Thomas Finlayson Henderson

“ Almost from the time of the chevalier's landing, however, it was discerned that his position was well-nigh desperate, and even before his arrival at Scone he observed, by way of consoling his followers: ‘For myself, it is no new thing for me to be unfortunate.’ Whatever may have been the ardour kindled by Mar's enthusiastic eulogy of the prince as ‘the first gentleman I ever knew,’ it was quenched as soon as he presented himself to the ‘little kings with their armies’ at Perth. ”

“ On the following day, probably before he knew of the proclamation, Bothwell left Dunbar for the north, not apparently from any dread of capture, for the castle was strongly fortified, but in order if possible to create a diversion in favour of the queen. But by the queen's best and most loyal friends he was secretly detested. If any were prepared to risk their lives for her, none were prepared to risk anything for Bothwell, who, if they assumed her guilt, had led her into crime, or, if they assumed her innocence, had tarnished her fame. ”

“ In the face of overwhelming danger their confidence and courage never for a moment blenched; and while their defence is worthy to rank among the most heroic achievements in the annals of war, fortune further rewarded it with the glory of complete victory. ”

“ Few politicians have been more consistent or persistent in their main aims; and as to means he was not more unscrupulous than the majority of the politicians of his time. While by no means unmindful of his own personal interests, he, almost alone among contemporary Scottish politicians, was unflinchingly patriotic. Nor can it be affirmed that he was in any proper sense a traitor to his queen, if regard be had to essentials. On the contrary, he constantly strove to save her from herself, and at last sacrificed himself in a quixotic attempt to retrieve her hopeless fortunes. ”

“ Lord Polwarth's trenchant attacks on Walpole elevated him at once to the position of a leader of the opposition. Smollett, referring to his first appearance in the debates of the House of Commons, describes him as a ‘nobleman of elegant parts, keen penetration, and uncommon sagacity, who spoke with all the fluency and fervour of elocution.’ Walpole himself estimated Polwarth's powers of attack at their just value, and declared that there were few things he more ardently desired than to see him at the head of his family, and thus no longer eligible for a seat in the commons. ”

“ The implacable hostility existing between the highland Jacobites and the western covenanters doubtless led to the resolution of General Cannon to concentrate all his forces against a mere outpost. On the morning of 26 Aug. 'all the hills around Dunkeld were,' in the picturesque language of Macaulay, 'alive with bonnets and plaids,' and a force of over five thousand Highlanders swarmed round the devoted band cut off from all hope of succour, and without the defence of ramparts or heavy ordnance to ward off the immediate fury of a hostile assault. ”

“ He saw that the policy of the king was doing violence to the deepest convictions of the nation, and that the only chance of preventing a catastrophe was to present a firm front of resistance to his unreasonable demands. When advice and soft words proved of no avail in altering the bent of the king's purpose, he resolved to stake his all with the covenanters. Argyll was the only member of the privy council who did not retire with the Marquis of Hamilton when the assembly was dissolved from sitting any longer. ”

“ The public hatred with which Argyll had been regarded in his later years was, says Laing, ‘converted into general commiseration at his death. His attainder was justly imputed to the enmity, his precipitate death to the impatience and the insatiable desire of Middleton to procure a gift of his title and estates; and, as it generally happens whensoever a statesman suffers, whether from natural justice or revenge, his execution served to exalt and to relieve his character from the obloquy which would have continued to attend him had he been permitted to survive’ (History of Scotland) . ”

“ If less daring and adventurous in his schemes than his brother, his statesmanship was much safer both for himself and the country. Cecil declared him to be ‘the wisest man of Scotland;’ and the sway he exercised over the king, as well as his ability to maintain so long his peculiar ascendency, notwithstanding the plots and schemes of influential rival factions, indicates both great force of character and a remarkable mastery of the methods of worldly success.
Like his other brothers, Maitland inherited the literary tastes of his father. ”

“ He strongly denounced the fatal expedient of substituting government by favourites for the support of an honest and loyal parliament, asserting that for monarchs to dispense with parliaments was ‘to lay aside the staff that supports them to lean upon a broken reed.' He proposed the introduction of a bill disqualifying those members of the ‘pension parliament’ who had received bribes from the court for serving in parliament in future or for holding under the government any office civil or military, and compelling those who had received money for secret service to the crown to refund it. ”

“ Mackay resolved, after leaving a detachment to protect Inverness, to retire to the lowlands until he was provided with means to establish a line of fortified posts in the Grampians. Taking advantage of his absence, Dundee made a tour through the more remote clans, and was so well received that he wrote from Moy, Inverness-shire, ‘I hope we shall be masters of the north.’ He was gaining a remarkable personal influence over the chiefs and their men by sharing their fatigues, sympathising with their feelings, and listening to their stories, and above all by his relationship to the great Montrose. ”

“ Before the revolution his policy was chargeable with crookedness, but in working for the revolution there is every reason to suppose that he had the welfare of Scotland at heart, and at any rate his consistent and unwavering devotion to the interests of the new government, and his superiority to the party prejudices of the time, though it may be explained on the theory of enlightened self-interest, enabled him to confer on his country services which almost atone for the crime of his connection with Glencoe. ”

“ The Duke of Sussex gave an energetic support to all the progressive political policy of his time, including the abolition of the slave trade, catholic emancipation, the removal of the civil disabilities of Jews and dissenters, the abolition of the corn laws, and parliamentary reform. His interest in the advancement of art and science was also genuine and enlightened, and he readily lent his influence to promote schemes of benevolence. ”

“ The manners and customs prevailing at Castle Downie were a reflection of the strange idiosyncrasy of the chief. A wild savagery in modes of punishment flourished along with an ardent sentiment of brotherhood; and ceremonious formality was associated with unsavoury pleasantries and indecorous orgies. The territory of Lovat had in 1704 been erected into a regality, and as in addition to this he was appointed sheriff of Inverness, he found considerable scope for the exercise of his remarkable talents in augmenting his influence in the north of Scotland. ”

“ Perth was the key to the north, just as Stirling was the key to the south. While Stirling remained in the hands of Argyll there was a barrier between Mar and the friends of the chevalier in the south. Mar therefore hit upon the expedient of sending a strong detachment across the Firth of Forth from Fife to make a dash at Edinburgh. The plan was so recklessly rash that its success could only have been momentary, but it was nipped in the bud by the rapid ride of Argyll from Stirling with five hundred troops ”

“ Moreover, the catholic nobles could now be appealed to for help in delivering their sovereign from one who, after murdering the king, had captured the queen, and virtually usurped the royal authority. A secret council was therefore formed, consisting of catholic as well as protestant noblemen, to ‘seek the liberty of the Queen, to preserve the life of the Prince, and to pursue them that murdered the King.’ Since the queen expressed her readiness to be in Bothwell's custody, and since Elizabeth, to whom they had applied for help, deprecated force, no effort was made to prevent the marriage. ”

“ In closing the parliament, Maitland made an impassioned speech against the conduct of Elizabeth in sanctioning the execution of the Queen of Scots. The impression produced by it encouraged in no small degree the plots of the catholic nobles for a Spanish invasion of England; but Maitland personally took no part in them; and on the news reaching Scotland of the sailing of the Spanish Armada, he opposed the proposal of Bothwell [see Hepburn, Francis Stewart] for an invasion of England, and advised that Scotland should adopt an attitude of neutrality, and act merely in self-defence. ”

“ The extraordinary bargain is a striking proof both of Cromwell's knowledge of men and of his consciousness of the immense difficulty of the task he had in hand in Ireland. The trust placed by him in Broghill's steadfastness and abilities was fully justified by the result. By whatever motives he may have been actuated, there can be no doubt that Broghill strained every nerve to make the cause of the parliament in Ireland triumphant. Indeed but for his assistance Cromwell's enterprise might have been attended with almost fatal disasters. ”

“ Indeed the whole of the complicated self-acting machinery which without the intervention of hand labour performed the different processes necessary to change raw cotton into thread suitable for warp, was substantially the invention of Arkwright; and while each separate machine was in itself a remarkable triumph of inventive skill, the construction of the whole series, and the adaptation of each to its individual function in the continuous succession of operations, must be regarded as an almost unique achievement in the history of invention. ”

“ Our men are in heart. Their only fear is that the enemy should escape. Give them their way, and be assured that they will either perish or win a complete victory.’ These words decided Dundee. Cameron strongly advised Dundee to be content with overlooking the arrangements and issuing the commands, but without success. When the word was given to advance, Cameron took off his shoes and charged barefooted at the head of his clan, Mackay's own foot being the division of the enemy which by the impetuous rush of the Camerons were driven into headlong flight. ”

“ At the time of the revolution Breadalbane was, next to his kinsman, the Earl of Argyll, the most powerful of the highland nobles, while he was not regarded by the other clans with the same uncompromising hostility as Argyll. His greed was indeed notorious, and his double-faced cunning made him feared and distrusted by many of the chiefs, but his actions were not like those of the Argylls, regulated by lowland opinion, and he was not the recognised representative of lowland authority. ”

“ To obtain the aid of the Scots against the English parliament, he had granted to the Scottish parliament concessions with which the English parliament would have been perfectly satisfied. They were thus encouraged to be only the more importunate in their demands, while Argyll saw clearly that to pay Charles the price he desired for his concessions would be suicidal, and that the fruits of the great constitutional victory won in Scotland could only be secured by a similar victory of the parliament in England. ”

“ As a special friend of James V and of Cardinal Beaton, Huntly was naturally biassed towards catholicism; but the severity of the queen regent induced him to abandon it for a short period at the very moment when its fate in Scotland was trembling in the balance. He kept always a watchful eye on the queen regent's attempts to render herself independent of the nobles, and build up a monarchical power on the model of that of France. ”

“ From the letters of Stair it is evident that he would have much preferred that a considerable number of the clans should have stood out, in order that by a signal act of vengeance the highlanders might have been taught more effectually the danger of rebellion in the future. All that he had hoped or desired to result from the offer of indemnity and a gift of money for bribes to the Earl of Breadalbane, was that a certain proportion of the clans should have accepted the terms offered, thus rendering less difficult the execution of summary punishment upon the remainder. ”