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Product Description
This is the story of ordinary men and women involved in the Rebellion, who were described on the gaol registers and regimental rosters of the time as 'Common Men'. There is little in this book about Bonnie Prince Charlie and other principals of the last Jacobite Rising of 1745. Culloden recalls them by name and action, presenting the battle as it was for them, describing their life as fugitives in the glens or as prisoners in the gaols and hulks, their transportation to the Virginias or their deaths on the gallows at Kennington Common. The book begins in the rain at five o'clock on the morning of Wednesday, 16 April 1746, when the Royal Army marched out of Nairn to fight the clans on Culloden Moor. It is not a partisan book, its feeling is for the 'Common Men' on both sides - John Grant charging with Clan Chatten and seeing the white gaiters of the British infantry suddenly as the east wind lifted the cannon smoke, and Private Andrew Taylor in a red coat waiting for Clan Chatten to reach him, likening them to 'a troop of hungry wolves'. Culloden reminds us, too, that many of the men who harried the glens as ruthlessly as the Nazis in Occupied Europe were in fact Scots themselves. It recalls the fact that many men in Prince Charles' army had been forced to join him. It shows that a British foot-soldier's wish for a sup of brandy on a cold morning before battle is as much a reality as a Prince's pretensions to a throne. The detail for the story told in Culloden has come from regimental Order Books and manuals, from contemporary newspapers and magazines, from the letters and memoirs of soldiers and officers, eye-witness accounts of atrocity and persecution, and the personal stories of the victims themselves. Culloden is the story not of a Prince, but of a people.
About the Author
John Prebble was born in the UK in 1915 but spent his boyhood in Canada. He became a journalist in 1934 and went on to become an historian, novelist, film-writer and the author of several highly praised plays and dramatised documentaries for BBC TV and Radio. He became interested in Culloden when he was a boy in a predominantly Scottish township in Canada. He died in January 2001.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Classic,
By Craig Duncan (UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Culloden (Paperback)
Footnotes would certainly help here - and there are still contemporary histories with authors too lazy or unwilling to provide them. Interpretations differ, out of context use can alter opinion, and the ability to go to source is often invaluable. But it becomes easier to access period details. More information and further reading is only a few clicks away. A name and date will often do. Prebble provides many of those, and spares us ill-informed argument and opinion. Culloden is still the most comprehensive, accessible and readable 'list' of those involved. For further study, it's a starting point, a good first read. For lay-readers, it's an excellent account - brutal and clear though a mite overcrowded, with the impact of a novel. Definitely a must-read, it's good to see it still in print. There are more informative studies now but, for me, this is the classic Culloden text.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Older is Better,
By Clanranald (Highlands, Scotland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Culloden (Paperback)
Most seem to agree that this is the classic book on the Battle of Culloden and as far as eye-witness accounts and detail goes this is unsurpassed. Prebble's is the mostly instantly recognisable piece on the battle and it gives the first-time reader a solid base to further study of the subject in a wider context.
Although Prebble's model of events during the battle is generally accepted to be outdated, the author's skill in building up the atmosphere from the nerves and cautious manouverings beforehand to the ensuing carnage keeps the reader gripped throughout. Prebble has an extraordinary ability to see through the eyes of the soldier- British regular or Highland clansman- and it is this 'common-man's view' which makes this book stand out from other pieces. Prebble contributes a thorough description of the aftermath of the battle, several chapters long, which details the suffering of the Highlands post-Culloden. Beginning on the field of battle, much of this part of the book makes for uncomfortable reading; be it the squalid, cramped (admittedly inadequate) conditions of the Inverness Tolbooth which was used to hold captive Jacobites, the slaughter of innocent bystanders or the attitude of British army officers to their defeated foe, this is not for the faint-hearted. Generally speaking Prebble writes with a respect for both sides whilst showing sympathy and sorrow for the defeated Highlanders in the atrocious aftermath of the battle. I always thoroughly enjoy Prebble's method of telling a story, for story-telling is what it feels like as you read this book. This is an historical text which has stood and is still standing the test of time.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Faithful, Unbiased and Meticulous Narrative History,
By
This review is from: Culloden (Paperback)
This is a meticulously researched narrative hostory of the events leading up to Culloden and that fateful battle itself. The author does an amazing job of describing the situation in the Scottish highlands of the time, and exploring the various threads and political intrigues that led up to this rebellion. He describes the conditions in the British army and amongst the highlanders, and no holds are barred in his description of the bloody aftermarth either.
This is no romantic fairy tale history. This is the story of what happeend at Culloden, and why. The author considers all points of view, without bias, in his presentation. If you only read one book about Culloden ever, this should be the one you read.
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