Fashionable Rebellion: Jacobite Women’S Objects of the Forty-Five

Fashionable Rebellion: Jacobite Women’s Objects of the Forty-Five

by Finlay MacKenzie

From the early battle of Prestonpans to the battle of Falkirk Muir, and most notably the climactic battle of Culloden, the battles of the Jacobite rising of 1745 have been commemorated, and the Jacobites themselves have been equated with the soldiers who fought on behalf of the exiled Stuarts. Whilst these battles were undoubtedly significant, they punctuated the ongoing social and political conflicts which occurred continuously throughout the Forty-Five. Rather than taking place on the battlefield, these conflicts were carried out in the social sphere of the eighteenth century, at public gatherings and in the private areas of the home. As expressing Jacobite ideology was a treasonous offence in Britain, supporters of the Stuarts turned to symbolism to communicate their beliefs. They decorated their possessions with coded imagery and texts, representing complex ideas to themselves or other Jacobites whilst hiding their messages from their political opponents. Central to this ideological, object-based war were Jacobite women, whose enthusiasm for the cause established a large market for Jacobite objects catered specifically to their needs and interests. Women’s participation in Jacobitism was frequently devalued and trivialised by authorities and other supporters of the Hanoverians, who considered them victims of their preoccupation with fashion, attracted to the Jacobite cause by its popularity and the romanticism of Prince Charles. However, the objects owned and used by Jacobite women create a markedly different image – one of a highly informed and active group of Stuart supporters who used their reputation for romanticism to enjoy freedom of political expression and emphasise their commitment to rebellion with as much conviction as Jacobite men.

The involvement of women in British politics was well-established by the mid-eighteenth century. The society of the time was intensely interested in the activities of parliament, and as women were excluded from the official institutions of politics, they instead relied upon their social influence to support various politicians, parties, and causes. Whilst upper-class women were able to directly involve themselves in politics through their social connections, furthering their own aims or those of their families, women of all classes signed petitions, campaigned and demonstrated for political causes, and published political books and pamphlets. This frenzy of political activity co-existed with the conception of women as lacking a capacity for politics, and as such they were often able to exert influence where men could not. By the time of the Forty-Five, women were well- placed to subtly promote the treasonous political position of Jacobitism whilst suffering few consequences for their transgressions. Like other politically-minded women of the period, Jacobite women used their possessions to display their loyalty to their chosen cause, and a significant proportion of Jacobite objects were created and distributed for or by these women. Regardless of whether they were lower-, middle-, or upper-class, alone or amongst company, or expressing their beliefs covertly or openly, Jacobite women relied upon such objects to present themselves fashionably even as they rebelled against the Hanoverians.

Fashion?

For eighteenth-century women of all classes, the possession of fashionable and luxury objects demonstrated their refinement and taste, and their use of these objects gave them an opportunity to display both their awareness of the latest trends and their individuality. It is thus unsurprising that many women combined their interest in politics with their interest in fashion to adorn themselves in ways which reflected their beliefs, choosing ribbons or rosettes in colours which represented their favoured political parties. Jacobite women were no exception to this, as they owned, wore and used their objects with both fashion and politics in mind. During the Forty-Five, in those cities and towns which were occupied by the Jacobite army, the excitement and anticipation incited by the army’s success generated their own set of trends which Jacobite women were eager to take advantage of in order to proclaim their loyalty to the cause. Many women purchased or made sashes and dresses in tartan, reflecting the uniform of the Jacobite army, or cockades and dresses in white, referencing the white rose, a symbol of the Stuarts. To publicly declare their enthusiasm for the cause, Jacobite women wore these symbolic fashion items to parades, processions, and social occasions, or – for the lucky few – opportunities to meet Prince Charles. Fig. 1. Fragment of a dress said to have been worn by a Mrs Maxwell of Kirkconnell to the Holyrood ball in Edinburgh, 1745. The fragment is embroidered with a rose, rosebud, thistles, and oak leaves with acorns (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Some women even displayed their Jacobite loyalty at such occasions through more ornate and detailed accessories and dresses. This fabric fragment (Fig. 1) is thought to be from a dress worn by a Mrs Maxwell of Kirkconnell to the Holyrood ball in late 1745, which celebrated the Jacobite victory at Prestonpans and the army’s occupation of the city of Edinburgh. Even in this small fragment of her dress, Mrs Maxwell’s deliberate and strategic choices of Jacobite symbolism are clear. The embroidery centres around a rose, a common symbol of the Stuart monarchs, with a rosebud sprouting from it to represent the Stuart princes, Charles and Henry. Acorns and oak leaves, too, symbolise the Stuarts, and would have reminded Jacobites of the Boscobel oak, in which the Stuart king Charles II sheltered during the English Civil War. The thistle behind the rose represents Scotland, reflecting both the Stuarts’ Scottish origins and the importance of Scottish support. Although the rest of Mrs Maxwell’s dress is now left to the imagination, this small piece shows the care she must have taken in crafting an outfit rich in symbolism, and her understanding of the variety of visual imagery used to communicate Jacobite beliefs. Fig. 2. Fan produced for the Holyrood Ball in Edinburgh, 1745. The design on the leaf is attributed to Robert Strange, 1745, and depicts Prince Charles surrounded by classical gods. Prince Charles, Mars, and Minerva stand in the centre, with Venus and Cupid to the left, Britannia to the far left, Zeus striking down Envy and Discord to the right, and the Hanoverians fleeing to the far right. The sticks depict a classical-style scene (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Folding fans, too, were used by women to show their loyalty to Jacobitism, and these fans (Figs. 2 and 3) give a further suggestion of the rich Jacobite imagery and symbolism which women displayed at the Holyrood ball. Introduced from Asia into Europe in the fifteenth century, fans became relatively affordable and highly fashionable in the 1720s. By the 1740s, their large leaves were often painted with images commenting on politics or social issues, enabling women to express their ideas through fashion. Jacobite designers took advantage of this trend to create fans which displayed treasonous pro-Stuart images, such as these from the Holyrood ball. Their unpainted backs would have allowed their users to hide their more politically dangerous painted fronts, revealing these fans’ true message only when amongst sympathetic company. The Holyrood ball fans were not created for individuals, but commissioned by Jacobite leaders to be distributed as gifts to the women who attended the event. Their varying quality – illustrated by these two examples, which differ both in the clarity of the print and the number and style of the sticks – suggest that multiple fanmakers in Edinburgh were employed to make them, perhaps under significant pressure as Jacobite leaders hurried to have enough fans produced in time for the ball. The effort to provide a gift for the women in attendance at the ball shows the value Jacobite leaders placed on women’s support during the Forty- Five, and their eagerness to earn their loyalty. Fig. 3. Fan produced for the Holyrood Ball in Edinburgh, 1745. The design on the leaf is attributed to Robert Strange, 1745, and depicts Prince Charles surrounded by classical gods. Prince Charles, Mars, and Minerva stand in the centre, with Venus and Cupid to the left, Britannia to the far left, Zeus striking down Envy and Discord to the right, and the Hanoverians fleeing to the far right. The sticks are decorated with openwork and floral designs (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

The imagery painted on the leaf of the Holyrood ball fans suggests that the women who received them were expected to understand not only Jacobite imagery, but the Classical tradition. Whilst the Jacobites commonly used allusions to Greek and Roman mythology to represent their beliefs, these fans are relatively unique in their focus on female rather than male figures. The most prominent male figure on these fans is Prince Charles himself, crowned with laurel and standing below the star said to have appeared on the occasion of his birth. Although he is accompanied by Mars, god of violent warfare, and assisted by Zeus striking down Envy and Discord to cause the Hanoverians to flee, the female figures on these fans occupy equally if not more prominent roles. Minerva, goddess of wisdom and warfare, stands in front of Mars, who gestures to her alongside Prince Charles, as if inviting the fans’ owners to consider the role of women in promoting the Jacobite cause. Fame and Venus also play active roles, with Fame crowning Prince Charles and Venus pointing to the burning hearts which show the Jacobites’ love for the Stuarts. Even the Hanoverian symbol of Britannia, sitting dejected to the far left, is offered an olive branch by a dove. Not all of the women who attended the Holyrood ball would have been committed Jacobites, instead attending out of curiosity or having been invited with the aim of winning their support. These women may have seen Britannia’s depiction on these fans as a reflection of themselves, and interpreted her presence as an invitation to set aside their support for the Hanoverians in favour of the Jacobites. By including prominent female figures in these fans’ design, Jacobite leaders seem to have recognised the role of fashionable objects not only in allowing women political self-expression, but in influencing their opinions. Fig. 4. Fan dating to post-1746. The leaf depicts Justice leading Venus and Eros, Prudence, and Victory towards Britannia, who leans against a shattered oak tree with a new shoot growing from its base. A thistle divides the image, and above are portraits of the Duke of Cumberland with a butcher’s knife and Prince Charles surrounded by the words ‘WHAT JUDGEMENT WOULD NOT STEP FROM THAT TO THIS’. The sticks are decorated with white roses and crowned thistles (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

The prominence of female figures on Jacobite fans resonates beyond those produced for the Holyrood ball, and indeed beyond the period in which support for the Jacobites was fashionable and relatively low-risk for women. Despite the eighteenth-century perception of women as incapable of participating in politics, many suffered repercussions for their participation in the more active aspects of the Forty-Five, such as publishing pamphlets or sheltering Jacobite soldiers. For lower- and middle-class women in particular, the possibility of imprisonment or transportation was a significant threat. However, rather than concealing their Jacobitism, many women continued to protest visually against Hanoverian rule, as their use of objects was taken less seriously and was less often prosecuted against. This fan (Fig. 4) gives a strong impression of post-Culloden Jacobite sociability, in which women could utilise fashion to express their outrage at the repercussions against Jacobite soldiers and Highland civilians after the battle of Culloden. The portrait of the Duke of Cumberland shows him against a dark background and holding a butcher’s knife, referencing his reputation as ‘the Butcher’ which arose from his treatment of the defeated Jacobite troops. His image is contrasted against that of Prince Charles, who stands heroically against a brighter background, and is accompanied by the words ‘WHAT JUDGEMENT WOULD NOT STEP FROM THAT TO THIS’. Accordingly, the group of women below the two portraits seem to be using their judgement to decide which dynasty to support. Justice leads Venus and Eros, Prudence, and Victory through a fertile land, representative of the fertility and prosperity brought by the Stuarts, towards Britannia, who sits on barren ground and leans against a shattered oak. The inscription seems to suggest that whilst Britannia has chosen the destruction of the Hanoverians, she may still return to the more prosperous side of the Stuarts. Indeed, a new shoot grows from the shattered oak tree, symbolising a renewal of hope. Whilst the fan depicts the destruction brought by the Duke of Cumberland in Culloden’s aftermath, the Jacobite cause is shown not as shattered by defeat but as renewing for the future, and the conversion of women to the cause as necessary for its continuation.

… Or Rebellion?

Although women made use of large and impressive fashionable objects to protest against the Hanoverians and express their support for the Jacobites, their more explicitly rebellious ideas tended to be reserved for smaller and less noticeable objects, such as miniatures, pincushions and garters. Through these objects, women could openly refer to the Stuarts as the rightful monarchs of Britain, call for parliament to be punished for their support of the Hanoverians, or express their support for violence in the name of the Jacobite cause. To openly advocate for such treasonous ideas would have been dangerous even for women. Rather than being intended for display to others, these overtly rebellious objects were thus intended only for a select audience, or perhaps even as private expressions of devotion exclusively undertaken by their owners.

Fig. 5. Miniature portrait attributed to the artist Charles Dixon, produced in 1745. The portrait shows Prince Charles wearing the blue sash and star badge of the Order of the Garter (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre). Throughout the eighteenth century, women often included miniature portraits in their jewellery, generally depicting their husbands or other male family members as a personal symbol of affection. They could be worn within a jewellery set or bracelet or suspended as a pendant, and could even be moved between various positions on the body, enabling the wearer to manage their visibility. Similarly, Jacobite women wore miniature portraits of the Stuarts, demonstrating their devotion to the Jacobite cause when amongst other Jacobites and concealing their loyalties when in unsafe company. This miniature of Prince Charles (Fig. 5) follows the style of his official portraits, particularly in the prominence of the blue sash and badge of the Order of the Garter, the highest order of chivalry in Britain. It was painted by the goldsmith Charles Dixon, whose production of a number of similar miniatures around the time of the Jacobite occupation of Edinburgh suggests that women were keen to acquire them at this time, when they could safely and openly display their support for the Stuarts. However, miniatures were produced and used throughout the Forty-Five and after its conclusion, requiring their owners to find ways of hiding their overtly treasonous nature. They were hence concealed in lockets, or worn in places where they would have passed unnoticed without close inspection, remaining known only to their owners. They may even have been carried in pockets for private handheld viewing, as suggested by this portrait (Fig. 6) of a woman proudly holding a miniature of Prince Charles. This adaptability of use allowed miniatures to maintain their popularity even as the Jacobite cause’s fortunes changed, with their owners likely seeing them as secretive objects of rebellion when they could no longer be displayed openly.

Fig. 6. Portrait by Cosmo Alexander (1734-1772) of a lady holding a miniature portrait of Prince Charles (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre). Fig. 7. Silk pincushion dated to post-1746. It is printed with the names of Jacobite supporters executed after the battle of Culloden, with a rose in the centre encircled by the slogan ‘MART:FOR:K:&:COU:1746’ (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Objects which women would have worn, carried, or placed less visibly could express even more overtly treasonous ideas. As eighteenth-century pincushions stored pins for holding women’s clothes together, they would have been carried in domestic settings and in public, and used throughout the day as well as while dressing. Any eighteenth-century woman could thus be safely assumed to be in possession of a pincushion at all times. They were generally kept in pockets, hung from belts, or kept in private rooms, and their decoration would have been invisible to most observers. This allowed pincushions to bear messages which would have been open for prosecution for treason, an ability which was exploited by Jacobite manufacturers. A number of pincushions with this text-based print (Fig. 7) were produced following the conclusion of the Forty-Five, commemorating the execution of prominent Jacobites. The names of those executed are printed in concentric circles, whilst the central medallion shows a rose and an abbreviated form of the words ‘MARTYRED FOR KING AND COUNTRY 1746’. The lack of a suspension band and the detail of the text on these pincushions suggests they were intended for display on dressing tables, where their owners could read the names more closely and express their private grief in the aftermath of the battle of Culloden. It is therefore likely that these pincushions were only viewed by their owners, reinforcing loyalty in private rather than displaying treasonous Jacobite ideas to others. Fig. 8. Pincushion dating to approximately 1745 woven with the slogan ‘GOD PRESERVE P.C. AND/ DOWN WITH THE RUMP’ and a chequered pattern (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Pincushions produced before the battle of Culloden also expressed rebellious Jacobite ideas, as in those manufactured around 1745 which bore the message ‘GOD PRESERVE P.C. AND DOWN WITH THE RUMP’ (Fig. 8). The chequered pattern on these pincushions, similar to contemporaneous illustrations of the tartan worn by Jacobite soldiers, may have further reminded their owners of the Jacobite cause. Pincushions in this style are likely to have been carried, with their full message woven across both the pincushion itself and its suspension band, used to attach the pincushion to its owner’s belt. However, the open defiance of their message suggests they would not have been closely examined by anyone but their owners. Where the suspension band expresses support for Prince Charles, the body of the pincushion conveys a far more dangerous idea in ‘DOWN WITH RUMP’. It appears to refer to the ‘Rump’ parliament responsible for the execution of Charles I in 1649, but when read from a Jacobite perspective, the ‘Rump’ parliament can be seen as a substitute for the British parliament of 1745, disguising the pincushion’s true message of Stuart sovereignty and anti-parliament feeling. Whilst this pincushion expresses its owner’s support for Prince Charles in a manner which could be seen as romantic or sentimental, it also appeals to more rebellious Jacobite ideas about the power afforded to parliament, demonstrating women’s engagement with the more explicitly political aspects of the cause.

Fig. 9. Garter dating to approximately 1745 woven with the slogan ‘GOD PRESERVE P.C. AND DOWN WITH THE RUMP’ and a chequered pattern (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

The same chequered pattern and slogan of ‘GOD PRESERVE P.C. AND DOWN WITH THE RUMP’ can be found on women’s garters (Fig. 9), fashion accessories which were even more private than pincushions. Worn under skirts and used to hold up stockings, garters would likely have been seen only by the women who wore them, those closest to them, and the servants who helped them to dress. Jacobite garters became notorious at the time of the Forty-Five, with Hanoverian supporters complaining about the use of the prominent textile industry around Manchester to produce them. Indeed, the production of garters specifically decorated with tartan or bearing the slogan ‘GOD PRESERVE P.C. AND DOWN WITH THE RUMP’ were disparaged in magazine articles written by Hanoverian men. However, it would have been impossible to determine whether an individual woman was wearing garters with such treasonous slogans. Many women took advantage of this immunity, and the range of garters bearing explicitly Jacobite messages suggests their popularity as private reinforcements of women’s belief in the cause.

Fig. 10. Garter dating to approximately 1745 woven with the slogan ‘IN GOD ALONE WE PUT OUR TRUST’ and a chequered pattern (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

The request for God to protect Prince Charles and the Jacobite cause is also present on the pair of garters woven with ‘OUR PRINCE IS BRAVE OUR CAUSE IS JUST’ and ‘IN GOD ALONE WE PUT OUR TRUST’ (Fig. 10). Many Jacobites, regardless of whether they were Catholic or Protestant, believed that the Stuarts and their efforts to regain the British throne were supported by God. Garters such as these show the strength of the Jacobite idea that the virtues of Prince Charles and the legitimacy of the cause would be given divine recognition, and that God would allow the Forty-Five to succeed. But the slogan does not place responsibility entirely with God, with the description of Prince Charles as ‘brave’ and the cause as ‘just’ evoking the military battles of the campaign. Women’s exclusion from physically fighting in the Jacobite army thus did not prevent them from expressing an interest in the army and its battles, and these garters show that women recognised the military aspects of the cause as significant to the success of the Forty-Five.

Fig. 11. Garter dating to approximately 1745 woven with the slogan ‘NO STAR SO BRIGHT’ on a red background with a diamond pattern (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Fig. 12. Garter dating to approximately 1745 woven with the slogan ‘WHEN THIS YOU SEE REMEMBER ME’ on a green background (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

Although the privacy of garters meant they could afford to bear explicitly rebellious slogans, a number of examples shared the more secretive tone of other Jacobite objects. The garters woven with ‘NO STAR SO BRIGHT’ and ‘AS MY DELIGHT’ (Fig. 11) would have reminded their wearer of Prince Charles, with the reference to the star evoking the star said to have appeared at his birth. As garters would only have been seen by their wearer and those closest to them, it seems likely that these indirect messages were designed not to protect the wearer from prosecution, but to create a feeling of exclusivity, playing on the secrecy of Jacobitism for the wearer’s enjoyment. The garter woven with ‘WHEN THIS YOU SEE REMEMBER ME’ (Fig. 12) shows this clearly, as it did not need to name Prince Charles for the wearer to know who it referred to. Instead, it allowed the wearer to be privately reminded of the Stuarts when dressing and undressing, and perhaps to feel as if they were a carrying secret, treasonous, and excitingly personal message throughout the day. Objects such as these were not purely political, but playful, and suggest a lighter approach to the rebelliousness of the Jacobite cause.

Fig. 13. Garter dating to post-1746 woven with the slogan ‘AS LOVE DEBARD’ on a red background with a diamond pattern (Battle of Falkirk Muir Visitor Centre).

This garter (Fig. 13) reflects the same deliberately constructed secrecy, but creates an atmosphere of grief as well as affection for Prince Charles. The pair which it belongs to makes use of a slogan found inscribed on rings in the 1600s, ‘NO HAP SO HARD’ and ‘AS LOVE DEBARD’, describing the sadness caused by a lost love. Whilst the original rings referred to romantic love, these garters likely refer to the Jacobite defeat at the battle of Culloden, and Prince Charles’ subsequent departure from Britain. They would have allowed women a moment of reflection on their loyalty and devotion to the Jacobite cause as they viewed the slogan while dressing and undressing. Like the pincushions produced in response to the execution of prominent Jacobites following the battle of Culloden, these garters would also have been a vehicle for mourning, recognising the disappointment and sadness of those who continued to support the cause in the aftermath of the Forty-Five.

Just as female Jacobites have often been viewed as romantic, sentimental participants in the cause, in contrast to the men who were seen to fully understand its politics and participate in its battles, it might be tempting to create a distinction between fashionable and rebellious forms of Jacobitism amongst women. Larger or more visually impressive Jacobite women’s objects – those which appealed openly to the fashions of the time – could be seen as belonging to the women who saw Jacobitism only as a romantic adventure, and lost interest when the army moved away from their homes or after it suffered defeat. Conversely, smaller and more explicit Jacobite women’s objects could be imagined to have belonged to the women who were committed Jacobites, engaging fully with the cause’s more rebellious aspects and continuing to support the Stuarts even after the battle of Culloden. Whilst some women may have fallen into these categories, the reality is likely to have been far more diverse. Indeed, the same woman may have owned a number of different Jacobite objects, making use of them to express the breadth of her Jacobite beliefs and emphasise her fashionability alongside her rebelliousness. Although Mrs Maxwell’s dress was undoubtedly an object of high fashion, its embroidery shows her understanding of Jacobite symbols and ideas. Fans were both distributed as items of fashion to appeal to women attending the Holyrood ball and used after the battle of Culloden as a form of protest. Miniatures, pincushions and garters similarly crossed the lines between fashion and rebellion, being essential elements of eighteenth-century women’s dress and carrying images and slogans which could be romantic, openly treasonous, or both. These objects reveal the diversity of women involved in the Jacobite cause, and the ideas they saw as important in their support for the Stuarts. They demonstrate that the Jacobite cause evoked women’s fear of retribution and enjoyment of the resulting secrecy, religious devotion and military support, great passion and keenly- felt grief. But most importantly, they show how women wove their Jacobitism through their everyday lives, and the place this ‘fashionable’ rebellion created for itself in the political enthusiasm of the eighteenth century.