Waverley; or, 'Tis sixty years since — Volume 2Scott, Walter
History
Waverley; or, 'Tis sixty years since — Volume 2
Scott, Walter
Historical fiction; Jacobite Rebellion, 1745-1746 -- Fiction; Scotland -- History -- 18th century -- Fiction
On the whole, if Prince Charles had concluded his life soon after
his miraculous escape, his character in history must have stood
very high. As it was, his station is amongst those a certain
brilliant portion of whose life forms a remarkable contrast to all
which precedes and all which follows it.
NOTE 13, p. 195
The following account of the skirmish at Clifton is extracted from
the manuscript Memoirs of Evan Macpherson of Cluny, Chief of the
clan Macpherson, who had the merit of supporting the principal
brunt of that spirited affair. The Memoirs appear to have been
composed about 1755, only ten years after the action had taken
place. They were written in France, where that gallant chief
resided in exile, which accounts for some Gallicisms which occur
in the narrative.
'In the Prince's return from Derby back towards Scotland, my Lord
George Murray, Lieutenant-General, cheerfully charg'd himself with
the command of the rear, a post which, altho' honourable, was
attended with great danger, many difficulties, and no small
fatigue; for the Prince, being apprehensive that his retreat to
Scotland might be cut off by Marischall Wade, who lay to the
northward of him with an armie much supperior to what H.R.H. had,
while the Duke of Comberland with his whole cavalrie followed hard
in the rear, was obliged to hasten his marches. It was not,
therefore, possible for the artilirie to march so fast as the
Prince's army, in the depth of winter, extremely bad weather, and
the worst roads in England; so Lord George Murray was obliged
often to continue his marches long after it was dark almost every
night, while at the same time he had frequent allarms and
disturbances from the Duke of Comberland's advanc'd parties.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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