The siege of Culloden House took place on the night of 15/16 October 1745 and was part of the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Franci ...

. 200 men of the Jacobite

Clan Fraser of Lovat Clan Fraser of Lovat ( gd, Friseal french: link=yes, Fraiser) is a Highland Scottish clan and the principal branch of Clan Fraser. The Frasers of Lovat are strongly associated with Inverness and the surrounding area since the Clan's founder gaine ...

attempted to capture

Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden Duncan Forbes of Culloden (10 November 1685 – 10 December 1747) was a Scottish lawyer and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1721 to 1737. As Lord President and senior Scottish legal officer, he played a major role in helpin ...

who was the

Lord President of the Court of Session The Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General is the most senior judge in Scotland, the head of the judiciary, and the presiding judge of the College of Justice, the Court of Session, and the High Court of Justiciary. The L ...

, the most senior legal officer in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Background

Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat (c. 1667 – 9 April 1747, London), nicknamed the Fox, was a Scottish Jacobitism, Jacobite and Scottish clan chief, Chief of Clan Fraser of Lovat, known for his feuding and changes of allegiance. In 1715, he ...

, chief of the

, had for a long time held back in committing himself to the Jacobite cause. However, according to historian

Christopher Duffy Christopher Duffy (1936 – 16 November 2022) was a British military historian. Duffy read history at Balliol College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1961 with the DPhil. Afterwards, he taught military history at the Royal Military Academy Sandhu ...

he sent one of his leading clansmen, James Fraser of Foyers, to kidnap Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden who was the leader of the British-Hanoverian cause in the north-east of Scotland. Historian Sarah Fraser, however, states that Lovat did not want anything to do with the kidnapping of his old friend Duncan Forbes of Culloden. Sarah Fraser states that the Jacobite leader

Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (20 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, grandson of James II and VII, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland and ...

issued an order at

Holyrood House The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh ...

on 23 September 1745 that was addressed to James Fraser of Foyers who was head of the aggressively Jacobite Stratherick men to carry Duncan Forbes as "prisoner to us at

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

". Lovat actually wrote to Duncan Forbes informing him that he was about to be kidnapped and Forbes fortified and garrisoned Culloden House.

The siege

200 of the Stratherrick Frasers advanced on the battlemented Culloden House. They were led by Fraser of Foyers and Fraser of Byerfield who was Lovat's aggressive chamberlain. According to Duffy they ''scampered'' off when they came under fire. As the Jacobites approached they were met with a rally of gunfire and a

Swivel gun The term swivel gun (or simply swivel) usually refers to a small cannon, mounted on a swiveling stand or fork which allows a very wide arc of movement. Another type of firearm referred to as a swivel gun was an early flintlock combination gun wi ...

was also used to fire at them. According to Sarah Fraser, some of John Campbell, Lord Loudoun's men from his

Independent Company A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...

had been on sentry duty who the Jacobites exchanged musket fire with, but as cannon balls tore into their cover, the Jacobites fled. The Jacobites had suffered one man killed. A search of the area the next day found another Jacobite who was wounded and who confessed that they had been led by James Fraser of Foyers and had been sent by Lord Lovat. According to Alexander Mackenzie's ''History of the Frasers of Lovat'', the Stratherrick men failed to take Culloden House, referring to it as the ''Castle of Culloden'', which was strongly fortified and had several pieces of cannon on its ramparts.

Aftermath

According to Sarah Fraser, Lovat wrote to Duncan Forbes apologising for the "base barbarous, inhuman, and distracted attempt and behaviour" of the Stratherick men at Culloden House. Lovat also said that his son, the Master of Lovat, was on the point of leaving to join the rebels, taking hundreds with him, and that he was powerless to stop him. Lord Loudoun (

John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun General John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun (5 May 1705 – 27 April 1782) was a Scottish nobleman and British army officer. Early career Born in Scotland two years before the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain, in which his father Hugh ...

) who supported the British-Hanoverian Government, suspecting the loyalty of Lord Lovat, sent an expedition to Castle Downie on 11 December 1745 where they captured Lovat and brought him back as a prisoner to

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

. However, Lovat escaped to freedom on the night of 19 December 1745. According to historian Ruairidh MacLeod, the reaction in the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

to the unsuccessful attempt of James Fraser of Foyers to capture or kill the Lord President Forbes at Culloden House, was of profound shock. In April 1746, the Jacobite leader

requisitioned Culloden House and used it as his headquarters in the days leading up to the more famous

Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden (; gd, Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince Wi ...

that brought an end to the Jacobite rising.

Notes

*A The source from Sarah Fraser refers to the

Independent Highland Companies The Independent Highland Companies were irregular militia raised from the Scottish clans of the Scottish Highlands by order of the Government between 1603 and 1760 in order to help keep the peace and enforce the law in the Highlands and were reco ...

that were raised by Duncan Forbes of Culloden, however Lord Loudoun had his own companies of soldiers in

Loudon's Highlanders Loudon's Highlanders, or the 64th Highlanders, or Earl of Loudon's Regiment of Foot, was an infantry regiment of the British Army. History Formation The great bravery of the 43rd Highlanders (later renumbered the 42nd) and the admirable servic ...

who were also "independent" at this time as they were not regimented until 1747 and therefore they are often confused with the Independent Highland Companies raised by Forbes of Culloden.

References

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Background

The siege

Aftermath

Notes

References

See also