The Jacobites
As I continue to journey through my ancestry and also through ancient civilizations and cultures, I want to learn all I can about the groups of people who walked the Earth before us.
In today's blog, I am going to return to my Scottish Ancestry and share with you one of those groups of people who walked the Earth before us. The Jacobites.
The Jacobites were part of a political movement that wanted to restore the House of Stuart to the British throne.
The name Jacobite is taken from the Latin name for James, Jacobus. King James the II went into exile in 1688 and the Parliament of England said he abandoned his throne and offered his throne to his daughter Mary II and her husband William III.
The movement took the name Jacobites in support of King James, and argued that Monarchs were appointed by God and could not be removed from the throne.
The Jacobites first rose up in 1689 with the first Jacobite soldier being John Graham who had rallied several Scottish Highlanders to form a small rebel army. This army would square off against Williams troops on July 27 1689 at the Battle of Killiecrankie. Even though William's army outnumbered them, the Jacobite rebels were able to win this battle.
The Jacobites would go into battle using the Claymore broadsword and shield. Claymore is Gaelic for "great sword". It had an usual length and weight and required 2 hands and much strength to use it.
Many Highlanders would remain loyal to the government and this would lead to wars and battles among the Highland clans.
The Jacobites were forced to meet and plan in secret. The White Rose or White Cockade, a flower made from ribbon, was a way to identify the supporters. Other symbols included the sunflower and butterfly. Sunflower symbolizes unity because the head of the sunflower constantly follows the sun.
In 1707 the Kingdoms of England and Scotland were united, thus angering the Jacobites and fueling the highlander rebellion even more. In 1715, Jacobite rebel John Erskine, gathered the Highlanders and took key locations in Northern Scotland. The last and final Jacobite uprising happened in 1745 when Bonnie Prince Charlie returned from France and raised up the Highlanders once again. With much success at first, the Highlanders were able to cross into England, but turned back due to the lack of support. Eventually the Jacobites would be defeated at the Battle of Culloden on April 16, 1746. The defeat led to the Jacobites being executed and exiled and ended the Jacobite uprisings.
The Highlander way of life was challenged by the British throne, eliminating tartans, bagpipes, and kilts and preventing the use of the Gaelic language.
Most Jacobites who were not executed, were exiled to the British Colonies, with one of my ancestors being one of them.
Today there are still Jacobites walking amongst us who still want the Stuart royals to return to the throne.
We have now learned about another group of people who walked the Earth before us. But my blog is written based on information I have read that was given by people. I do not have any history or stories handed down to me by my ancestors.
I want to hear the true and real stories to discover who the Jacobites really were and what they believed. To know how they lived off the land and if they respected the Earth.
I do know some of my ancestors were Jacobites and I want to understand that part of me better.
Do you have Scottish or Jacobite ancestry? Do you have any stories or histories to share? I would love to hear them if you do. We can learn and journey through ancient groups and civilizations together.
Journey to discover about the Jacobites, some answers, but many more questions remain.
Thank you for reading and your support.
Blessings!
By Michael Walters
The Ancestor's Fire
Writing the voices of the unheard
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