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| The Glenfinnan Monument On this spot, where Prince Charles Edward first raised his standard, on the 19th day of August, 1745; when he made the daring and romantic attempt to recover a throne lost by the imprudence of his ancestors; this column is erected by Alexander M'Donald, Esq. of Glenalladale, to commemorate the generous zeal, the undaunted bravery, and the inviolable fidelity of his forefathers, and the rest of those who fought and bled in that arduous and unfortunate enterprise. |
Today is the 260th anniversary of the day in 1745 that Prince Charles (The Young Pretender) landed from a French ship in Glenfinnan, raised his standard and marched on London.
While getting within 100 miles of an evacuated and open London, ultimately the Scot's army fell back on Scotland and were disastrously defeated at Culloden a year later. The Highland Clearances followed destroying the Clan system, the true Highland way of life and leading to a mass exodus to Nova Scotia, New Zealand, America and Ireland. Many of the Scots who fled to Ireland (those with a "Mc" in their name) were forced to move on again a couple of generations later by the potato famine.
While the restoration of The Stuart line in the UK would probably have had disastous consequences for principles of religious tolerance - the genocide committed on the Scots after the revolt is hard to excuse.