Jacobite Grants of Urquhart and Glenmoriston

The story of the Grants of Glen Urquhart and Glenmoriston in the weeks following the Battle of Culloden occupies a puzzling place in the history of the 1745 Rebellion. For centuries, historians have noted how these men were hunted, deceived, and ultimately betrayed-handed over to Duke of Cumberland in Inverness by the head of their own clan. Yet no full explanation of why this happened has ever been clearly established.

This book reconstructs, in detail, the sequence of events that led to their betrayal by Ludovick Grant. It reveals how these men became scapegoats for the controversial conduct of fellow Grants in Strathspey-actions that had already drawn the anger of King George II in London. After their capture, they endured ten months in the disease-ridden prison hulks at Tilbury Fort on the River Thames, where many perished under brutal conditions.

Those who survived imprisonment were transported as indentured servants to Barbados. There, many more died, and only a small number lived long enough to return to Scotland and their families. Their story, brought to life here through original sources, has never before been fully told despite its frequent mention in histories of the rebellion.

At its core, this book follows nine members of one family who fought in the Glengarry Regiment under Charles Edward Stuart, marching as far south as Derby before retreating north. It explains, for the first time, the true causes behind the betrayal of the Loch Ness-side Grants and why their own clan chief sacrificed them at the end of a conflict that reshaped Highland culture forever.

The narrative also traces the fate of Alexander Grant of Shewglie after these events, shedding new light on his life and legacy. Drawing on previously unpublished letters, the book challenges the long-held belief that Clan Grant was uniformly Hanoverian. Instead, it demonstrates that many Grants in Strathspey were, in fact, Jacobites at heart.

Finally, it follows the Shewglie Grants in the decades after Culloden, as several entered the service of the Honourable East India Company. They played key roles in the Battle of Plassey and Battle of Buxar-conflicts that helped establish British dominance in India. From Culloden to Calcutta and beyond, their story reflects the wider role of Scots in the expansion of the British Empire.

This is a rigorously researched, non-fiction work based on 15 years of study and 5 years of writing, drawing extensively on primary sources from the National Archives at Kew and the Cumberland Papers at Windsor Castle.