Culloden Battlefield

Culloden battlefield, a few miles east of Inverness, is the site of the last pitched battle fought on British soil. It was here on 16 April 1746, the Jacobite uprising which had begun in 1745 was defeated.

Starved of funds and supplies, the Jacobite leader Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) decided to stage a desperate fight for survival. After a failed attempt to siege the British forces during ‘The Night Raid’ on the evening before the battle, they had retreated to a moorland near Culloden House.

Charlie’s force comprised Highlanders and Lowland Scots, plus English, French and Irish supporters. The government army under the Duke of Cumberland vastly outnumbered the Jacobites. As well as mainly English soldiers, the army had Lowland and Highland Scots, Ulstermen (northern Irish), Hessian (German) and Austrians among its numbers.

In the early afternoon, in very poor weather, the battle was waged on Culloden Moor. Although the Jacobites were superior in more rugged terrain, they were ill-prepared, tired and disorganised and no match for Cumberland’s well-equipped army. It was all over within an hour.

Between 1500 and 2000 Jacobites were wounded or killed, whereas government losses were only 50 dead and about 300 wounded. Shallow Graves were dug and the dead Jacobites were buried.

Culloden was a pivotal moment in Scottish and British history. The aftermath of the battle resulted in wide-spread changes in culture and politics of the Highlands that can still be felt to this day.

Today, the battlefield is easily accessible from the excellent National Trust for Scotland’s visitor centre. Footpaths lead past a memorial cairn (erected in the late 19th century), headstones for the mass graves of members of the Highland clans who fell in the battle, and flags mark the positions of the opposing sides on that fateful day almost 300 years ago.