Manuscripts and Special Collections
Ne C 1720 : Letter from George Jonestone, Musselburgh [Midlothian, Scotland], to Henry Pelham; 21 Jan. 1745/6, endorsed 'Account of Action in Scotland, 1745/6'
by taking the Wind in their Backs they were determined
not to lose the opportunity tho' they were far from their
freinds. They pretend to say that their Leaders was w[i]t[h] the
Body at two Miles Distance and th[a]t none of the horse men
w[hi]ch are called his Life Guards and consist of 500 men there
north one [?] of the French Troops th[a]t were landed in the North
but such as they were that they drove all that oppos'd
them to the Bottom of the Hill. They acknowledge th[a]t
the right Wing of our Army stood whilst they were driving
the left Wing before them and give th[a]t for the reason
of not following further their blow least the right Wing
of our Army should turn upon them and attack them
in their rear w[i]t[h] the Advantage of the hill and Weather
o' their side. They doing that they took the Canon or came
to far or were beat back again, they acknowledge that
Hush [i.e. Huske] rally'd the foot at the Bottom of the hill and
that they advanced up again but that the right
Wing met them above half Way and that in a very
short space, night coming on, they endeavoured to set
fire to their Bagage but the Straw being wet it
would not burn, that 7 pieces of Cannon were not gained
by them but left for them upon the field, that they got
their Bagage and pursued them in the Dark to
Falkirk and took several Prisoners. The reason they
give for not engaging again was they they never
dreamt our Army would march nine long miles in
the Dark in a downpour of rain and that as they
expected to find them next Morning somewhere there abouts
they thought it better to wait for their freinds coming
up than to run the risk of losing the honour they had
gained. They add further th[a]t they marched after them
next Morning and th[a]t when our Army had heard th[a]t
their advanced Guard was got o' this Side Falkirk th[a]t
they made the best of their Way from Linlithgow to
Edinburgh 12 miles further, upon w[hi]ch they returned to
Stirling and th[a]t they are now laying Siege to the Castle.
