The Jacobite Magazine
"The Jacobite" is the official Journal of The 1745 Association and is issued to members three times a year. The number of pages varies but is usually between twenty and thirty. Articles are written both by Officers of the Association as well as by members. The Editor has the final decision!
Articles in "The Jacobite" include topics connected with the administration of the Association (financial report, details of the AGM etc), details of the Annual Gathering and contributions of interest from members.
Jacobite Jottings
from
The Jacobite, No.127, Summer 2008
The
Culloden Experience.
Christian Aikman gives us her reaction to the new NTS
centre at Culloden. The building as one approaches presents the impression of a
twenty-first century structure that embraces all the desirable features of this
eco-friendly age, for it sits well into the landscape. My expectations ran high
as I entered, considering the large amount of money that had been expended in
the planning, building and delivering a state of the art experience of the
battle that had taken place on Drummossie Moor. It comprises four sections:
The narrative leading up to the battle.
The battle, - ‘the immersion
experience’.
Archaeology of the site.
The aftermath and significance of the battle.
The narrative has been well recorded with text-boards and the
presentation of artefacts, pictures, weapons etc. well composed. This was
supplemented by the use of electronic techniques whereby the visitor could
choose from a selection of ‘witnesses’ to hear their story and comments,
simply by activating a small monitor that produced the image of the witness
along with the text and audio. Electronic graphics were also employed in
table-top form, which gave further information on the movements of the opposing
armies and naval ships.
Before entering the battle-zone there is a space devoted to the
Prince’s Council of War that took place in Exeter House, Derby. This was most
disappointing. Within a darkened space the visitor listens to the voices of the
Prince and Council members. The voices emanate from the ceiling area, and it was
a dismal performance. The visitor with little or no knowledge of the Council’s
discussion, or who the Council members were, would be none the wiser as to the
importance of this meeting; it was impossible to identify all those present from
the dialogue. Pictures or text-boards with more details are required.
The battle, or ‘immersion experience’, was in my opinion a big let
down. The film of the battle covered the four walls of the room; there was
plenty of exploding cannon and gun fire, but where were the sounds of the
Highland war cries and the gruesome scenes of killing which are inevitable in
any action? I should have been shocked and disturbed by what I had just
witnessed, - but . . .
Next came the room where the archaeology of the battlefield is presented;
the mortar shells, grapeshot, and cannon-balls that had caused such human
devastation. So much more has come to light as a result of the surveys and
‘digs’. The area covered by the battle was much larger than was hitherto
know, and the areas of the heaviest fighting are much clearer.
Thence
to ‘The Aftermath’ section. The
injustice, savagery and cruelty shown to the local population and the Highlands
in general in the aftermath are insufficiently documented. To bring home the
suffering which was experienced, the text should have been accompanied by
illustrated examples of the incidents of barbarity that took place, and which
highlighted the bestial nature of the Duke of Cumberland towards the Highlands.
The ‘Experience’ is made up
of two-halves; one can follow through on the Jacobite experience first, and then
proceed to the Hanoverian side; each takes about two hours to follow through.
Thus, to walk round the battlefield, would I feel need to be undertaken on
another day.
Jacobite
Memorabilia ‘Down-Under’
An
Australian member, Keith Jepson, writes to express his appreciation of the Auction
Reports that regularly appear in our Jacobite
Jottings. He tells us that he has a collection of Jacobite and related
material, some of it acquired locally, but some through the London Auction
houses. Like Martin Kelvin, he too is angered by the extravagantly high on-costs
added to the auction house hammer-price, to which must also be added packing,
carriage and insurance; anyone who has bought books on-line from the USA will
know how high these delivery charges can be.
One of the items that Jepson has acquired locally is a Mauchline-ware
stamp box commemorating the 1715 Battle of Sheriffmuir. Mauchline-ware consists
of small sycamore-wood commemorative items decorated in colour, either by
drawing or free-hand painting, but more usually by some form of transfer
decoration; most of it was aimed at the tourist memento trade, and the ware
flourished from the mid nineteenth century until after the first world-war. The
more serious part of his collection comprises swords and dirks, snuff-mulls and
quaichs, together with medals.
Keith enquires the fate of the projected restrictive Scottish legislation
on the sale of swords and dirks, which was reported in The Jacobite No: 120.
These proposals seem to be slumbering; they have not gone away, but the Scottish
Government web-consultation page concerned with the matter has not been updated
for three years.
The 1745 Association Tartan
Details of the association's tartan are to be found on Page 1 of issue 119 (Winter 2005). I repeat them here for the benefit of members and prospective members.
D.C. Dalgliesh has now woven a supply of this tartan. The price is £19.00 per yard (56" wide) plus VAT (£22.33 inc. VAT) Ties (£6.20), scarves (£8.50) and sashes (£21.50) can also be made. Those who require a length of tartan or a garment to be made should contact D.C. Dalgliesh Ltd, Dunsdale Mill, Selkirk, TD7 5EB (Tel. 01750 2078)
This is what the 1745 Association tartan looks like
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