Preparations and journey to Scotland: 1745 , attributed to the circle of
Louis Tocqué) In both Rome and Paris, Charles met numerous supporters of the Stuart cause; he knew that Jacobite representatives were in every key European court. He had now taken a considerable share in correspondence and other work promoting his and his father's interests. While in Paris and Soissons, Charles sought funding and support to restore the monarchy. Following conversations with Irish and Scottish exiles such as
Sir Thomas Sheridan who assured him of the strength of the Jacobite movement in Scotland, as well as following receipt of a petition to Charles from
Sir Hector Maclean on behalf of intervention, Charles resolved to launch an expedition to Scotland. The ultimate aim was to instigate a rebellion that would place his father on the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland. To assist with funding the expedition, Charles borrowed some 180,000 livres from the Paris bankers John Waters and George Waters. Part of these funds had been raised through support from loyalists in Britain such as Sir Henry Bedingfield of
Oxburgh Hall. As security for the loans, Charles was able to use the
Sobieski crown jewels of his great-grandfather
John III Sobieski, which had passed down to him through his mother. He used these extensive funds to purchase weapons and fit out the
Elisabeth, an old man-of-war of 66 guns, and the
Du Teillay (sometimes called
Doutelle), a 16-gun privateer. Encouraged by the French victory in May 1745 at the
Battle of Fontenoy, Charles and his party set sail on 5 July for Scotland. During the voyage north, Charles's squadron was fired upon by
HMS Lion in the
Celtic Sea. The
Du Teillay, with Charles on board, made sail to escape, while the
Elisabeth, with her greater firepower, engaged
Lion. When
Lion withdrew, the
Elisabeth was forced to return to Brest for repairs, taking the majority of Charles's supplies, including some 1,800 broadswords, 8 artillery pieces and most of the 1,500 muskets he had purchased. The
Du Teillay successfully landed him and seven companions at
Eriskay on 23 July 1745. The group would later be known as the
Seven Men of Moidart and included
John O'Sullivan, an Irish exile and former French officer, and Charles's secretary
George Kelly. Many Catholic and Protestant Highland clans still supported the
Jacobite cause, and Charles hoped for a warm welcome from these clans to start an insurgency by Jacobites throughout Britain. However, receiving a cool reception from the clan leaders there, many of those contacted advised him to return to France, including
MacDonald of Sleat and
Norman MacLeod. Aware of the potential impact of defeat, they felt that by arriving without French military support, Charles had failed to keep his commitments and was unconvinced by his personal qualities. Undeterred, Charles set sail again and arrived at the bay of
Loch nan Uamh. He had hoped for support from a French fleet, but it was not forthcoming, and he decided to raise an army in Scotland.
Early stages and victory at Prestonpans: 1745 Although several clan chiefs initially discouraged him, he gained the crucial support of
Donald Cameron of Lochiel, Chief of
Clan Cameron, after Charles provided "security for the full value of his estate should the rising prove abortive." Thereafter, support continued to grow. It is recorded that during this time, Charles began to take lessons in conversational
Gaelic under the tutorship of
Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair. On 19 August, he raised his father's standard at
Glenfinnan and gathered a force large enough to enable him to march towards
Edinburgh. The force proceeded eastwards, reaching
Invergarry Castle by the last week of August. Charles's forces continued on via the
Corrieyairack Pass, where their control of the pass persuaded advancing government forces to withdraw from the area. Stopping briefly first at
Blair Castle, Charles and his forces reached
Perth on 4 September. At Perth, his ranks were joined by more sympathisers, including
Lord George Murray. Previously pardoned for his participation in the 1715 and 1719 risings, Murray took over from O'Sullivan due to his better understanding of Highland military customs, and the Jacobites spent the next week re-organising their forces. On 14 September, Charles and his forces took
Falkirk, and Charles stayed at
Callendar House, where he persuaded the
Earl of Kilmarnock to join him. Charles's progress onto Edinburgh was helped by the action of the British leader,
General Sir John Cope, who had marched to
Inverness, leaving the south country undefended. On 16 September, Charles and his army encamped outside the city at Gray's Mill in
Longstone.
Lord Provost Archibald Stewart controlled the city, which quickly surrendered. However, the castle under the command of
George Preston did not surrender and was blockaded until Charles later called off the siege owing to a lack of artillery. On 17 September, Charles entered Edinburgh, accompanied by around 2,400 men. During this time, Charles also gave trophies to his supporters, a prominent example being
Prince Charlie's Targe.
Allan Ramsay painted a
portrait of Charles while he was in Edinburgh, which survived in the collection of the
Earl of Wemyss at
Gosford House and, , was on display at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. '' flanked by
Donald Cameron of Lochiel and
Alexander Forbes, Lord Pitsligo, painted by
John Pettie, Meanwhile, Sir John Cope had brought his forces by sea to
Dunbar, a decision he would soon regret. On 20 September, Charles mustered and joined his forces at
Duddingston. On 21 September, Charles and his forces defeated Cope's army, the only government army in Scotland, at the
Battle of Prestonpans. Charles was said to have been only 50 paces from the front-line of the battle, and he later expressed remorse that the victory involved killing his own subjects. It was reported during the battle that Charles and Lord Murray had argued over the disposition of forces. The historian Hugh Douglas argues this was to result in an ever-worsening relationship between the two that would culminate with ultimate defeat later at Culloden.
Invasion of England: 1745–1746 Morale was high following the battle at Prestonpans, and Charles returned to Edinburgh, holding court at
Holyrood Palace. Jacobite morale was further boosted in mid-October when the French landed with supplies of money and weapons and an envoy, which seemed to validate claims of French backing. However,
Lord Elcho later claimed that his fellow Scots were already concerned by Charles's autocratic style and fear his Irish advisors overly influenced him. A "Prince's Council" of senior leaders was established; Charles resented it as an imposition by the Scots on their divinely appointed monarch, while the daily meetings accentuated divisions between the factions. The council was said to include
Perth, Lord George Murray, Thomas Sheridan, John O'Sullivan,
Murray of Broughton, Lochiel,
Keppoch,
Clanranald,
Glencoe,
Ardsheal and
Lochgarry. The option to remain in Scotland was considered but Charles had confidently proposed marching into England via Berwick and then onto Newcastle to meet General Wade's forces. A discussion then took place and while the council was persuaded to agree to invade England, it was felt an approach by way of
Carlisle would better suit their forces as they lacked sufficient artillery for investing the stronger walls of Berwick. Charles was obliged to acquiesce. On 2 November, the main army headed south to Carlisle (with a smaller column making a brief feint to the east to Kelso and as if to Wooler to provide a distraction to Wade). The army numbered approximately 6,000 men. On 9 November Charles army began to surround Carlisle. The blockade was completed by 13 November, while Charles himself stayed with a part of his force at nearby
Brampton. Owing to the castle and walls being in a poor state of repair and with no prospect of relief by Wade's force, the town and castle of Carlisle eventually agreed to surrender to Charles on 15 November. On 18 November, Charles made a triumphal entry into Carlisle on a white charger and resided at Highmore House. Charles held a council of war again in Carlisle, where it was discussed to either remain in Carlisle or continue an advance further into England. After receiving encouraging reports of the potential support of Jacobites in
Lancashire Charles and his council agreed to continue south. Charles and his army left Carlisle (leaving a small garrison) and proceeded onto
Penrith, arriving there on 21 November. Continuing on Charles and his army then reached
Kendal by the evening of 23 November, where he resided at Stricklandgate in the town. His forces then continued south to
Preston on the 26 November and
Manchester on 29 November. Charles resided at a townhouse at 44 Manchester Street and levied taxes on the town, as well as issuing a proclamation for the repair of local bridges. While at Manchester, Charles ordered local Jacobite volunteers and those from Lancashire to be formed as the
Manchester Regiment, though numbers of volunteers were significantly below what he had expected. On 1 December, he headed with his army to
Macclesfield where he remained for several days before departing for
Leek and then further south to
Derby. Charles stayed at
Exeter House with his main force, leading elements of his army progressed as far south as the
River Trent at
Swarkestone Bridge in
Derbyshire, arriving there on 4 December. At
Derby, despite Charles's objections, his council decided to return to Scotland given the lack of English Jacobite and French support. There were also rumours that large government forces were being amassed. Charles admitted that he had not heard from the English Jacobites since leaving France despite claiming the contrary; this caused his relationship with some of the Scots to become irretrievably damaged. Charles was said to be manifestly distraught at the decision and had tried, without success to persuade his council to continue on to London. The result was that on 6 December, the Jacobite forces and Charles left Derby and began their march north back to Scotland. Charles's route north was the same as the one he had taken on the journey south. He returned via
Stockport to Manchester on 9 December, and after some light resistance from the local population, Charles demanded £5,000 from the town, eventually receiving £2,500 in payment. With government forces in close pursuit, Charles and his army resumed their journey north, proceeding on through Preston, Lancaster, and Kendal until the Jacobite forces eventually met the government forces at
Clifton near Penrith in Cumbria on 18 December. The Jacobite forces won the
Clifton Moor Skirmish, allowing them to continue north to Carlisle. Charles re-entered Carlisle on 19 December with his army and ordered the Manchester Regiment to stay behind as garrison in the castle, leaving behind the sick as well as some his cannons. Leaving Carlisle, he crossed the
river Esk with his forces and returned to Scotland.
Scotland, Culloden and return to France: 1746 Charles and his forces reached Glasgow on 26 December, resting until 3 January 1746. The decision was then made to lay
siege to Stirling and
Stirling Castle. However, while the town surrendered immediately, the castle's artillery proved too strong for the Jacobite forces to approach and seize the castle. Government forces also attempted a relief of the siege, which resulted in a victory for Charles in the ensuing
Battle of Falkirk Muir in January 1746. A failure to take the castle, however, resulted in the abandonment of the siege and the Jacobite forces moving northward to
Crieff, then
Moy and Inverness. In February, while resting in Moy at
Moy Hall, Charles narrowly avoided capture by an advance party of government forces that had been sent to capture him as the party had been detected by four local men on sentry at the roadside to the hall. With a halt in operations until the weather improved, Charles forces then rested at Inverness, including a stay of some four days at
Kilravock Castle. Charles and his troops were then required to move after word reached them of the pursuit against them by the forces of
George II's son
Prince William, Duke of Cumberland. Government forces caught up with Charles and his army at the ensuing
Battle of Culloden on 16 April. Charles ignored the advice of his subordinate
Lord George Murray and chose to fight on flat, open, marshy ground, where his forces were exposed to superior firepower from government troops. To ensure his safety, his officers requested that Charles command his army from behind the front lines, preventing him from gaining a clear view of the battlefield. He hoped that Cumberland's army would attack first, and he had his men stand exposed to the accurate fire from government artillery batteries. Seeing the error in this, he quickly ordered an attack, but his messenger was killed before the order could be delivered. The Jacobite attack was uncoordinated, charging into withering musket fire and
grapeshot fired from the cannons, and it met with little success. In the centre, the Jacobites reached the first line of government troops, but a second line of soldiers eventually repulsed this attack. The remaining Jacobite survivors in the front line fled. However, the
Jacobite Army units fighting on the north-eastern side of the battlefield, as well as Irish and Scots regulars in the second line, retired in good order, allowing Charles and his personal retinue to escape northwards. After the defeat, Murray led a group of Jacobites to
Ruthven, intending to continue the fight. Charles thought he was betrayed but abandoned the Jacobite cause. Some 20 miles from the battlefield, Charles rested briefly at Gorthleck, the home of his dubious supporter
Lord Lovat, before retreating to Invergarry Castle, by way of
Fort Augustus, on 16 April. Charles then hid in the moors of the Highlands of Scotland, before making a flight to the
Hebrides, always barely ahead of the government forces. Many Highlanders aided him during his escape, and none betrayed him for the £30,000 reward. While Charles was in the Hebrides, funds had arrived from Spain and France on two ships that called at
Lochaber. Too late to assist Charles following Culloden, only the Spanish gold was landed, but much of it was
lost. Charles was assisted by supporters such as the
pilot Donald Macleod of Galtrigill and Captain Con O'Neill, who took him to Benbecula. From 16 April until 28 June, Charles travelled through
Benbecula,
South Uist,
North Uist,
Harris, and the
Isle of Lewis. On 28 June, Charles was aided by
Flora MacDonald, who helped him sail to the
Isle of Skye and then to
Raasay by taking him in a boat disguised as her maid "Betty Burke". Charles remained on Skye until 8 July when he crossed back to the mainland to
Morar. With the aid of a few loyal servants and local supporters, Charles hid from government forces in the western
Grampian Mountains for several weeks. He ultimately evaded capture, and on 19 September, he left the country aboard the French frigate ''L'Heureux'', commanded by
Richard Warren. The
Prince's Cairn marks the traditional spot on the shores of
Loch nan Uamh in
Lochaber from which he made his final departure from Scotland. ==Later life==