Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Bonnie Prince Charlie

Stirling Castle sits atop an intrusive crag, It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location has made it an important fortification in the region from the earliest times. Most of the principal buildings of the castle date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Before the union with England, Stirling Castle was also one of the most used of the many Scottish royal residences, very much a palace as well as a fortress. Several Scottish Kings and Queens have been crowned at Stirling, including Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1542. There have been at least eight sieges of Stirling Castle, including several during the Wars of Scottish Independence, with the last being in 1746, when Bonnie Prince Charlie unsuccessfully tried to take the castle.

Charles Edward Louis Philip Casimir Stuart (1720 - 1788) was the son of James Francis Edward Stuart, the exiled pretender to the throne of Great Britain, and the Polish Princess Maria Clementina Sobieska. He became known as Bonnie Prince Charlie as a result of his invasion of Great Britain. His supporters called him "King Charles III", his opponents "The Young Pretender", in contrast to his father, "The Old Pretender". After the devastating defeat at the Battle of Culloden (1746), he was able to escape, unlike most of his fighters. On the run, he wandered the Highlands and Western Isles for five months. Despite the enormous reward of £30,000 on his head, he was hidden by supporters of the old royal family and escaped in drag with the help of Flora MacDonald, who is still celebrated as a heroine in the Highlands today. Disguised as "maid Betty Burke", he rowed with Flora to the Isle of Skye, where he was able to embark and flee to France.

The Battle of Culloden of 16 April 1746 between British government troops and rebellious Jacobites took place here and ended with a victory for the government troops. The Jacobite Rebellion of 1745 began when Charles Edward Stuart (aka ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’) landed in Scotland. With his victory at the Battle of Prestonpans, he had secured supremacy in Scotland. Charles declared the Union ended and the Act of Settlement null and void. Against the advice of many clan chiefs, he decided to invade England in November. The Jacobite army reached as far south as Derby, before successfully withdrawing. Despite its lack of tangible result, the invasion boosted recruiting, bringing Jacobite strength to over 8,000. These troops were used to besiege Stirling Castle. In February, the siege of Stirling was abandoned, and the Jacobites withdrew to Inverness. Cumberland's army entered Aberdeen in February. When it became known that Cumberland was marching on Inverness with his army, Charles posted his army on nearby Culloden Moor. It still numbered around 5,000 men and was weakened and demoralised by disease, hunger and poor weaponry. The Jacobites formed up with the Highland regiments forming the first line. Their left wing was under the command of the titular Duke of Perth, James Drummond; his brother John Drummond commanded the centre. The right wing was led by Lord George Murray. During the morning, snow and hail started falling onto the already wet ground and later turned to rain. Cumberland's army of around 10,000 men army advanced in a line across the moor to within firing range of the artillery. Shortly afterwards, the Scots opened fire. The English returned the fire with a barrage. The English army continued to advance inexorably. As the English drew ever closer, Charles gave the order to advance whereupon the clansmen threw down their rifles and charged forward with their swords. Despite heavy casualties from the artillery fire and musket volleys of the government troops, the Highlanders were able to break through the first line, but the second line held, however, and in view of the numerical superiority and the artillery fire, the Highlanders were forced to retreat. The attack was quickly exhausted by the muskets and bayonets of the English. After the battle, Cumberland ordered all wounded and captured Jacobites to be executed. Only the soldiers of the Irish Brigade and the Royals Ecossais were exempted and treated as prisoners of war. His soldiers killed around 450 wounded Jacobites, while others are said to have been taken to a barn and burned alive. Some higher-ranking prisoners were initially spared, only to be tried in Inverness and later hanged. Cumberland tried to justify this action, which was barbaric even by the standards of the time, by claiming that the Jacobites were high traitors to whom the usual rules of war did not apply. The following day, Cumberland sent patrols onto the battlefield to pick up and kill any other survivors. According to contemporary sources, around 70 Jacobites died in the process. Other prisoners were initially taken to Carlisle Castle in England and tried there for high treason. Most of them were also executed by 1754.

The Battle of Culloden of 16 April 1746 between British government troops and rebellious Jacobites took place here and ended with a victory for the government troops. The Jacobite Rebellion of 1745 began when Charles Edward Stuart (aka ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’) landed in Scotland. With his victory at the Battle of Prestonpans, he had secured supremacy in Scotland. Charles declared the Union ended and the Act of Settlement null and void. Against the advice of many clan chiefs, he decided to invade England in November. The Jacobite army reached as far south as Derby, before successfully withdrawing. Despite its lack of tangible result, the invasion boosted recruiting, bringing Jacobite strength to over 8,000. These troops were used to besiege Stirling Castle. In February, the siege of Stirling was abandoned, and the Jacobites withdrew to Inverness. Cumberland's army entered Aberdeen in February. When it became known that Cumberland was marching on Inverness with his army, Charles posted his army on nearby Culloden Moor. It still numbered around 5,000 men and was weakened and demoralised by disease, hunger and poor weaponry. The Jacobites formed up with the Highland regiments forming the first line. Their left wing was under the command of the titular Duke of Perth, James Drummond; his brother John Drummond commanded the centre. The right wing was led by Lord George Murray. During the morning, snow and hail started falling onto the already wet ground and later turned to rain. Cumberland's army of around 10,000 men army advanced in a line across the moor to within firing range of the artillery. Shortly afterwards, the Scots opened fire. The English returned the fire with a barrage. The English army continued to advance inexorably. As the English drew ever closer, Charles gave the order to advance whereupon the clansmen threw down their rifles and charged forward with their swords. Despite heavy casualties from the artillery fire and musket volleys of the government troops, the Highlanders were able to break through the first line, but the second line held, however, and in view of the numerical superiority and the artillery fire, the Highlanders were forced to retreat. The attack was quickly exhausted by the muskets and bayonets of the English. After the battle, Cumberland ordered all wounded and captured Jacobites to be executed. Only the soldiers of the Irish Brigade and the Royals Ecossais were exempted and treated as prisoners of war. His soldiers killed around 450 wounded Jacobites, while others are said to have been taken to a barn and burned alive. Some higher-ranking prisoners were initially spared, only to be tried in Inverness and later hanged. Cumberland tried to justify this action, which was barbaric even by the standards of the time, by claiming that the Jacobites were high traitors to whom the usual rules of war did not apply. The following day, Cumberland sent patrols onto the battlefield to pick up and kill any other survivors. According to contemporary sources, around 70 Jacobites died in the process. Other prisoners were initially taken to Carlisle Castle in England and tried there for high treason. Most of them were also executed by 1754.

The first settlement to be established in the area was a Celtic town, which developed into the Roman city of Luguvalium in the 2nd century. Excavations undertaken in the 1970s dated the Roman timber fort constructed at the site of present Carlisle Castle to the winter of AD 73. It protected a strategic location on the Roman road to the north and overlooking the confluence of the Caldew and Eden rivers. By the time of the Norman Conquest of England, Carlisle was in the possession of the Scots. This changed in 1092, when William the Conqueror's son William Rufus invaded the region and incorporated Carlisle into England. The construction of Carlisle Castle began in 1093 on the site of the Roman fort. Carlisle Cathedral was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. In 1157, Carlisle became the seat of a new county that in 1177 was named Cumberland. The conquest of Cumberland was the beginning of a war between Scotland and England which saw the region centred around Carlisle change hands a number of times. During the wars, the livelihood of the people on the borders was devastated by armies from both sides. Even when the countries were not at war, tension remained high. Groups named "Border Reivers" were raiders along the Anglo-Scottish border from the late 13th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The Edwardian Crown and Mitre Hotel was built in 1905 on the site of the original Crown and Mitre coffee house which had a long and colorful history dating back to before the Jacobite Rebellion. The landlord of the day supported Bonnie Prince Charlie and he gave shelter to the rebels once they entered the city following the Jacobite siege of 1745.