Battle of Culloden

Battle of Culloden
Part of the Jacobite rising of 1745

An Incident in the Rebellion of 1745,
by David Morier
Date16 April 1746; 278 years ago (1746-04-16)
Location57°28′38″N 04°05′33″W / 57.47722°N 4.09250°W / 57.47722; -4.09250
Result British government victory
Belligerents
 Great Britain Jacobites
Commanders and leaders
Duke of Cumberland
van Keppel
John Huske
John Mordaunt
Henry Hawley
Charles Edward Stuart
George Murray
Donald Cameron
John O'Sullivan
John Drummond
James Drummond
Strength
6,900–7,200[1] 5,000–6,000[1]
Casualties and losses
c. 50 killed, 259 wounded [2][page needed] 1,500–2,000 killed and wounded[3]
376 captured
Designations
Reference no.BTL6

The Battle of Culloden[a] took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby ending the Jacobite rising of 1745.

Charles landed in Scotland in July 1745, seeking to restore his father James Francis Edward Stuart to the British throne. He quickly won control of large parts of Scotland, and an invasion of England reached as far south as Derby before being forced to turn back. However, by April 1746, the Jacobites were short of supplies, facing a superior and better equipped opponent.

Charles and his senior officers decided their only option was to stand and fight. When the two armies met at Culloden, the battle lasted less than an hour, with the Jacobites suffering a bloody defeat. This ended both the 1745 rising, and Jacobitism as a significant element in British politics.


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).