Battle of Falkirk Muir | |||||||
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Part of Jacobite rising of 1745 | |||||||
![]() Monument erected to commemorate the battle | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
8,000 | 7,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
130 killed and wounded | 370 killed and wounded |
The Battle of Falkirk Muir, or Battle of Falkirk, [lower-alpha 1] took place near Falkirk, Scotland, on 17 January 1746 during the Jacobite rising of 1745. A narrow Jacobite victory, it had little impact on the campaign.
After their withdrawal from England in December 1745, the Jacobite army besieged Stirling Castle in early January. Lacking siege equipment, they made little progress and government forces under Henry Hawley advanced north from Edinburgh to relieve it. He reached Falkirk on 15 January but was taken by surprise when the Jacobites attacked late in the afternoon of 17 January.
Fought in failing light and heavy snow, Hawley's left wing was routed but his right held firm, and both sides believed themselves to have been defeated. As a result, the Jacobites failed to follow up their victory, allowing the government troops to regroup in Edinburgh. Hawley was replaced by Duke of Cumberland, who resumed the advance on 30 January, forcing the Jacobite army to withdraw to Inverness. The rebellion later ended at the Battle of Culloden in April.
The battlefield has been inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Historic Environment (Amendment) Act 2011. [1]
Although the invasion of England had few tangible benefits, reaching Derby and returning to Scotland were considerable military achievements. That brought in new recruits, and in late November, John Drummond arrived from France with weapons, money and 150 Irish and Scots regulars. In early January, Jacobite morale and numbers were at their peak, with 8,000 to 9,000 effectives. [2] Success at Inverurie on 23 December gave the Jacobites temporary control of north-eastern Scotland, which they now attempted to extend to the Central Lowlands. Their objective was Stirling Castle, one of the strongest fortifications in Scotland and a position of major strategic importance that controlled access between the Highlands and the Lowlands. [3]
Split into two columns, the main army left Glasgow on 4 January for Stirling, where they would rendezvous with Drummond's troops. Lord George Murray and the first column marched on Falkirk and turned north towards Stirling, leaving a cavalry detachment under Lord Elcho at Linlithgow to patrol the Edinburgh road. [4]
The second passed through Kilsyth, en route to Bannockburn, where Charles Edward Stuart established his headquarters at Bannockburn House, owned by the Jacobite Sir Hugh Paterson. Although the town of Stirling quickly surrendered, the castle was a far greater challenge, with strong defences and a garrison of 600 to 700 troops, under William Blakeney, an experienced and determined Irish veteran. Siege operations began on 8 January, but for a number of reasons, progress was slow. [5]
On 13 January, Henry Hawley, government commander in Scotland, ordered his deputy Major General John Huske, and 4,000 men to advance on Stirling while he followed with another 3,000. They reached Falkirk on 15 January and made camp just outside the town. Murray withdrew to Plean Muir, south-east of Bannockburn, where he was joined by Charles and John O' Sullivan, with all the troops that could be spared from the siege. [6]
Poor leadership on both sides had a significant impact on the battle; having commanded dragoons at Sheriffmuir in 1715, Hawley overestimated the vulnerability of Highlanders to cavalry while seriously underestimating their fighting qualities and numbers. [7] Ongoing recriminations over the withdrawal from Derby meant the Jacobite senior command was divided between the Scots and Charles and his exile advisors, several of whom openly claimed Murray was a traitor. [8]
When Hawley failed to attack on 16 January, Murray, Charles and O'Sullivan agreed to take the offensive on the morning of the 17th. Some of Drummond's regulars marched towards Stirling to distract the government scouts, and Murray's Highlanders took up position on the high ground to the south, above the camp. [7] They were helped by Hawley's assumption that they would not dare attack him and his location a mile away at Callendar House. According to an aide, they "beat to Arms" at 12:00 and then stood down, and it was not until 14:30 Hawley realised the seriousness of the situation. The weather suddenly changed, and it began raining and snowing heavily, with a strong wind blowing directly into the faces of Hawley's troops. [9]
The government army moved south on Maggie Wood's Loan, past the Bantaskin House, and up the slope of the Falkirk ridge. Despite their earlier failure at Prestonpans, the dragoons led the way, an order that their commander, Francis Ligonier, allegedly viewed as "the most extraordinary ever given". [10] Their horses churned the track into a morass, slowing the infantry, and the guns in the rear became stuck and could not be freed in time to take part in the battle. The rain also affected the infantry's black powder cartridges. It was later estimated that one out of every four muskets misfired. [11]
The dragoons halted on the far side of the rise, with a bog to their left while the infantry deployed to their right (see map). The front line consisted of the dragoons and then six battalions of veteran infantry; [lower-alpha 2] a second line with five more infantry battalions, [lower-alpha 3] then Howard's regiment and 1,000 men of the Argyll Militia behind. The inexperienced Glasgow militia were not considered frontline troops and deployed several hundred yards behind the dragoons on the left. [13] Opposing them was a first line composed of the Highland regiments, [lower-alpha 4] Lowland units behind, [lower-alpha 5] then a small number of cavalry and 150 regulars from the French Irish Brigade in the rear. [14] Murray dismounted and marched with the MacDonalds on the extreme right, opposite the dragoons. Crucially, he ensured that they remained in line and ordered his front rank not to fire until he had given the word. [15]
Murray later declared the position that had been selected meant that "the Highland army had all the advantages nature or art could give them". [15] However, it was undermined by poor co-ordination, and Drummond, who was appointed to command the Jacobite left, was absent when the battle began. He arrived soon afterward, but that meant it lacked a senior commander at the start of action. Murray urged Charles to name an alternative, but he failed to do so. [16]
Just after 16:00, Ligonier and his three regiments of dragoons attacked the MacDonalds, who waited until they came within pistol range and fired a single volley. As at Prestonpans, they fled in disorder. Restricted by the bog to their left, Cobham's regiment went north, and the other two rode over the infantry forming to their rear. In a few minutes, the entire left wing was swept away. All that remained for the Jacobites to achieve an overwhelming victory was to envelop Hawley's right. [15] However, the MacDonalds and the entire front line charged down the hill and began sacking the government camp, and the sloping terrain and the lack of visibility left Murray unable to ascertain who was where. Three battalions, under Huske and Cholmondeley, held their positions, which were shielded by the ravine to their front, and repulsed attacks by the Jacobite left. The attackers fled in their turn, and, according to O'Sullivan, many did not stop until they had reached Stirling, *where they gave out we lost the day". [17]
The darkness, continuing storm and general confusion on both sides ended the battle. Hawley initially withdrew to Falkirk, but most of his army was spread out on the road to Linlithgow, eventually returned to Edinburgh and re-formed. Captain Archibald Cunningham, the commander of the government artillery, abandoned his guns and used the transport horses to escape. [18] When Huske's men retreated, they dragged some of the guns with them, but most were left behind, and Cunningham later committed suicide. [19] Ligonier, who left his sickbed in Edinburgh to take command, died shortly afterward, and the severity of the weather is demonstrated by the fact that Cholmondeley suffered from severe exposure. [20]
As in most battles of the period, many casualties occurred in the pursuit, a pattern repeated at Culloden in April but with the roles reversed. It is generally accepted that the Jacobites lost 50 dead and 80 wounded, mostly on their left, and the government forces lost around 70 dead, plus another 200 to 300 wounded or missing. [21] The dead included 20 officers, including Sir Robert Munro and his younger brother, Duncan, who were killed in the pursuit and later buried in St Modan's, Falkirk. [lower-alpha 6] [22]
Despite the Jacobites' success, the battle has been described as a "hollow" victory since poor command and co-ordination deprived them of their last opportunity to decisively defeat their opponents. [1] One factor was confusion over the result since from their position on the left, Charles and O'Sullivan initially thought they had been defeated. Murray publicly blamed Drummond for arriving late and not supporting his success on the right, but Drummond blamed Murray for the failure of the three MacDonald regiments to press home their attack. Murray also accused O'Sullivan of cowardice although Sheridan's official account credited him with rallying "part of the left wing". [23] Amid those recriminations, Charles returned to Bannockburn, where he fell ill, which left Murray and the Highlanders at Falkirk. [24]
On 29 January, Cumberland arrived in Edinburgh and assumed command. A number of soldiers were later executed for desertion. Hawley's poor leadership materially assisted the Jacobites, but unlike Sir John Cope, he never faced a court-martial. The writer Horace Walpole (1717-1792) argued that Hawley had been "fifty times more culpable, since Cope miscarried by incapacity, Hawley by insolence and carelessness". [25]
The exiles failed to appreciate that while the military obligations of clan society allowed the chiefs to provide large numbers of men at short notice, the obligation assumed warfare was short-term and rarely took place in the winter. After a successful battle like Prestonpans, many went home to secure their loot, and the clan chiefs could not prevent a similar flood of "desertions" after Falkirk. When Cumberland resumed his advance on 30 January, Charles asked Murray to prepare a battle plan but was told the army was in no state to fight. [26] That destroyed the last remnants of trust between the two parties. On 1 February 1746, the siege of Stirling was abandoned, and the Jacobites withdrew to Inverness. [27]
Several songs were written commemorating the battle, including "The Highlandmen Came Down the Hill" and "The Battle of Falkirk Muir", a satirical attack on General Hawley that was intended to be sung to the tune of the song "Up and Waur Them A', Willie". [28] Both songs are in the Scots language and bear little resemblance to the Gaelic musical tradition, which reveals their Lowland origins despite their commenting on Highland affairs. They first appeared in James Hogg's Jacobite Relics, and scholars such as Franklyn Bliss Snyder have noted that they were "surely retrospective, and possibly [Hogg's] own work". [29]
The celebrated Gaelic poet Duncan Ban MacIntyre, who fought in the battle on the government side, wrote two poems about his experiences. [30]
The Battle of Culloden 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 William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. It was the last pitched battle fought on British soil.
The Battle of Prestonpans, also known as the Battle of Gladsmuir, was fought on 21 September 1745, near Prestonpans, in East Lothian, the first significant engagement of the Jacobite rising of 1745.
Henry Hawley was a British army officer who served in the wars of the first half of the 18th century. He fought in a number of significant battles, including the Capture of Vigo in 1719, Dettingen, Fontenoy and Culloden.
William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock, was a Scottish peer who joined the 1745 Jacobite Rising, was captured at Culloden and subsequently executed for treason on Tower Hill.
Anne Mackintosh (1723–1784) was a Scottish Jacobite leader, who was the wife of Angus Mackintosh, Chief of the Clan Mackintosh. She was one of very few (apparent) female military leaders during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and the first female to hold the rank of colonel in Scotland.
Lieutenant-General William Blakeney, 1st Baron Blakeney, KB was a British Army officer and politician who served from 1695 until 1756. From 1725 to 1757, he also sat in the Parliament of Ireland as MP for Kilmallock, although he rarely attended.
Lord George Murray, sixth son of John Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl, was a Scottish nobleman and soldier who took part in the Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1719 and played a senior role in that of 1745.
Clan MacLaren is a Highland Scottish clan. Traditional clan lands include the old parish of Balquhidder which includes the villages of Lochearnhead and Strathyre, and is about 18 miles (29 km) long and 7 miles (11 km) broad, spanning 54,675 acres (22,126 ha), long known as "Maclaren Country".
The siege of Carlisle took place from 21 to 30 December during the Jacobite rising of 1745, when a Jacobite garrison surrendered to government forces led by the Duke of Cumberland.
William Drummond, 4th Viscount Strathallan, was a Scottish peer and Jacobite, who died at the Battle of Culloden.
Lieutenant General John Huske was a British military officer whose active service began in 1707 during the War of the Spanish Succession and ended in 1748.
The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of the British Army was fighting in mainland Europe, and proved to be the last in a series of revolts that began in March 1689, with major outbreaks in 1715 and 1719.
James Drummond, 6th Earl and 3rd titular Duke of Perth was a Scottish landowner best known for his participation in the Jacobite rising of 1745, during which Charles Edward Stuart attempted to regain the British throne for the House of Stuart.
John Drummond (1714–1747), titular 7th Earl and 4th Duke of Perth, often referred to by his courtesy title Lord John Drummond, was a Franco-Scottish nobleman, soldier and Jacobite.
Sir John William O'Sullivan was an Irish professional soldier, who spent most of his career in the service of France, but is best known for his involvement in the Jacobite rising of 1745, an attempt to regain the British throne for the exiled House of Stuart. During the Rising, he acted as adjutant general and quartermaster general of the Jacobite army and had a major influence on the campaign.
Francis Augustus Ligonier was a French-born officer of the British Army.
James Cholmondeley was a British Army officer and Member of Parliament between 1731 and 1747.
The siege of Stirling Castle took place from 8 January to 1 February 1746, during the 1745 Rising, when a Jacobite force besieged Stirling Castle, held by a government garrison under William Blakeney.
Lieutenant-Colonel Caroline Frederick Scott was a Scottish soldier and military engineer who served in the British Army before transferring to the East India Company.
The Jacobite Army, sometimes referred to as the Highland Army, was the military force assembled by Charles Edward Stuart and his Jacobite supporters during the 1745 Rising that attempted to restore the House of Stuart to the British throne.