Breadalbane’s men, under Campbell of Glenlyon and Campbell of Glendaruel. He was afterwards joined by the old earl himself, who, although he had, the day preceding his arrival, procured an affidavit from a physician in Perth, and the minister of the parish of Kenmore, of which he was patron, certifying his total inability, from age, and a complication of diseases, to comply with a mandate of the government requiring him to attend at Edinburgh; yet, nevertheless, found himself able enough to take the field in support of the Chevalier.[695] Having received intelligence that the Earl of Rothes, and some of the gentlemen of Fife, were advancing with 500 of the militia of that county to seize Perth, he sent Colonel John Hay, brother to the Earl of Kinnoul, with a detachment of 200 horse, to take possession of that town; he accordingly entered it on the 14th of September, without opposition, and there proclaimed the Chevalier. The provost made indeed a demonstration of opposition by collecting between 300 and 400 men in the market place; but Colonel Hay having been joined by a party of 150 men which had been sent into the town a few days before by the Duke of Athole, the provost dismissed his men. When the Earl of Rothes, who was advancing upon Perth with a body of 500 men, heard of its capture, he retired to Leslie, and sent notice of the event to the Duke of Argyle. The possession of Perth was of importance to Mar in a double point of view, as it not only gave him the command of the whole of Fife, in addition to the country north of the Tay, but also inspired his friends with confidence.[696] Accordingly, the Chevalier was proclaimed at Aberdeen by the Earl Marischal; at Castle Gordon, by the Marquis of Huntly; at Brechin, by the Earl of Panmure; at Montrose, by the Earl of Southesk; and at Dundee, by Graham of Claverhouse, who was afterwards created Viscount Dundee, by the Chevalier.

As Mar had no intention of descending into the Lowlands himself without a considerable force, he remained several days at Moulinearn waiting for the clans who had promised to join him, and in the meantime directed Colonel Hay, whom, on the 18th of September, he appointed governor of Perth, to retain possession of that town at all hazards. He also directed him to tender to the inhabitants the oath of allegiance to the Chevalier, and to expel from the town all persons who refused to take the oath. After this purgation had been effected, Governor Hay was ordered to appoint a free election of magistrates by poll, to open all letters passing through the post-office, and to appoint a new post-master in whom he could have confidence. To support Hay in case of an attack, Mar sent down a party of Robertsons, on the 22d, under the command of Alexander Robertson of Strowan, their chief, known as the elector of Strowan.

At this time, Mar’s forces did not probably exceed 3,000 men, but their number having been increased to upwards of 5,000 within a few days thereafter, he marched down upon Perth, which he entered on the 28th of September, on which day the Honourable James Murray, second son of the Viscount Stormont, arrived at Perth with letters from the Chevalier to the earl, giving him assurances of speedy and powerful succour, and promises from the Chevalier, as was reported, of appearing personally in Scotland in a short time. This gentleman had gone over to France in the month of April preceding, to meet the Chevalier, who had appointed him principal secretary for Scotland, and had lately landed at Dover, whence he had travelled _incognito_ overland to Edinburgh, where, although well known, he escaped detection. After spending a few days in Edinburgh, during which time he attended, it is said, several private meetings of the friends of the Chevalier, he crossed the Frith in an open boat at Newhaven, and landed at Burntisland, whence he proceeded to Perth.[697]

The first operations of the insurgents were marked by vigour and intrepidity. The seizure of Perth, though by no means a brilliant affair, was almost as important as a victory would have been at such a crisis, and another dashing exploit which a party of the earl’s army performed a few days after his arrival at Perth, was calculated to make an impression equally favourable to the Jacobite cause. Before the Earl of Sutherland took his departure from Leith for Dunrobin castle, to raise a force in the north, he arranged with the government for a supply of arms, ammunition and military stores, which was to be furnished by the governor of Edinburgh castle, and sent down to the north with as little delay as possible. Accordingly, about the end of September, a vessel belonging to Burntisland was freighted for that purpose, on board of which were put about 400 stands of arms, and a considerable quantity of ammunition and military stores. The vessel anchored in Leith roads, but was prevented from passing down the Frith by a strong north-easterly wind, which, continuing to blow very hard, induced the captain for security’s sake to weigh anchor and stand over to Burntisland roads, on the opposite coast of Fife, under the protection of the weather shore. The captain went on shore at Burntisland, to visit his wife and family who resided in the town, and the destination of the vessel, and the nature of her cargo being made known to some persons in the Jacobite interest, information thereof was immediately communicated by them to the Earl of Mar, who at once resolved to send a detachment to Burntisland to seize the vessel. Accordingly, he despatched on the evening of the 2d of October, a party of 400 horse, and 500 foot, from Perth to Burntisland, with instructions so to order their march as not to enter the latter place till about midnight. To draw off the attention of the Duke of Argyle from this expedition, Mar made a movement as if he intended to march with all his forces upon Alva, in the neighbourhood of Stirling, in consequence of which Argyle, who had received intelligence of Mar’s supposed design, kept his men under arms the whole day in expectation of an attack. Meanwhile, the party having reached their destination, the foot entered Burntisland unperceived, and while the horse surrounded the town to prevent any person from carrying the intelligence of their arrival out of it, the foot seized all the boats in the harbour and along the shore, to cut off all communication by sea. About 120 men were, thereupon, sent off in some boats to board the ship, which they secured without opposition. They at first attempted to bring the vessel into the harbour, but were prevented by the state of the tide. They, however, lost no time in discharging her cargo, and having pressed a number of carts and horses from the neighbourhood into their service, the detachment set off undisturbed for Perth with their booty, where they arrived without molestation. Besides the arms and other warlike materials which they found in the vessel, the detachment carried off 100 stands of arms from the town, and between 30 and 40 more which they found in another ship. Emboldened by the success of this enterprise, parties of the insurgents spread themselves over Fife, took possession of all the towns on the north of the Frith of Forth, from Burntisland to Fifeness, and prohibited all communication between them and the opposite coast. The Earl of Rothes, who was quartered at Leslie, was now obliged, for fear of being cut off, to retire to Stirling under the protection of a detachment of horse and foot, which had been sent from Stirling to support him, under the command of the Earl of Forfar, and Colonel Ker.[698]

Mar had not yet been joined by any of the northern clans, nor by those under General Gordon; but on the 5th of October, about 500 of the Mackintoshes arrived under the command of the Laird of Borlum, better known by the name of Brigadier Mackintosh, an old and experienced soldier, who, as uncle of the chief, had placed himself at the head of that clan in consequence of his nephew’s minority. This clan had formerly sided with the revolution party; but, influenced by Borlum, who was a zealous Jacobite, they were among the first to espouse the cause of the Chevalier, and had seized upon Inverness before some of the other clans had taken the field. On the following day the earl was also joined by the Marquis of Huntly at the head of 500 horse and 2,000 foot, chiefly Gordons; and on the 10th by the Earl Marischal with 300 horse, among whom were many gentlemen, and 500 foot. These different accessions increased Mar’s army to upwards of 8,000 men.

Mar ought now to have instantly opened the campaign by advancing upon Stirling, and attacking the Duke of Argyle, whose forces did not, at this time, amount to 2,000 men. In his rear he had nothing to dread, as the Earl of Seaforth, who was advancing to join him with a body of 3,000 foot and 600 horse, had left a division of 2,000 of his men behind him to keep the Earl of Sutherland, and the other friends of the government in the northern Highlands, in check. As the whole of the towns on the eastern coast from Burntisland to Inverness were in possession of his detachments, and as there was not a single hostile party along the whole of that extensive stretch, no obstacle could have occurred, had he marched south, to prevent him from obtaining a regular supply of provisions for his army and such warlike stores as might reach any of these ports from France. One French vessel had already safely landed a supply of arms and ammunition in a northern port, and another during Mar’s stay at Perth boldly sailed up the Frith of Forth, in presence of some English ships of war, and entered the harbour of Burntisland with a fresh supply. But though personally brave, Mar was deficient in military genius, and was altogether devoid of that promptitude of action by which Montrose and Dundee were distinguished. Instead, therefore, of attempting at once to strike a decisive blow at Argyle, the insurgent general lingered at Perth upwards of a month. This error, however, might have been repaired had he not committed a more fatal one by detaching a considerable part of his army, including the Macintoshes, who were the best armed of his forces, at the solicitation of a few English Jacobites, who, having taken up arms in the north of England, craved his support.

About the period of Mar’s departure for Scotland, the government had obtained information of a dangerous conspiracy in England in favour of the Chevalier, in consequence of which the titular Duke of Powis was committed to the Tower, and Lords Lansdowne and Dupplin were arrested, as implicated in the conspiracy, and a warrant was issued for the apprehension of the Earl of Jersey. At the same time, a message from the king was sent to the house of commons, informing them that his majesty had given orders for the apprehension of Sir William Wyndham, Mr. Thomas Forster, junior, member for the county of Northumberland, and other members of the lower house, as being engaged in a design to support an invasion of the kingdom. Sir William Wyndham was accordingly apprehended, and committed to the Tower, but Mr. Forster having been apprised of the arrival of a messenger at Durham with the warrant for his apprehension, avoided him, and joined the Earl of Derwentwater, a young Catholic nobleman, against whom a similar warrant had been issued. Tired of shifting from place to place, they convened a meeting of their friends in Northumberland to consult as to the course they should pursue; it was resolved immediately to take up arms in support of the Chevalier. In pursuance of a resolution entered into, about 60 horsemen, mostly gentlemen, and some attendants, met on Thursday the 6th of October, at a place called Greenrig, whence, after some consultation, they marched to Plainfield, a place on the river Coquet, where they were joined by a few adherents. From Plainfield they departed for Rothbury, a small market town, where they took up their quarters for the night.

Next morning, their numbers still increasing, they advanced to Warkworth, where they were joined by Lord Widdrington, with 30 horse. Mr. Forster was now appointed to the command of this force, not on account of his military abilities, for he had none, but because he was a Protestant, and therefore less objectionable to the high-church party than the Earl of Derwentwater, who, in the absence of a regularly bred commander, should, on account of his rank, have been named to the chief command. On Sunday morning, Mr. Forster sent Mr. Buxton, a clergyman of Derbyshire, who acted as chaplain to the insurgent party, to the parson of Warkworth, with orders to pray for the Chevalier by name as king, and to introduce into the Litany the name of Mary, the queen-mother, and all the dutiful branches of the royal family, and omit the names of King George, and the prince and princess. The minister of the parish wisely declined to obey these orders, and for his own safety retired to Newcastle. The parishioners, however, were not deprived of divine service, as Mr. Buxton, on the refusal of the parson to officiate as directed, entered the church, and performed in his stead with considerable effect.[699]

On Monday the 10th of October, Mr. Forster was joined by 40 horse from the Scottish border, on which day he openly proclaimed the Chevalier. This small party remained at Warkworth till the 14th, when they proceeded to Alnwick, where they were joined by many of their friends, and thence marched to Morpeth. At Felton bridge they were reinforced by another party of Scottish horse to the number of 70, chiefly gentlemen from the border, so that on entering Morpeth their force amounted to 300 horse. In the course of his march Forster had numerous offers of service from the country people, which, however, he was obliged to decline from the want of arms; but he promised to avail himself of them as soon as he had provided himself with arms and ammunition, which he expected to find in Newcastle, whither he intended to proceed.

In connection with these movements, Launcelot Errington, a Newcastle shipmaster, undertook to surprise Holy Island, which was guarded by a few soldiers, exchanged weekly from the garrison of Berwick. In a military point of view, the possession of such an insignificant post was of little importance, but it was considered by the Jacobites as useful for making signals to such French vessels as might appear off the Northumberland coast with supplies for the insurgents. Errington, it appears, was known to the garrison, as he had been in the habit of visiting the island on business; and having arrived off the island on the 10th of October, he was allowed to enter the port, no suspicions being entertained of his design. Pursuant to the plan he had formed for surprising the castle, he invited the greater part of the garrison to visit his vessel, and having got them on board, he and the party which accompanied him left the vessel, and took possession of the castle without opposition. Errington endeavoured to apprise his friends at Warkworth of his success by signals, but these were not observed, and the place was retaken the following day by a detachment of 30 men from the garrison of Berwick, and a party of 50 of the inhabitants of the town, who, crossing the sands at low water, entered the island, and carried the fort sword in hand. Errington, in attempting to escape, received a shot in the thigh, and being captured, was carried prisoner to Berwick; whence he had the good fortune to make his escape in disguise.[700]

The possession of Newcastle, where the Jacobite interest was very powerful, was the first object of the Northumberland insurgents; but they were frustrated in their design by the vigilance of the magistrates. Having first secured all suspected persons, the magistrates walled up all the gates with stone and lime, except the Brampton gate, on which they placed two pieces of cannon. An association of the well-affected inhabitants was formed for the defence of the town, and the churchmen and dissenters, laying aside their antipathies for a time, enrolled themselves as volunteers. 700 of these were immediately armed by the magistrates. The keelmen also, who were chiefly dissenters, offered to furnish a similar number of men to defend that town; but their services were not required, as two successive reinforcements of regular troops from Yorkshire arrived on the 9th and 12th of October. When the insurgents received intelligence of the state of affairs at Newcastle, they retired to Hexham, having a few days before sent an express to the Earl of Mar for a reinforcement of foot.

The news of the rising under Mr. Forster having been communicated to the Marquis of Tweeddale, Lord Lieutenant of Haddingtonshire, his lordship called a meeting of his deputy lieutenants at Haddington early in October, and at the same time issued instructions to them to put the laws in execution against “papists” and other suspected persons, by binding them over to keep the peace, and by seizing their arms and horses in terms of a late act of parliament. In pursuance of this order, Mr. Hepburn of Humbie, and Dr. Sinclair of Hermandston, two of the deputy lieutenants, resolved to go the morning after the instructions were issued, to the house of Mr. Hepburn of Keith, a zealous Jacobite, against whom they appear to have entertained hostile feelings. Dr. Sinclair accordingly appeared next morning with a party of armed men at the place where Hepburn of Humbie had agreed to meet him; but as the latter did not appear at the appointed hour, the doctor proceeded towards Keith with his attendants. On their way to Keith, Hepburn enjoined his party, in case of resistance, not to fire till they should be first fired at by Mr. Hepburn of Keith or his party; and on arriving near the house he reiterated these instructions. When the arrival of Sinclair and his party was announced to Mr. Hepburn of Keith, the latter at once suspecting the cause, immediately demanded inspection of the doctor’s orders. Sinclair, thereupon, sent forward a servant with the Marquis of Tweeddale’s commission, who, finding the gates shut, offered to show the commission to Hepburn at the dining-room window. On being informed of the nature of the commission, Hepburn signified the utmost contempt at it, and furiously exclaiming “God damn the doctor and the marquis both,” disappeared. The servant thinking that Mr. Hepburn had retired for a time to consult with his friends before inspecting the commission, remained before the inner gate waiting for his return. But instead of coming back to receive the commission, Hepburn and his friends immediately mounted their horses and sallied out, Hepburn discharging a pistol at the servant, which wounded him in two places. Old Keith then rode up to the doctor, who was standing near the outer gate, and after firing another pistol at him, attacked him sword in hand and wounded him in the head. Sinclair’s party, in terms of their instructions, immediately returned the fire, and Mr. Hepburn’s younger son was unfortunately killed on the spot. Hepburn and his party, disconcerted by this event, instantly galloped off towards the Borders and joined the Jacobite standard. The death of young Hepburn, who was the first person that fell in the insurrection of 1715, highly incensed the Jacobites, who longed for an opportunity, which was soon afforded them, of punishing its author, Dr. Sinclair.[701]

Whilst Mr. Forster was thus employed in Northumberland, the Earl of Kenmure, who had received a commission from the Earl of Mar to raise the Jacobites in the south of Scotland, was assembling his friends on the Scottish border. Early in October he had held private meetings with some of them, at which it had been resolved to make an attempt upon Dumfries, expecting to surprise it before the friends of the government there should be aware of their design; but the magistrates got timely warning. Lord Kenmure first appeared in arms, at the head of 150 horse, on the 11th of October at Moffat, where he proclaimed the Chevalier, on the evening of which day he was joined by the Earl of Wintoun and 14 attendants. Next day he proceeded to Lochmaben, where he also proclaimed “the Pretender.” Alarmed at his approach, the magistrates of Dumfries ordered the drums to beat to arms, and for several days the town exhibited a scene of activity and military bustle perfectly ludicrous, when the trifling force with which it was threatened is considered. Kenmure advanced within two miles of the town, but being informed of the preparations which had been made to receive him, he returned to Lochmaben. He thereupon marched to Ecclefechan, where he was joined by Sir Patrick Maxwell of Springkell, with 14 horsemen, and thence to Langholm, and afterwards to Hawick, where he proclaimed the Chevalier. On the 17th of October, Kenmure marched to Jedburgh, with the intention of proceeding to Kelso, and there also proclaimed the prince; but learning that Kelso was protected by a party under the command of Sir William Bennet of Grubbet, he crossed the Border with the design of forming a junction with Forster.[702]

We must now direct attention to the measures taken by the Earl of Mar in compliance with the request of Mr. Forster and his friends to send them a body of foot. As Mar had not resolution to attempt the passage of the Forth, which, with the forces under his command, he could have easily effected, he had no other way of reinforcing the English Jacobites, than by attempting to transport a part of his army across the Frith. As there were several English men-of-war in the Frith, the idea of sending a body of 2,000 men across such an extensive arm of the sea appeared chimerical; yet, nevertheless, Mar resolved upon this bold and hazardous attempt.

To command this adventurous expedition, the Jacobite general pitched upon Old Borlum, as Brigadier Mackintosh was familiarly called, who readily undertook, with the assistance of the Earl of Panmure, and other able officers, to perform a task which few men, even of experience, would have undertaken without a grudge. For this hazardous service, a picked body of 2,500 men was selected, consisting of the whole of the Mackintoshes, and the greater part of Mar’s own regiment, and of the regiments of the Earl of Strathmore, Lord Nairne, Lord Charles Murray, and Drummond of Logie-Drummond. To escape the men-of-war, which were stationed between Leith and Burntisland, it was arranged that the expedition should embark at Crail, Pittenweem, and Elie, three small towns near the mouth of the Frith, whither the troops were to proceed with the utmost secrecy and expedition by the most unfrequented ways through the interior of Fife. At the same time, to amuse the ships of war, it was concerted that another small and select body should openly march across the country to Burntisland, seize upon the boats in the harbour, and make preparations as if they intended to cross the Frith. With remarkable foresight, Mar gave orders that the expedition should embark with the flowing of the tide, that in case of detection, the ships of war should be obstructed by it in their pursuit down the Frith.

Accordingly, on the 9th or 10th of October, both detachments left Perth escorted by a body of horse under the command of Sir John Erskine of Alva, the Master of Sinclair, and Sir James Sharp, grandson of Archbishop Sharp of St. Andrews; and whilst the main body proceeded in a south-easterly direction, through the district of Fife bordering upon the Tay, so as to pass unobserved by the men-of-war, the other division marched directly across the country to Burntisland, where they made a feint as if preparing to embark in presence of the ships of war which then lay at anchor in Leith Roads. When the commanders of these vessels observed the motions of the insurgents, they manned their boats and despatched them across to attack them should they venture out to sea, and slipping their cables they stood over with their vessels to the Fife shore to support their boats. As the boats and ships approached, the insurgents, who had already partly embarked, returned on shore; and those on land proceeded to erect a battery, as if for the purpose of covering the embarkation. An interchange of shots then took place without damage on either side, till night put an end to hostilities. In the meantime, Brigadier Mackintosh had arrived at the different stations fixed for his embarkation, at the distance of nearly 20 miles from the ships of war, and was actively engaged in shipping his men in boats which had been previously secured for their reception by his friends in these quarters. The first division crossed the same night, being Wednesday the 12th of October, and the second followed next morning. When almost half across the channel, which, between the place of embarkation and the opposite coast, is about 16 or 17 miles broad, the fleet of boats was descried from the topmasts of the men-of-war, and the commanders then perceived, for the first time, the deception which had been so successfully practised upon them by the detachment at Burntisland. Unfortunately, at the time they made this discovery, both wind and tide were against them; but they sent out their boats fully manned, which succeeded in capturing only two boats with 40 men, who were carried into Leith, and committed to jail. As soon as the tide changed, the men-of-war proceeded down the Frith, in pursuit, but they came too late, and the whole of the boats, with the exception of eight, (which being far behind, took refuge in the Isle of May, to avoid capture,) reached the opposite coast in perfect safety, and disembarked their men at Gullane, North Berwick, Aberlady, and places adjacent. The number carried over amounted to about 1,600. Those who were driven into the Isle of May, amounting to 200, after remaining therein a day or two, regained the Fife coast, and returned to the camp at Perth.[703]

The news of Mackintosh’s landing occasioned a dreadful consternation at Edinburgh, where the friends of the government, astonished at the boldness of the enterprise, and the extraordinary success which had attended it, at once conjectured that the brigadier would march directly upon the capital, where he had many friends, and from which he was only 16 miles distant. As the city was at this time wholly unprovided with the means of defence, Campbell, the provost, a warm partisan of the government, adopted the most active measures for putting it in a defensive state. The well affected among the citizens formed themselves into a body for its defence, under the name of the Associate Volunteers, and these, with the city guards and trained bands, had different posts assigned them, which they guarded with great care and vigilance. Even the ministers of the city, to show an example to the lay citizens, joined the ranks of the armed volunteers. The provost, at the same time, sent an express to the Duke of Argyle, requesting him to send, without delay, a detachment of regular troops to support the citizens.

After the brigadier had mustered his men, he marched to Haddington, in which he took up his quarters for the night to refresh his troops, and wait for the remainder of his detachment, which he expected would follow. According to Mackintosh’s instructions, he should have marched directly for England, to join the insurgents in Northumberland, but having received intelligence of the consternation which prevailed at Edinburgh, and urged, it is believed, by pressing solicitations from some of the Jacobite inhabitants to advance upon the capital, as well as lured by the eclat which its capture would confer upon his arms, and the obvious advantages which would thence ensue, he marched rapidly towards Edinburgh the following morning. He arrived in the evening of the same day, Friday 14th October, at Jock’s Lodge, about a mile from the city, where, being informed of the measures which had been taken to defend it, and that the Duke of Argyle was hourly expected from Stirling with a reinforcement, he immediately halted, and called a council of war. After a short consultation, they resolved, in the meantime, to take possession of Leith. Mackintosh, accordingly, turning off his men to the right, marched into the town without opposition. He immediately released from jail the 40 men who had been taken prisoners by the boats of the men-of-war, and seized a considerable quantity of brandy and provisions, which he found in the custom-house. He then took possession of and quartered his men in the citadel which had been built by Oliver Cromwell. This fort, which was of a square form, with four demi-bastions, and surrounded by a large dry ditch, was now in a very dismantled state, though all the outworks, with the exception of the gates, were entire. Within the walls were several houses, built for the convenience of sea-bathing, and which served the new occupants in lieu of barracks. To supply the want of gates, Mackintosh formed barricades of beams, planks, and of carts filled with earth, stone, and other materials, and seizing six or eight pieces of cannon which he found in some vessels in the harbour, he planted two of them at the north end of the drawbridge, and the remainder upon the ramparts of the citadel. Within a few hours, therefore, after he had entered Leith, Mackintosh was fully prepared to withstand a siege, should the Duke of Argyle venture to attack him.

Whilst Mackintosh was in full march upon the capital from the east, the Duke of Argyle was advancing upon it with greater rapidity from the west, at the head of 400 dragoons and 200 foot, mounted, for the sake of greater expedition, upon farm-horses. He entered the city by the west port about ten o’clock at night, and was joined by the horse militia of Lothian and the Merse with a good many volunteers, both horse and foot, who, with the Marquis of Tweeddale, Lord Belhaven, and others, had retired into Edinburgh on the approach of the insurgents. These, with the addition of the city guard and volunteers, increased his force to nearly 1,200 men. With this body the duke marched down towards Leith next morning, Saturday, 15th October; but before he reached the town many of the “brave gentlemen volunteers,”[704] whose enthusiasm had cooled while contemplating the probable consequences of encountering in deadly strife the determined band to which they were to be opposed, slunk out of the ranks and retired to their homes. On arriving near the citadel, Argyle posted the dragoons and foot on opposite sides, and along with Generals Evans and Wightman, proceeded to reconnoitre the fort on the sea side. Thereafter he sent in a summons to the citadel requiring the rebels to surrender under the pain of high treason, and declaring that if they obliged him to employ cannon to force them, and killed any of his men in resisting him, he would give them no quarter. To this message the laird of Kynnachin, a gentleman of Athole, returned this resolute answer, that as to surrendering they did not understand the word, which could therefore only excite laughter--that if his grace thought he was able to make an assault, he might try, but he would find that they were fully prepared to meet it; and as to quarter they were resolved, in case of attack, neither to take nor to give any.

This answer was followed by a discharge from the cannon on the ramparts, which made Argyle soon perceive the mistake he had committed in advancing without cannon. Had his force been equal and even numerically superior to that of Mackintosh, he could not have ventured without almost certain destruction, to have carried the citadel sword in hand, as he found that before his men could reach the foot of the wall or the barricaded positions, they would probably have been exposed to five rounds from the besieged, which, at a moderate computation, would have cut off one half of his men. His cavalry, besides, on account of the nature of the ground, could have been of little use in an assault; and as, under such circumstances, an attack was considered impracticable, the duke retired to Edinburgh in the evening to make the necessary preparations for a siege. While deliberating on the expediency of making an attack, some of the volunteers were very zealous for it, but on being informed that it belonged to them as volunteers to lead the way, they heartily approved of the duke’s proposal to defer the attempt till a more seasonable opportunity.[705]

Had the Earl of Mar been apprised in due time of Mackintosh’s advance upon Edinburgh, and of the Duke of Argyle’s departure from Stirling, he would probably have marched towards the latter place, and might have crossed the Forth above the bridge of Stirling, without any very serious opposition from the small force stationed in the neighbourhood; but he received the intelligence of the brigadier’s movement too late to make it available, had he been inclined; moreover it appears that he had resolved not to cross the Forth till joined by General Gordon’s detachment.[706]