Osprey Trade Editions : Culloden 1746 : The Highland Clans' Last Charge

Culloden marked the end of the last and greatest of the Jacobite adventures - the '45 Rebellion - in which the Highland clans challenged the power of the Hanoverian King of England. Charles Edward Stuart, better known as 'Bonnie Prince Charlie' had landed in the Hebrides in early August and with a newly collected Highland army occupied Edinburgh and defeated a Royal army at Prestonpans. He later went on to capture Carlisle and Manchester, and reached Derby on 4 December. The following year he beat the British once again at Falkirk. It was at Culloden that Charles' plans finally became seriously unstuck. His hopes of finding Cumberland and his army unprepared were thwarted, and the tired Highlanders had little chance against the steady infantry and heavy artillery fire of the English. His troops were finally cut down and routed by Cumberland's cavalry, the Highlanders losing about 1,000 men killed and another 1,000 captured by the end of the battle. Peter Harrington examines all aspects of the battle, including its background and the massacre that took place in the aftermath. The reasons for the '45 Rebellion and the Highlander victories at Prestonpans and Falkirk are looked at, and the men and commanders of both sides examined. The book also presents a detailed investigation of the events and unit dispositions at the battle of Culloden itself.