Many clans looked for a saviour through their own ancient royal blood line to lead them to victory in a final defeat of the English, Protestant oppressors. This is where Charles Edward Stuart, the Bonnie Prince Charlie of song and story, comes in. His supporters were known as Jacobites. They took this name from King James VII & II habit of signing documents in the Latin from of his name "Jacobus". When the king-to -be landed at Glen finnan on the 19th of August, 1745, an armed rebellion was started against the English.

The rebellion was very nearly successful with the Jacobite army making in-roads deep into England. They turned back, however, and eventually a last stand was made on the Field of Culloden on 16th April 1746. They were massacred. In excess of 1,200 Highlanders died compared to a mere 76 government troops. The English forces under the direction of the Duke of Cumberland were ordered to spare no one. In the "Wounded Knee" of the Gael, every last of the 1,150 survivors were rounded up and sent to Barbados to end their days in slavery.

Following Culloden and the massacre of the common Highlanders as well as their hereditary chieftains, the removal of the old clan way of life was just about complete. Even prior to the Jacobite uprising the old Highland way of life and become so disrupted that more Scots ended up fighting against Bonnie Prince Charlie than for him and during the Battle of Culloden itself a third of the government army were Scots.

All that remained to be done to eliminate the Highland way of life, which had been such a thorn in the side of the government for so long, was for the English forces to seize the clan lands.

But they were not content with just the military defeat and the seizing of the land of these Gaelic rebels. Soon after Bonnie Prince Charlie fled the country "The Act of Proscription" was passed in 1747 which banned the wearing of tartan, the playing of bagpipes (which were regarded as instruments of war), the right to bear arms, the gathering of Highland people and the teaching of the Gaelic language.

This period became known as "the time of grey" because the traditional bright colours of the clan tartans were outlawed. The penalty for breaking these new laws was seven years transportation "to any of His Majesty's plantations beyond the sea." In a very clever move though, provision was made in the Act that stated the only legal way to display the tartan was by joining on the "Scottish" regiments in the British army. They knew that they would need the discipline of the Highland Clansmen at some time in the future and by allowing them to wear their clan tartan in uniform they knew this would appeal to many young clansmen who otherwise would never legally be allowed to wear it.

In the same year the "1747 Heritable Jurisdictions Act" was passed which stated that those who did not accede to English jurisdiction were to have their lands forfeited and placed in the hands of government appointed surrogates. The few remaining Highland Landlords had no option but to accede to English domination.

This was the final nail in the coffin of the clan system and way of life. This approach, coupled with the broken spirit of the people, was so successful in Scotland that by the end of the 18th century three-fifths of Hebridean landlords were already absentees, preferring the soft life in London society to looking after their own people in the wild and barren Highland glens and rain swept islands.

J. Hunter in his book, "The Making of the Crofting Community" notes,

"Many chiefs were as at home in Edinburgh or Paris as they were in the Highlands, and French or English rolled off their tongue as easily as - perhaps mores easily then - Gaelic. Moreover, while away from his clan the typical chief, conscious since childhood of his immensely aristocratic status in the Highland society whence he came, felt obliged to emulate or even surpass, the lifestyle of the courtiers and nobles with whom he mingled. And it was at this point that the 18th century chief's two roles came into irreconcilable conflict with one another. As a southern socialite he needed more and more money. As a tribal patriarch he could do very little to raise it."

Written and published by the Highland Clearances Memorial Fund

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