The siege of Fort Augustus took place from 22 February to 1 March 1746, during 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 ...

. After a short siege, the government garrison surrendered to a Jacobite force, which then moved on to besiege Fort William, using artillery captured at Fort Augustus.

Background

After the

1715 rising The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( gd, Bliadhna Sheumais ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts. At Braemar, Aberdeenshire, lo ...

, a line of forts was built along what is now the

Caledonian Canal The Caledonian Canal connects the Scottish east coast at Inverness with the west coast at Corpach near Fort William in Scotland. The canal was constructed in the early nineteenth century by Scottish engineer Thomas Telford. Route The canal r ...

: the three most important were Fort George, Inverness; Fort Augustus; and Fort William. Their garrisons were reinforced when the

1745 rising 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 British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took pl ...

began, but the defences had been neglected and were in a poor state. However, it was not until the Jacobites retreated from

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

in February 1746 that a serious effort was made to capture them. Despite being well-supplied, Fort George surrendered without fighting; its governor, Major Grant, a close relative of the Jacobite

Lord Lovat Lord Lovat ( gd, Mac Shimidh) is a title of the rank Lord of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1458 for Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat, Hugh Fraser by summoning him to the Scottish Parliament as Lord Fraser of Lovat, altho ...

, was later court-martialled and dismissed.Clark, p. 371 The garrisons at Fort Augustus and Fort William had been raiding the surrounding countryside, much of which belonged to Lochiel and

MacDonald of Keppoch Clan MacDonald of Keppoch ( gd, Clann Dòmhnaill na Ceapaich ), also known as Clan Ranald of Lochaber or Clan MacDonell of Keppoch'','' is a Highland Scottish clan and a branch of Clan Donald. The progenitor of the clan is Alistair Carrach Mac ...

. To protect their lands, they demanded that the forts be taken; on 21 February, a contingent of Irish regulars in the French Army under Colonel Walter Stapleton and 1,500 Cameron and MacDonald clansmen arrived outside Fort Augustus.Duffy, p. 451

The siege

Fort Augustus is at the south-west end of

Loch Ness Loch Ness (; gd, Loch Nis ) is a large freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately southwest of Inverness. It takes its name from the River Ness, which flows from the northern end. Loch Ness is best known for clai ...

, at a key junction of the

military roads A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

constructed after 1715; built in 1729, the fort replaced a barracks known as Kilwhimen Barracks. Instead of being built on high ground, it was placed on a peninsula surrounded by Loch Ness and the Rivers Oich and Tarff.

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

felt it could not be defended for more than a few days, and wrote that Fort William was the only one of any importance. Square in plan with angled bastions on each corner, the fort was designed "more ... for ornament than strength", as a demonstration of the government presence in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

. The walls were weak, while the six-pounder guns that provided defensive fire were installed on top of the four bastions, in full view of an attacking force. The garrison consisted of three companies from Guise's Regiment, commanded by Major Hugh Wentworth. He lacked trained gunners and stationed one of his companies in the old Kiliwhimen Barracks, an isolated position to the south of the fort. This was quickly taken by the French regulars under Stapleton, and his engineer Grant began siege operations on 22 February 1746. According to an eye witness, the Jacobites had three batteries, one opposite the main gate and two firing from the north. These had little effect, with most of the damage being done by three

coehorn A Coehorn (also spelled ''cohorn'') is a lightweight mortar originally designed by Dutch military engineer Menno van Coehoorn. Concept and design Van Coehoorn came to prominence during the 1688–97 Nine Years War, whose tactics have been sum ...

mortars; on the first day, a shell from one of these blew up the fort's

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

, destroying one of its bastions. A second shot caused the explosion of another magazine the next day, but firing then continued for another four days without further impact. The garrison capitulated on 1 March without any casualties, and Wentworth was considered to have surrendered too early; he was subsequently court-martialled and dismissed from the army.Clark, p. 372

Aftermath

The Jacobites moved on to Fort William, the last government strong point along the

Great Glen The Great Glen ( gd, An Gleann Mòr ), also known as Glen Albyn (from the Gaelic "Glen of Scotland" ) or Glen More (from the Gaelic ), is a glen in Scotland running for from Inverness on the edge of Moray Firth, in an approximately straight ...

, a much stronger facility. The

siege of Fort William The siege of Fort William took place in the Scottish Highlands during the 1745 Jacobite Rising, from 20 March to 3 April 1746.

was abandoned in early April.Duffy, p. 452

References

Sources

* *

External links

* * {{cite web , title=Fort Augustus , url=http://www.castlesfortsbattles.co.uk/highland/fort_augustus.html , website=CastleFortsBattles.co.uk

Fort Augustus Fort Augustus is a settlement in the parish of Boleskine and Abertarff, at the south-west end of Loch Ness, Scottish Highlands. The village has a population of around 646 (2001). Its economy is heavily reliant on tourism. History The Gaeli ...

1746 in Great Britain Conflicts in 1746 History of the Scottish Highlands 1746 in Scotland