The Bloody History of Clan Farquharson

Fifteen conflicts. Two centuries of warfare. One of the most formidable names in Highland history.

From the slaughter at Pinkie to the final reckoning after Culloden, The Bloody History of Clan Farquharson follows the fighting men of Upper Deeside through some of the most dramatic conflicts in Scottish history.

The Farquharsons became known as the “Fighting Farquharsons” for good reason. Their story carried them from the Braes of Mar into royal armies, bitter local feuds, the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, Stuart restoration campaigns and the great Jacobite risings. Yet behind the famous reputation was a far more complicated history of divided loyalties, rival branches, imprisonment, destroyed estates and families forced to survive the consequences of rebellion.

This extensively researched volume explores fifteen major conflicts connected with Clan Farquharson, beginning with Finla Mòr and the Battle of Pinkie in 1547 and continuing through the turmoil of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Inside the book, discover:

• Finla Mòr and the Battle of Pinkie — the legendary ancestor remembered as a royal standard-bearer who died during Scotland's disastrous battle against the English in 1547.
• The struggle with the Earls of Mar — how land, authority and the construction of Braemar Castle shaped Farquharson power in Deeside.
• Donald Oig Farquharson — the formidable Monaltrie leader who resisted the Covenanters before joining the royalist army of the Marquis of Montrose.
• The killing of Donald Oig at Aberdeen — a sudden enemy raid that ended the career of one of the clan's most important seventeenth-century commanders.
• Alford and Kilsyth — two of Montrose's great royalist victories and the Farquharson participation within his remarkable campaign.
• The disaster at Worcester in 1651 — where Colonel Finlay Farquharson of Rivernie was remembered as dying in the service of Charles II.
• The bloody Drumgley feud with Clan MacThomas — a struggle over grazing rights and property that ended in a deadly confrontation involving leading men from both families.
• The Black Colonel — John Farquharson of Inverey, his Jacobite resistance and the dramatic burning of Braemar Castle in 1689.
• The Jacobite Rising of 1715 — the raising of the standard at Braemar, the Farquharson mobilisation and the dangerous expedition into England.
• The Battle of Preston — street fighting, surrender and the imprisonment of John Farquharson of Invercauld.
• Inverurie and Falkirk Muir — Farquharson service during the last Jacobite rising and the victories that briefly kept the Stuart cause alive.
• Culloden — Francis Farquharson of Monaltrie's capture, imprisonment and death sentence following the destruction of the Jacobite army.

This is not simply a collection of heroic clan legends. The book examines what the surviving evidence actually tells us about the men who fought, the branches that supported different causes and the followers who did not necessarily share the Farquharson surname. It also explores the limits of later traditions where the historical record is uncertain.

Along the way, readers encounter Braemar Castle, Invercauld, Monaltrie, Inverey, Balmoral, Aberdeen, Alford, Kilsyth, Worcester, Preston, Inverurie, Falkirk and Culloden—places where the history of one Highland kindred became entangled with the fate of Scotland itself.

The story is also one of divided loyalties. Chiefs and cadet branches did not always make the same choices. Some supported the Stuarts while others remained neutral. Some fought, some negotiated, some petitioned for mercy and others paid for rebellion with imprisonment, transportation, damaged estates or death.

The Bloody History of Clan Farquharson presents the clan's military past as something richer than a catalogue of victories and defeats. It is a history of warfare, loyalty, family ambition, political survival and the people who lived with the consequences long after the fighting ended.

Perfect for readers interested in:

• Clan Farquharson history
• Scottish clan warfare
• Jacobite history
• The Highlands and Deeside
• The Marquis of Montrose
• Scottish castles and clan feuds
• Culloden and the 1745 Rising
• Scottish genealogy and family history
• Military history
• Scottish heritage

Available as a digital edition for readers, researchers and descendants of Clan Farquharson around the world.

Enter the Braes of Mar and discover the battles, feuds, rebellions and remarkable personalities behind the legend of the Fighting Farquharsons.