Freemasonry in the North East of Scotland during the Jacobite Uprising of 1745 to 1746

Published in QCCC Volume 29 in 2016

Bro Iain D. McIntosh

This is Part One

The period which encompasses the Jacobite Uprising, or Rebellion, is an interesting, intriguing and at times a complicated adventure. The echoes of that distant conflict still resonate within the folk memory of the Scottish people. The struggles of past history are still evident 270 years later, with the recent surge of nationalism which was shown in the independence referendum of 2014 and then again in the 2015 General Election, with the big increase of Scottish National Party MPs at Westminster.

The romanticism of that period is encapsulated in the songs, poetry and stories handed down through the generations from the likes of Sir Walter Scott, with his Waverley novels, Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped, the poignant, heart stirring songs of Jacobite times, sung by the late ‘Corries’ folk group and many others, giving myth and legend to the fateful, disastrous last land battle fought on the British mainland at Culloden in April 1746, the flight of the ‘Bonnie Prince’, with the Jacobite Army hotly and vengefully pursued by the redcoats. The atrocities committed by Cumberland and his soldiers after Culloden, the beginnings of an eradication of an ancient highland way of life and culture, with its subsequent clearances in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, are all episodes which are still heavily ingrained in the Scottish psyche. However this paper is not about the ‘big’ story of the whys and wherefores of the 1745-46 Uprising, nor of the alleged secret links between the Masonic orders, the Jacobites and the exiled Stuart Dynasty, but about that period from the viewpoint of the Masonic lodges, which had existed, at that time: those lodges which dotted the coastline of the North East corner of Scotland, down from Inverness in the north to Perth and Dundee in the south, placing those lodges and their members in the context of the uprising, and extracting from their documented records who was involved, how and why they were involved and to what extent they were involved. It is also intended to examine how the events impacted upon their lives, their lodges and Freemasonry in that area. I will also cover the various ‘Commanders’ of the Jacobite army, some who had a Masonic connection.

1. My interest in the period of the 1745-46 Uprising came from two entirely different directions: As a member of the Clan Mackintosh I had a personal interest, as from family research I find that an ancestor came down into Angus in about 1747. The Mackintosh clan was present on the side of the Jacobites and suffered greatly at the battle of Culloden. Presumably my ancestor was moving down through the passes and glens to escape from the redcoats after the battle.
2. From a Masonic point of view, starting from 1994 when I became Provincial Grand Secretary of the Province of Forfarshire, inheriting the Minute Books of the Provincial Grand Lodge, I started researching the beginnings of the Masonic Provinces, especially in the North East of Scotland. This, coupled with research into the Minutes and documents of the existing lodges of that period, drew me into the upheavals of the 1745 Uprising and the post-Culloden period.

The Background of the East of Scotland in 1745.

Many people have certain misconceptions about the event, namely that it was 1) A Protestant vs Catholic conflict and 2) Highland Clansmen against Lowland English Troops. It was far more complex than that; it was not just a purely Catholic Highland army that rallied to the Jacobite cause. It eventually became much more mixed in religious, political and cultural terms, with men, both Catholic, and non-Catholic, Highland and non-Highland, being drawn into the Jacobite side of the Uprising. At the height of the Uprising, just as many Lowland, non-Catholic, men were fighting on the Jacobite side as there were from the Highland clans, at the same time many Scots fought on the government side as did on the Stuart side. But a more surprising fact - and one that is not widely known - is that the North-East counties of Scotland, from the Moray Firth in the north to the Firth of Tay in the south, had a most important and vital part to play in the Uprising, and that area contributed a good many fighting men to the Jacobite Cause. A Historian on the subject says that ‘the purest form of Jacobitism in the ideological sense was probably to be found in Manchester and the north-east coastal ports of Scot¬land. He also states that ‘Although it figures little in the general perception of the rising, the strongest and most consistent support that Prince Charles enjoyed in Britain came from the North-eastern Scottish shires of Angus, the Mearns and Aberdeen . . . and how vital that part of Scotland was to the Jacobite cause.’ To understand why this support was given by that part of Scotland it is necessary to understand the social and political structure of Scotland of the time and also the different groupings in geographical, cultural and religious terms. The Jacobite - Hanoverian divide was not just a Scottish phenomenon but was also reflected across Britain as a whole. And that same divide existed within the individual communities and even within some of the Scottish lodges. It also has to be acknowledged that a lot of people in Scotland did not welcome or support this uprising. The religious divisions in Scotland have to be considered and the misconception of it being a totally Catholic versus Protestant uprising has to be understood. That is important in understanding why the east of Scotland was the largest area in Scotland which supported the Jacobites and which also possibly existed within the North East lodges.

The Division of the Protestant Religion

In the Scotland of 1745 there were, of course, those of the Catholic faith, and then there were those of the Protestant faith, divided into two main groupings:

1. The Presbyterian form of Protestantism was the branch that enjoyed being the established Church of Scotland, and was the predominant religion of the central belt, southern lowlands, and the west and central parts of Scotland. There were also groups in many other places around the rest of Scotland, the towns and ports of Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen where Presbyterian ministers, shipmasters, traders and merchant classes were doing quite well from the established Hanoverian rule and the Dundee, Perth, Aberdeen shipmasters enjoying better trade under the protection of the Royal Navy.
2. The other grouping in the Protestant religion in Scotland, and one which plays a significant and unique part in the circumstances surrounding the support from the North East Counties of Scotland and consequently the Lodges and their members, was the Episcopalian form of Protestantism, the Scottish Anglican Church. The largest grouping of this was situated in the north eastern counties of Scotland.

Some estimates have put the figure of Episcopalians in this area at about 200,000. The number of Presbyterians was perhaps about 80,000, with only about 20,000 Catholics. The population of Scotland in 1745 was about 1,250,000. From the Episcopalian northeast counties of Scotland came a very large and active support for Prince Charlie and the Jacobite uprising. The form of Episcopalianism in that area was of a particular type, called ‘non-juring’. This did not recognize the replacement of the legitimate Stuart kings by the usurpers, firstly William of Orange in 1688, and then the succeeding protestant German house of Hanover in 1714. This Episcopalian grouping adhered to the old, ‘divine right of kings’. They maintained that the lawful claimants of the crowns were those of the Stuart dynasty, and they continued to recognize the exiled King James III as the legitimate head of their church. During the uprising and indeed after the battle of Culloden the Episcopalian meeting houses and clergy, especially down the north-east of Scotland, suffered badly and later legislation was introduced to restrict its activities. Only after the death of Bonnie Prince Charlie in 1788 did the remnants of the non-juring Episcopal Church in Scotland finally submit to George III, when the clergy were instructed to pray for him using the English Book of Common Prayer. Differences between Highlanders and Lowlanders. Another of the misconceptions of the uprising that many people have is that the Jacobite Army was totally composed of feudal Highland clansmen. By December 1745 the ratio of Highlanders to Lowlanders was about equal. The differences between the Highlands and the Lowlands of Scotland need to be explained and this also accounts for the position of the north-east of Scotland as regards to its position as a ‘Lowland’ area of Scotland. The uprising started in the Highlands at Glenfinnan on 19 August 1745 and ended in the Highlands at Culloden on 16 April 1746. The leaders of the Jacobite forces, like Prince Charles, The Duke of Perth and Lord George Murray &c, adopted the Highland mode of dress, and this dress example was followed by many other, non-Highland supporters. Thus, the belief and the aura of it being a predominantly Highland rising has permeated down through the ages and has given us a sort of universal romantic image of the heroic Jacobite Highlanders charging with targe and broadsword into volleys of musket fire.

The Highland and Lowland Divide

Many people think that the Highlands and Lowland divide is a north-south divide, with a line drawn from Loch Lomond in the west to the Tay Estuary in the east, and with all north of that line being in the Highlands. On the contrary, the divide is more of an east-west split, with the rich farming lands, fishing villages, and trading ports of the counties of Moray, Banff, Nairn, Aberdeenshire, the Mearns, and Angus on the east being considered as in the Lowlands, although that area has evolved with slightly different and separate types of culture and customs from those of the central belt. In reality this was because they were more isolated by the high mountains in the west and the bridgeless Firth of Tay in the south. Good, large, well-trained forces were recruited for the Jacobite cause out of these predominantly eastern, Episcopalian lands, units formed by the likes of Lord Lewis Gordon, the younger brother of Cosimo, the 3rd Duke of Gordon, who raised the equivatent of a mixed Highland/Lowland brigade from Aberdeenshire, Banff and Buchan. Under him Crichton of Auchengoul raised troops in Aberdeenshire, a Highland battalion under Lt Col Francis Farquharson of Monaltrie, and a battalion under John Gordon of Avochie. A cavalry unit was raised by Lord Pitsligo, who may have been a Freemason, from Aberdeenshire, Moray, Buchan and Nairn. The Laird of Stoneywood and Sir Alexander Bannerman of Elsick from the Lodge of Aberdeen recruited men from Aberdeen and its hinterland, Johnshaven and the Mearns, and of course Gordon of Glenbucket recruited out of his former lands and from Strathaven and Strathbogie. From the Dundee and the Angus towns and countryside Lord David Ogilvie, son and heir to the Earl of Airlie, recruited two battalions of about 800 men. Also included in these Lowland units of the Jacobite force were the regular troops from France, Scottish and Irish expatriate regiments, like the Ecossais Royale (Royal Scots) of France, led by Col Lord John Drummond of Lodge of Dunblane,7 brother to the Duke of Perth, and also Irish French Picquets (companies) of Dillon’s Lally’s Buckley’s and Roth’s regiments and also FitzJames’s cavalry. The composition of the Jacobite force starts to change from its Highland content to a more mixed and non-Catholic nature. At the height of the events the percentage had changed to about a 50-50 ratio of Highland clansmen to Lowland units, and this Lowland percentage also included units like the Atholl Brigade, the Manchester regiment (the only English regiment raised), as well as Lord Strathallan’s cavalry regiment.

Lord Kilmarnock’s Horse guards led by Col William Boyd, 4th and last Earl of Kilmarnock, who was incidentally Grand Master Mason of Scotland from 1742-43, Lords Balmerino and Elcho’s Lifeguards. There were also units raised by the Duke of Perth (Lodge St Michael, Crieff, and subscribing member of Lodge of Dundee) from Perthshire, and also small Jacobite units from the central belt, like John Roy Stewart’s Edinburgh regiment. So the whole force at the height of the uprising, right across the theatre, became more representative of Scottish society as a whole. Another high-profile Jacobite who had ‘Masonic’ connections was John Murray of Broughton, Secretary of State to Prince Charles Edward Stuart. Murray of Broughton was a member of Lodge Cannongate Kilwinning. He was admitted to the lodge on 27 December 1738. His signature appears as Junior Warden in December 1752, when the Grand Master, the Earl of Kilmarnock, visited the lodge. Murray signs as Grand Master of the lodge on 4 December 1745. The history goes on to say that after the uprising ‘he bartered his honour for his life.’ It also notes that Murray’s admission is defaced by the scoring out of his name and the words are interlined by ‘Expunged by unanimous consent of the whole Lodge.’ Murray of Broughton was also involved with the paying in of £5,500 in Royal Bank of Scotland notes, seized from Glasgow, into the bank headquarters in Edinburgh, demanding that they exchange this for guineas; if that was not done, the houses of the bank directors and officials would be ‘distressed.’ The bank had already sent its gold to the security of Edinburgh Castle, but the cashier, John Campbell (of the Breadalbane Campbells), and two directors gained entrance to the castle, without letting the castle generals know the reason. In this way £3,000 was gained for the Jacobite cause (in today’s terms about £250,000). Sir Archibald Primrose of Dunipace, Bt, of Lodge St John (Falkirk) No. 1614, Captain of the Hussars, was hanged at Carlisle on 15 November 1746.

The Lodges in the East of Scotland in 1745

The communities were much smaller in those days: the population of Dundee was about 6,000; Montrose, Arbroath, Brechin, and Forfar, were even smaller. Aberdeen had a population of about 8000. From the existing Minutes it is noticeable that in Dundee, Montrose, Brechin, and Arbroath, the lodges were still mainly independent and self-governed. Some were predominantly populated and controlled by the ‘operative’ masons; Glamis, Brechin, Arbroath, Forfar and other lodges did not apply for charters from the Grand Lodge of Scotland until later. Lodges were also attracting into their membership some of the landed aristocracy, as well as merchants, shopkeepers, ship masters and members of the trade incorporations. There is evidence of the local landed gentry joining the local lodges, the Wedderburns, Ogilvies, Carnegies, Grays, Grahams, and others, being mentioned in lodge membership lists. The Master of the Lodge of Glamis from 1738 until 1743 was Thomas Lyon, 8th Earl of Strathmore, who was Grand Master Mason of the Grand Lodge of Scotland from 1740 to 1741, and the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge England from 1744 to 1745. Thomas, 8th Earl, was also the younger brother of James Lyon, 7th Earl of Strathmore, who was also Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England in 1733.

The lodges in this part of Scotland for 1745 were, from north to south, Inverness (2), Forres, Elgin, Aberdeen, Stonehaven, Montrose (2), Brechin, Arbroath, Glamis, possibly Forfar, Dundee, (either 2 or 3) and Perth. Of these lodges I have looked at the records of Dundee, Glamis, Brechin, Arbroath, Montrose, Aberdeen and Inverness. It has to be admitted that the Minute Book entries are sparse and most end on 27 December 1745 (the Festival of St John the Evangelist). They do not resume until events have settled down in late 1746 or 1747: Montrose in August 1746; Inverness in December 1746; Arbroath and Brechin 1747; Glamis in 1748; and it was even later for Dundee, with proper Masonic activity not resuming until 1756.

The period where there are gaps in the lodge records are from December 1745 to late 1746, when some of the lodges resumed meetings and began to record Minutes. This indicates the ebb and flow of Jacobite fortunes, after the occupation by units of the Jacobite army of the towns and countryside of the North East of Scotland. This started in September 1745, when Perth and Dundee were occupied. The Dundee Town Council Minutes of the time end on 11 September 1745 and do not resume until 22 February 1746. However, the ‘Kirk Treasurer’, Mr Charles Jobson, a Presbyterian, briefly records the occupation, as follows: -

The situation that existed in the Angus and Aberdeenshire area can be highlighted by what the Duke of Cumberland had to say about the area in 1746 when he and the government army passed through on the way to Aberdeen for the winter. He found Angus and Aberdeenshire distinctly unwelcoming, which had a strong effect in disposing him to treat it, after his victory, as a conquered country. Most of the gentlemen, throughout Angus at least, he found absent with the insurgent army, others paid him so little respect as to recruit almost before his eyes. In the town of Forfar, a small party of Charles’s forces beat up for new adherents on the day before he entered the town. The hostility to the Hanoverian forces was open and active in the country behind Montrose, in Brechin, Glen Esk and other Glens. The Duke of Cumberland, while he was based in Aberdeen, was alarmed to see a new insurrection break out there in what he had assumed was a pacified area, and he sent an expedition of 300 troops under Major Lafansille to plunder and burn the houses of the people and gentry. That officer was responsible for devastating the Episcopalian meeting houses throughout a wide swath of Angus.

Dundee and the County of Forfar.

From Kirriemuir up to Montrose was the recruitment area for Lord David Ogilvie’s Regiment. He was the 20-year-old heir of the Earl of Airlie. The Earl himself did not take part in the uprising or visibly side with the Prince, but he did not stop his son from recruiting two Battalions of between 800 and 900 men out of the Airlie lands and from all over Forfarshire and Dundee. One of the local Ogilvy lairds was John Ogilvy of Rochelhill, a Lieutenant in Ogilvy’s Regiment; he fought at Culloden, became a fugitive, and took a whole year to return to Glamis. He was also a member of Lodge Glam¬mis, serving as Master of the lodge in 1760. Dundee

It also has to be admitted there was a good deal of government (i.e. Hanoverian) loyalty especially among the Presbyterian ministers, shopkeepers, merchants and some town Baillies, especially those who were beginning to gain from the increased business and opportunities brought though the trade from the harbour. The Provost at that time was Alexander Duncan of Lundie (Lundy), father of the future Admiral Lord Duncan of the Battle of Camperdown fame (1797), who in 1746 was serving in the Royal Navy as a young fourteen-year old midshipman. Provost Duncan was a Freemason and is listed in the membership list for the Dundee Kilwinning Lodge, but definitely not a supporter of the Jacobites. His second son, Alexander, gained a commission in 55th Regiment of the British Army in 1745. Provost Duncan was instrumental in restoring order and sending a loyal address to King George after the Jacobites had left the town. Alexander Duncan was replaced as Provost during the Jacobite occupation by David Fotheringham as the Jacobite Governor of Dundee.

Part 2

©Research by Iain D. McIntosh, 2014