On 27th of August 1715 the Earl of Mar raised the Standard at Braemar, Aberdeenshire to start the campaign to restore James Edward Stewart to the thrones of Scotland and England.
James’ father, James VII King of Scots ( James II King of England) had been deposed from the thrones of both countries after the ‘Glorious Revolution’. A Protestant monarch was installed on both thrones, James VII ‘s daughter, Mary II and her husband William III. Sophia of Hanover was named as successor to Mary, also a Protestant. However, on the deaths of all these monarchs and folk wanting to be monarchs, George of Hanover, Sophia’s eldest son (Protestant) was installed on the thrones of both countries. By this times the lines of succession were very stretched and James Edward Stewart’s claim to the thrones was actually stronger – but he was a Catholic.
It is referred to as the 1715 ‘rebellion’ or ‘uprising’ because as we know the ‘Jacobites’ lost. It was a short lived campaign which took place not just in Scotland as there were many Jacobites in England too. Retribution followed the eventual defeat of the campaign in 1716 with hangings and others fleeing into exile. As we know this was not the end of the story with unrest continuing resulting in the 1745 campaign, the Battle of Culloden and its aftermath, which was to have a devastating long lasting effect in Scotland.
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What a narrow escape Scotland had!
James VII’s uncle, Charles II had signed the Secret Treaty of Dover with France in1670.
It required that Charles II of England would convert to the Roman Catholic Church at some future date and that he would assist Louis XIV with 60 warships and 4,000 soldiers to help in France’s war of conquest against the Dutch Republic. In exchange, Charles would secretly receive a yearly pension of £230,000, as well as an extra sum of money when Charles informed the English people of his conversion, and France would send 6,000 French troops if there was ever a rebellion against Charles in England and Scotland.
Like Mary Queen of Scots, another Stuart considered selling out their country to France as well as putting it under the heel of Rome