June 2003 Newsletter

Clan MacKenzie Society in the Americas Cabar Feidh The Canadian Chapter Magazine June 2003 ISSN 1207-7232 In This Issue: abortive 1719 uprising in a book for their members in December 1895, entitled The Jacobite Attempt of 1719. This attempt is a History of the Mackenzies - Part 13. .1 - 7 most important one from a Mackenzie perspective, as the clan New Members . 7 chief, William Mackenzie, the 5th Earl of Seaforth, was one of the Letters to the Editor . 7 - 8 principal leaders of this uprising in Scotland. It led to his exile. It Events in 2003 . .8 also resulted in the destruction of the Mackenzie’s historical Proposed Clan MacKenzie Library . 8 stronghold, Eilean Donan Castle and it was the main reason that New Zealand Clan Gatherings . .8 - 11 the Mackenzie clan played such a minor role in the ‘45 rebellion, Kildonan, Canada and New Zealand . 11 - 12 twenty-six years later. More on Thomas Urquhart McKenzie . 12 Among the almost 300 letters and papers reproduced by the 400th Anniversary of the Union of Scottish and English Crowns Scottish History Society, there is only one from the Earl of . 12 - 13 Seaforth himself, and a mighty strange letter it is, written as it was Pedigrees of the Early Mackenzie Chiefs - Part 1 . 13 - 14 only two months after the Battle of Glenshiel. Glory of Poolewe - poem . 14 The history of the 1719 uprising started far from the Highlands Alberta Happenings . 15 of Scotland and was immersed in the complexities of European The Real McKenzies . 15 politics. Sir Alexander Mackenzie’s Grave . 15 James Butler, Duke of Ormonde, had been Captain General in An Incident in Scotland . 16 the English army, in succession to the famous Duke of Book Review by Ken Mackenzie-Smith . 16 Marlborough. He went on to become one of the leaders of the McKenzies in a Champion Pipe Band . 16 - 17 Tory party in England. Ormonde became deeply implicated in the Other Clan Articles . .17 - 20 plot to bring over James Stuart from France following the death of James’ sister, Queen Anne in 1714. Queen Anne was the last sur- HISTORY OF THE MACKENZIES viving Stuart sovereign, except for the ambitions of Catholic CHAPTER 13 James. Ormonde rightly felt that James was the legitimate heir to the throne as the son of his father James VII and II, who was THE JACOBITE ATTEMPT OF 1719 forced to abdicate his throne because of his Roman Catholic religion in 1688 in favour of the joint sovereigns, William of Orange n November 1890 the British Museum obtained a book of let- and his wife, Queen Mary. Mary was not only the wife of William Iters of the second Duke of Ormonde, which were written of Orange but also the daughter of James VII and II. There is no between November 14, 1718 and September 27, 1719. Most of the question that in accordance with the rules of inheritance, James letters were written to Cardinal Alberoni or Prince James Francis VIII and III was the legitimate king of both England and Scotland. Edward Stuart, otherwise known to history as the Old Pretender, It must be said, however, that James could have made his path to or to the Jacobites as King James the VIII of Scotland and III of the throne a less difficult one had he been prepared to renounce his England. The contents of these letters related to the projected Roman Catholic religion and to have made a statement to that invasion of Britain in 1719 on behalf of the exiled Stuarts, which effect. But James was not prepared to depart from his religious eventually led to a landing in the West Highlands. The result was beliefs and an antagonistic Britain was not overly sympathetic to the ill-fated Battle of Glenshiel. him because of his dogmatism. Thus politics came into play and As a consequence of the finding of these papers, the Scottish the German, King George I was placed on the throne of Britain. History Society produced them and updated the account of the Outraged Scots rallied to the cause of the Jacobite rebellion of Cabar Feidh Newsletter: Members who wish to write to the Society with contributions to the Newsletter please send submissions to The Editor, Clan MacKenzie Society, 580 Rebecca St., Oakville, ON L6K 3N9. or e-mail to [email protected] 1715 which fizzled out following the inde- Page 2 could now give to the Jacobite adventure. cisive battle at Sheriffmuir. The second setback was the assassination Afurther complication to the attempt to ing in 1715, and he moved to the Papal of Charles XII of Sweden. He had been a put the Stuarts back on the throne was that dominions, where he remained for the rest strong opponent of King George I and his in 1707 an Act of Union brought England of his life. death now led to a change of policy in and Scotland together as a single country, The Jacobites plotted other attempts to Sweden’s previously hostile attitude to Great Britain. The Union was disliked by unseat King George from the throne and Britain. many on both sides of the border and did sought the help of Sweden, who promised Ormonde next invited George Keith, little, initially, to remove the dislike that to land 12,000 Swedish troops in Scotland the 10th Earl Marischal to join the cause the English and Scots had for each other. in support of a Jacobite uprising in and he agreed to do so and was accompa- Some Scots hoped that a Stuart monarch England. King Charles XII of Sweden was nied by his younger brother, James Keith, would renounce the Act of Union and to lead his troops in person and substantial who was to go on to achieve fame as a make Scotland an independent nation once financial support was to be forthcoming Field Marshal in later years. The Earl more. Whatever their respective motives, from Cardinal Alberoni and Spain. The Marischal was provided with two frigates the plotters plotted and Britain became a attempt came to naught when secret papers and two thousand muskets plus a supply of place of intrigue, a place full of spies and were seized which disclosed the intrigue money and ammunition. In addition a secret agents, with government informers and effectively ended that initiative. small body of Spanish troops were sent everywhere seeking to find out what was The next scheme involved a proposed with the Earl to Scotland, where it was going on. Most of the intrigues took place marriage between James and one of the expected that the Highlanders would flock in Europe with or without the support of daughters or nieces of Tsar Peter to gain to the standard of King James VIII & III. foreign princes or prime ministers, each of thereby Russian support against King The Earl Marischal set sail on 8th March whom had their own secret political rea- George. Ormonde failed in this attempt, 1719 with letters from the Duke of sons for supporting or not supporting the though the Earl of Mar was able to Ormonde to the Duke of Gordon, Jacobite cause. Many promises were made announce that a bride had been found for Glengarry, Maclean of Brolas and Donald and broken and the history of the Jacobite the Jacobite King James in the person of Macdonald of Benbecula, the cousin of rebellions is filled with outrageous promis- Princess Maria Clementina Sobieski, a Clanranald. es of huge armies, massive arms shipments granddaughter of the King of Poland. The main force was to go with and boat loads of gold to finance risings in The Jacobites continued their plotting Ormonde and he waited for the fleet of five both England and Scotland. Constantly the and discovered a strong ally in Spain in the warships and 22 other ships with 5000 promises were not fulfilled. Sometimes guise of Cardinal Giulio Alberoni, who troops and arms for 30,000 more. This fleet these were due to a change of political for- had become the absolute master of Spain left Cadiz on 7th March. But the govern- tune, sometimes an assassination, some- and was now having problems with the ment in England had plenty of warning times bad weather, but always, bad luck! English navy under Sir George Byng. from its informers that such an invasion Against this background we have the Byng was under orders to protect Italy was being attempted and put out a price of Jacobites divided amongst themselves and from attack by Spain. Byng completely £5,000 for the capture of Ormonde. often having personal motives in opposi- destroyed the Spanish fleet much to the Unfortunately for Ormonde, he waited tion to the general good. The English great fury of Alberoni who decided to hit in vain for the ships and the troops since Jacobites, for their part, simply failed to back at the British via military support for terrible storms scattered the fleet and produce the necessary numbers of men to the exiled House of Stuart. The further caused the loss of many lives. An attempt make the uprisings succeed and the plan was that Ormonde, with his military to send a further fleet was abandoned and Scottish Jacobites also had to fight clans reputation and personal popularity in all hopes for a successful rising now rested and countrymen loyal to the House of England was the man to lead such an with the Earl Marischal and his tiny inva- Hanover. It was a sorry catalogue of expedition. Ormonde’s letters commence sion force, now making its way to missed opportunities for a cause which at this point, from November 4, 1718.

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