The
Battle of Prestonpans was the first significant conflict in the
Jacobite Rising of 1745The Jacobite rising of 1745, often referred to as "The 'Forty-Five," was the attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for the exiled House of Stuart. The rising occurred during the War of the Austrian Succession when most of the British Army was on the European continent...
. The battle took place at 4 am on 21 September 1745. The
JacobiteJacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
army loyal to
James Francis Edward StuartJames Francis Edward, Prince of Wales was the son of the deposed James II of England...
and led by his son
Charles Edward StuartPrince Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or The Young Pretender was the second Jacobite pretender to the thrones of Great Britain , and Ireland...
defeated the government army loyal to the Hanoverian George II led by Sir John Cope. The inexperienced government troops were outflanked and broke in the face of a
highland chargeThe Highland charge was a battlefield shock tactic used by the clans of the Scottish Highlands which incorporated the use of firearms.-Historical Development :...
. The victory was a huge morale boost for the Jacobites, and a heavily
mythologizedThe term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
version of the story entered art and legend.
It was initially known as the
Battle of GladsmuirGladsmuir is a village and parish in East Lothian, Scotland, situated on the A199 and near Tranent and Prestonpans.-Description:The name Gladsmuir stems from the Scots word Gled, meaning a bird of prey, , combined with Muir; the Scots form of Moor...
, but was actually fought at
PrestonpansPrestonpans is a small town to the east of Edinburgh, Scotland, in the unitary council area of East Lothian. It has a population of 7,153 . It is the site of the 1745 Battle of Prestonpans, and has a history dating back to the 11th century...
,
East LothianEast Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy Area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian. Its administrative centre is Haddington, although its largest town is Musselburgh....
, Scotland on that town's borders with
TranentTranent is a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is close to the A1 road and approximately east of Edinburgh. It is one of the oldest towns in East Lothian, and built on a gentle slope, about 300 feet above sea level.Population of the town is 9,917....
, Cockenzie and Port Seton.
The second Jacobite Rising
As part of the
War of the Austrian SuccessionThe War of the Austrian Succession – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...
, George II had sent most of the British army to the continent of Europe to do battle with their long-time enemy, the French. In May 1745 at the
Battle of FontenoyThe Battle of Fontenoy, 11 May 1745, was a major engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession, fought between the forces of the Pragmatic Allies – comprising mainly Dutch, British, and Hanoverian troops under the nominal command of the Duke of Cumberland – and a French army under Maurice de...
, both armies suffered heavy casualties, but the French carried the day and forced the allied British, Hanoverian and Austrian army from the field. Maintaining the offensive, the French invaded and captured a number of Flemish towns through 1745, and kept the opposing forces off-balance throughout.
With only 6,000 troops left in England, and the majority of those on the continent having been recently defeated, Charles Edward Stuart saw an opportunity to re-open the Jacobite Rising. He mounted a campaign to take Scotland and England with an eye towards reclaiming what he considered to be his father's two kingdoms (Great Britain, formally united in 1707, and Ireland). Against long odds, and aided by the early support of Donald Cameron of Lochiel, XIX chief of Clan Cameron, his party of ten raised an army which eventually numbered over 2,000 Scots as they marched to
GlenfinnanGlenfinnan is a village in Lochaber area of the Highlands of Scotland. It is located at the northern end of Loch Shiel, at the foot of Glenfinnan.- Glenfinnan Monument :...
and then to
EdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
.
The government response
Sir John Cope, the general commanding the government forces in Scotland, actually commanded less than 4,000 men, in two regiments of dragoons and three and a half regiments of infantry. Most of his troops were recently raised and inexperienced. He was hampered by a variety of other problems including the sickness of his senior
cavalryCavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
officer (Colonel James Gardiner), the lack of any gunners to man his train of artillery and poor advice from the civilian government officials in Scotland. Acting on this advice, Cope marched with his infantry and artillery towards
Fort AugustusFort Augustus is a settlement in the Scottish Highlands, at the south west end of Loch Ness. The village has a population of around 646 ; its economy is heavily reliant on tourism....
in the central Highlands to overawe the Highland clans and nip the rebellion "in the bud". He found that supposedly "well-affected" clans were evading calls to take up arms on behalf of the government, using a variety of excuses. On 25 August Cope heard that the rebel army, whose strength he overestimated, was preparing to oppose him at Corryarrack. He turned about and marched instead to
InvernessInverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
.
Prince Charles's officers briefly considered pursuing Cope, but instead they decided to march into the Lowlands, which Cope had left almost undefended. They reached
PerthPerth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...
on 4 September, where the Jacobite army was joined by two prominent Highland nobles, the 3rd Duke of Perth and
Lord George MurrayLord George Murray was a Scottish Jacobite general, most noted for his 1745 campaign under Bonnie Prince Charlie into England...
, who was appointed Lieutenant General. On 11 September, Prince Charles's army resumed its advance south. The regiment of dragoons opposing them retreated in disorder to Edinburgh.
Brigadier
Thomas FowkeLieutenant General Thomas Fowke was a British Army officer who was appointed Governor of Gibraltar.-Early years:He was the son of John Fowke, Esq. and descended from the Fowkes of Brewood and Gunston, in South Staffordshire....
had recently arrived at Edinburgh to take charge of the cavalry and some reinforcements. He decided that the two regiments of dragoons he took over were in no state to face the Jacobite army and ordered a further retreat, which was marked by unnecessary panics and alarms. This also left Edinburgh unprotected. On 16 September, some of Prince Charles's army captured the city with little or no fighting, though
Edinburgh CastleEdinburgh Castle is a fortress which dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, from its position atop the volcanic Castle Rock. Human habitation of the site is dated back as far as the 9th century BC, although the nature of early settlement is unclear...
was still defended for the government by Lieutenant General
Joshua GuestJoshua Guest was an English lieutenant-general.-Early life:Guest was a Yorkshireman of obscure origin. His mother was Mary Guest, afterwards Smith, and he was a son by a former marriage, or before she was married at all. His epitaph in Westminster Abbey shows that he was born in 1660, and began...
.
Cope meanwhile had marched to
AberdeenAberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, where he had urgently ordered ships to proceed and embark his army. On the day Edinburgh was captured, his troops began to disembark at
DunbarDunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 28 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
, where they met the disordered dragoons.
The battle
Despite the poor state of his cavalry and artillery, Cope determined to engage the Jacobite army. He had good intelligence that the Jacobite army numbered just under 2,000 men, mostly composed of fit and hardy men, but badly armed. His officers apparently believed that the rebels would never attack a single force including both infantry and cavalry. They assured locals during their march that there would be no battle.
On 20 September Cope's forces encountered Charles' advance guard. Cope decided to stand his ground and engage the Jacobite army. He drew up his army facing south with a marshy ditch to their front, and the park walls around Preston House protecting their right flank. He mounted his cannon behind the low embankment of the
Tranent colliery waggonwayThe Tranent to Cockenzie Waggonway was the first railway in Scotland, opened in 1722. It was 2½ miles long and connected two towns in East Lothian, transporting coal from the pit heads at Tranent to Cockenzie harbour via Meadowmill. Horse drawn wagons were used which held 2 tons of coal...
, which crossed the battlefield.
Although the Jacobite army had secured the high ground to the south of Cope's army, they were dismayed by the natural advantages of Cope's position. A frontal highland charge would flounder in the marshy ground in front of the Royalist army's centre and be shot to pieces by musket and cannon fire. Although there was much argument among the senior Jacobite officers, Lord George Murray was convinced that only an attack against the open left flank of Cope's army stood any chance of success. Jacobite Lieutenant Anderson was a local farmer's son who knew the area well and convinced Murray that he knew an excellent route through the marshlands. Following his advice, Murray began to move the entire Jacobite force at 4 am walking three abreast along the Riggonhead
DefileDefile is a geographic term for a narrow pass or gorge between mountains or hills. It has its origins as a military description of a pass through which troops can march only in a narrow column or with a narrow front...
far to the east of Cope's position.
Cope meanwhile had observed some eastward movement of the Jacobite army as it grew dark, though this move was the result of confusion in the Jacobite ranks and was abandoned. He feared an attack against both his flanks, and realigned his army on a north-south front, in the position in which they would fight on the next day. Three companies of
Loudon's HighlandersLoudon's Highlanders, or the Earl of Loudon's Regiment of Foot, was an infantry regiment of the British Army.The great bravery of the 42nd Highlanders and the admirable service which they rendered at the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745, made the Government anxious to avail themselves still further of...
were detailed to guard the baggage park in
CockenzieCockenzie and Port Seton is a unified town in East Lothian, Scotland, situated on the coast of the Firth of Forth, four miles north east of Musselburgh. The burgh of Cockenzie was created in 1591 by James VI of Scotland...
. Some 100 Volunteers were dismissed and ordered to report again the next morning, thus missing the ensuing battle. Cope also made a last-minute attempt to get some artillerymen from Edinburgh Castle. Some half-dozen gunners left the Castle disguised as tradesmen but their guide became lost.
To prevent a surprise attack during the night, Cope kept fires burning in front of his position and posted no less than 200 dragoons and 300 infantry as
picketsIn military terminology, a picket refers to soldiers or troops placed on a line forward of a position to warn against an enemy advance. It can also refer to any unit performing a similar function...
. At the crack of dawn however, at 6 am on 21 September 1745, Cope's dragoons beheld the spectacle of 1,400 Highlanders charging through the early mist making "wild Highland war cries and with the bloodcurdling skirl of the
pipesThe Great Highland Bagpipe is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland. It has achieved widespread recognition through its usage in the British military and in pipe bands throughout the world. It is closely related to the Great Irish Warpipes....
....". Cope's inexperienced army wheeled to its left by platoons to face the Highlanders, who were charging in from the east following their night march. Cope managed to scramble some cannon up onto his right flank. Although most of his artillerymen (most of whom were aged or "invalids") fled, the two officers in charge of them opened fire as soon as the Highlanders were in range. Undaunted by the light, inaccurate guns, the Highlander army continued its charge; however, the centre became bogged down in marshy terrain, and as they continued forward their different speeds of advance caused them to form into a "V". The wings on either side met the inexperienced dragoons on either side of the British centre, and the dragoons immediately fled the field.
This left the British centre, containing the experienced royal infantry, facing the centre of the "V" on their front, and the two unopposed wings on either side. The effect of this unplanned flanking manoeuvre meant that the royal foot soldiers were effectively sandwiched. They suffered heavy casualties and gave way. The battle was over in less than 10 minutes with hundreds of government troops killed or wounded and 1500 taken prisoner. Cope's baggage train at Cockenzie was captured with only a single shot fired. It contained £5000, many muskets and ammunition. The Jacobite Army suffered fewer than 100 troops killed or wounded. The wounded and prisoners were given the best care possible at Prince Charles Stuart's insistence.
Cope tried to rally his men, but could only lead about two hundred stragglers up a side lane (
Johnnie Cope's Road) to reorganize in an adjacent field, where they refused further engagement. Cope and his aide-de-camp had no choice but to travel southwards to
LauderThe Royal Burgh of Lauder is a town in the Scottish Borders 27 miles south east of Edinburgh. It is also a royal burgh in the county of Berwickshire. It lies on the edge of the Lammermuir Hills, on the Southern Upland Way.-Medieval history:...
and
ColdstreamColdstream is a small town in the Borders district of Scotland. It lies on the north bank of the River Tweed in Berwickshire, while Northumberland in England lies to the south bank, with Cornhill-on-Tweed the nearest village...
and then on to the safety of
Berwick-upon-TweedBerwick-upon-Tweed or simply Berwick is a town in the county of Northumberland and is the northernmost town in England, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tweed. It is situated 2.5 miles south of the Scottish border....
, 50 miles (80 km) away, the following day, Brigadier Fowke causing scandal by arriving ahead of the troops. Out of the 2,300 men in the royal army, only 170 troops managed to escape.
Colonel James Gardiner, a senior royal commander who stayed at Bankton House close by the scene of battle, was mortally wounded in a final heroic skirmish that included Sir Thomas Hay of Park who fought by his side and survived. Colonel Gardiner's fatal wounds were inflicted beneath a white thorntree of which a portion is today in Edinburgh's Naval and Military Museum. Gardiner was stripped to the waist after his possessions were looted by the Highlanders. A servant took the mortally wounded Colonel after the battle to The Manse at Tranent where he died in the arms of the Minister's daughter during the night. The Colonel became the unchallenged hero of the day and an obelisk to his memory was raised in the mid 19th century.
A cairn to the memory of those who died in the battle was erected in 1953 close by the battle site and a coal bing, using the remains of the area's coal shale shaped as a pyramid, now provides a vantage point for today's visitors.
Cope exonerated at court-martial
Despite the conduct of his inexperienced troops and the humiliating fact that Cope had to report his overwhelming defeat personally to the garrison commander at Berwick-upon-Tweed, the frequent accusations that Cope himself fled the battlefield appear to be incorrect. Cope and his officers were exonerated by a
court-martialA court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
. Martin B. Margulies, writing in
History Scotland magazine, notes:
The Report of the Board's proceedings was published in 1749. Anyone who scrutinizes it closely can only conclude that the Board was correct. What emerges from the pages is not, perhaps, the portrait of a military genius but one of an able, energetic and conscientious officer, who weighed his options carefully and who anticipated – with almost obsessive attention to detail – every eventuality except the one which he could not have provided for in any case: that his men would panic and flee.
The second Jacobite rising continues
The battle greatly boosted the morale of all Stuart supporters, and more recruits were soon gained in Scotland. At this point, the campaign was going the Stuarts' way. The Prince's army advanced as far as
DerbyDerby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
by December 1745 unimpeded, using the most skilled generalship. However in Derby the Council of Chiefs resolved at Exeter House to proceed no further since they had been deliberately misled to believe a major Hanoverian army stood between them and London. They conducted a skilled retreat with a further victory at
FalkirkDuring the Second Jacobite Rising, the Battle of Falkirk Muir was the last noteworthy Jacobite success.-Background:...
before finally meeting total defeat at the
Battle of CullodenThe Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. Taking place on 16 April 1746, the battle pitted the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, loyal to the British government...
, near
InvernessInverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
.
The battle in art and legend
Subsequent public perception of the battle in general and General Cope in particular has been influenced by
Adam SkirvingAdam Skirving was a Scottish song writer. He became a farmer at Garleton Castle, near Haddington, and died in April 1803. He was buried at Athelstaneford...
's popular songs. Skirving was a local farmer who did not see the battle itself, but visited the battlefield later that afternoon where he was, by his own account, mugged by the victors. Skirving wrote two songs, "
Hey, Johnnie Cope, Are Ye Waking Yet?Hey, Johnnie Cope, are Ye Waking Yet?, also Hey Johnnie Cope, are you awake yet?, Heigh! Johnnie Cowp, are ye wauken yet?, or simply "Johnny Cope" is a Scottish folk song....
", and "Tranent Muir"; the former is quite well known, and is a short, catchy, and mostly historically inaccurate insult to Cope. While Cope's troops fled the battle, he himself did not; nor is it true that he slept the night before. Poet
Robert BurnsRobert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
later wrote his own words to the song, but these are not as well-known as Skirving's.
Tranent Muir, on the other hand, is a long and graphically violent description of the battle, and some of the events depicted are historically accurate. Myrie and Gardiner, mentioned in verses seven and eight, did in fact die in the battle. Lieutenant Smith, described in verse nine as fleeing the battle in dread, challenged Skirving to a duel after the song was published.
Sir Walter Scott gave the battle a prominent place in
WaverleyWaverley is an 1814 historical novel by Sir Walter Scott. Initially published anonymously in 1814 as Scott's first venture into prose fiction, Waverley is often regarded as the first historical novel. It became so popular that Scott's later novels were advertised as being "by the author of...
. Scott's rendition culminates in the last stand of Gardiner, whose death the titular hero and Jacobite volunteer, Edward Waverley, unsuccessfully tries to prevent.
A heritage trust, described below, was established in 2006 and is most particularly concerned to capture, present and develop all these artistic dimensions. New poetry, theatre, paintings and songs have been commissioned.
Battle Heritage Trust
The town of Prestonpans is a long established centre of industrial activity not only in coal mining but brickworks, pottery, glass making, salt panning, soap and chemicals. It had not until 2006 sought to offer any significant year-round opportunity for visitors to gain a comprehensive understanding of the battle and its lasting importance, although a major re-enactment of the battle took place on the 250th anniversary in 1995.
However, in 2006 the
Battle of Prestonpans 1745 Heritage Trust was established on the initiative of the local people to ensure much better presentation and interpretation. It attracted private and
Heritage lotteryThe Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
funding to achieve some of its initial goals.
Plans include a visitor Centre in the grounds of Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum, 'Living History' battle re-enactments, battle-related storytelling, and a new 'Flowering of the Arts'. A "Battle Bus" is helping to promote the project. In September 2008 and May 2010, two symposia were held in order to explore the past, present and future of the East Lothian battlefields of Prestonpans, Dunbar and Pinkie Cleugh.
Battlefield location
In 2008 the Trust commissioned Glasgow University Archaeological Research Division ("GUARD") to undertake a comprehensive survey, followed by selective excavation, of the battlefield. Although the site of the main battlefield is readily located today, fixed by such surviving features as the tramway embankment, interim findings announced in April 2010 indicate that the true site of the Highlanders' charge, based on concentrations of musket balls and other evidence, is 500 yards to the east of the accepted location (55.964°N 2.947°W).
The Prestonpans Tapestry
The
Prestonpans TapestryThe Prestonpans Tapestry is a large embroidery created - and normally situated in - Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland.Its full title is "The Battle of Prestonpans Tapestry 1754"....
was unveiled on 26 July 2010. With 103 panels (each 1m long), it is about 100ft (30m) longer than the
Bayeux TapestryThe Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth—not an actual tapestry—nearly long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England concerning William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, Earl of Wessex, later King of England, and culminating in the Battle of Hastings...
. Inspired by Gordon Baron Prestoungrange, designed by local artist Andrew Crummy, and executed by over 200 volunteer embroiderers, the tapestry has already toured Scotland, and current and future venues include the
Scottish ParliamentThe Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
, the
Scottish Storytelling CentreThe Scottish Storytelling Centre the world's first purpose built modern centre for live storytelling, located on the High Street in Edinburgh's Royal Mile, Scotland, United Kingdom. It was formally opened on 1 June 2006 by Patricia Ferguson MSP, Minister for Culture in the Scottish Executive...
, and
Cockenzie power stationCockenzie power station is a coal-fired power station in East Lothian, Scotland, capable of co-firing biomass. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, near the town of Cockenzie and Port Seton, east of the Scottish capital of Edinburgh. The station has dominated the local...
.
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