"On the twenty-fourth of March, the Hessians from Perth and Crieff moved
to its relief. They encamped the first night at Nairn House, and next
night at Dunkeld, and there was some firing betwixt them and a party of
Lord George's across the river. Those that marched from Crieff encamped
at Tay Bridge on the twenty-seventh. Upon this motion of the Hessians,
Lord George sent an express to the Prince, to tell him that if he would
send twelve hundred men, he would pitch upon an advantageous ground and
fight them. The Prince sent him word he could not send him them in the
way his army was then situated. On the thirty-first the Earl of Crawford
marched with St. George's Dragoons, five hundred Hessians, and sixty
Hussars, and encamped at Dawallie, four miles north of Dunkeld, and next
day they advanced to Pittachrie. Both these days Lord George had several
skirmishes with the hussars; but although he laid several snares for
them, he never could catch but one of them, who was an officer and a
Swede, who had his horse shot under him. Lord George used him very
civilly, and sent him back with a letter of compliment which he wrote to
the Prince of Hesse. On the first of April Lord George Murray drew his
men up in battle opposite to Lord Crawford at Pittachrie, and then
retreated before him, in order to draw him into the pass of
Killicrankie; but Lord Crawford never moved, but sent for reinforcements
to the Prince of Hesse. Lord George, upon hearing of the march of that
reinforcement to sustain Lord Crawford, and that the body of Hessians
from Lay Bridge were marching to Blair by Kinachin, quitted the country
and marched his men to Strathspan, and from thence to Speyside. He
himself went to Inverness, where he found his enemies had persuaded the
Prince that he might have taken Blair Castle if he had had a mind, but
that he had spared it because it was his brother's house; and in short
they made the Prince believe, that in the letter he had wrote to the
Prince of Hesse, he had engaged to betray him the first opportunity; and
that by the Prince of Hesse and his brother's means, he was entirely
reconciled to the government. What Mr. Murray had insinuated to the
Prince about Lord George, on his first coming to Perth had made such an
impression, that the Prince always believed it, notwithstanding Lord
George's behaviour was such (especially in action) as to convince the
whole army of the falsity of such accusations. However it opened his
mind upon the matter of the Irish officers, so far as to make some of
them promise to watch Lord George's motions, particularly in case of a
battle, and they promised the Prince to shoot him, if they could find he
intended to betray him."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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