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Before Lord George Murray set out on his expedition into
Athole, Macpherson of Cluny had secured the passes between that country and Badenoch, to
prevent all communication between these districts. About the middle of March Lord George
Murray left Inverness with 400 men of the Athole brigade; and, on entering Badenoch, he
was joined by Cluny with 300 Macphersons. On the 16th of March the whole detachment set
out from Dalwhinnie in the dusk of evening, and did
not halt till they reached Dalnaspidal, about the middle of Drummochter, where the body
was divided into a number of small parties, in each of which the Athole men and the
Macphersons were proportionally mixed.
Hitherto, with the exception of Macpherson of Cluny and Lord George, no person in the
expedition knew either its destination or object. The time was now come for Lord George to
explain his design, which he said was to surprise and attack before day-light, and as
nearly as possible at the same time, all the posts in Athole occupied by the royal forces.
As an encouragement, he offered a reward of a guinea to every man who should surprise a
sentinel at his post. There were about thirty posts in all, including the different houses
at which the royal troops were quartered; but the principal posts, more especially
selected for attack, were Bun-Rannoch, the house of Keynnachin, the house of Blairfettie,
the house of Lude, the house of Faskally, and the inn at Blair, where, as Lord George
Murray was informed, several officers of the twenty-first regiment were quartered. After
the different parties had discharged their duty by attacking the posts assigned them, they
were ordered to meet at the bridge of Bruar, about two miles north from Blair, as the
general rendezvous for the detachment.
Having received their instructions, the different parties set out immediately; and so well
was the scheme of attack laid, that betwixt three and five o'clock in the morning, all the
posts, though many miles distant from one another, were carried. At Bun-Rannoch, where
there was a late-wake held that night, the sentinel was surprised, and the whole of the
party, (Argyleshire men), while engaged in that festivity, were taken prisoners, without a
shot being fired on either side. The sentinel at Keynnachin being more upon his guard,
discharged his piece and alarmed his friends, who defended themselves for a short time by
firing from windows, till the party broke into the house, and killing one man, made
prisoners of the rest. At Blairfettie, where there were fifty Argyleshire men stationed,
the sentinel was surprised, and the party, with the proprietor of the mansion at their
head, entered the house before the soldiers within knew that they were attacked. They
endeavoured to defend themselves, but were obliged to surrender. Lady Blairfettie was in
bed at the time, and knew nothing of the affair, till informed by a servant that her
husband was below, and wished to see her immediately. On coming down stairs she found the
garrison disarmed, the prisoners in the dinning-room, and about a dozen of her husband's
tenants and servants standing over them with drawn swords. Blairfettie, thinking that his
wife had been harshly treated, desired her to point out any of the prisoners who had used
her ill; but she answered that she had no other complaint to make that this, that the
prisoners had eaten all he provisions, and that she and her children were starving. The
parties at Faskally, at Lude, and the bridge of Tilt, were also taken; but that in the inn
of Blair, after some resistance, escaped to the castle. Three hundred prisoners were taken
by Lord George's parties, without the loss of a single man. While beating up the different
posts, a party, by order of Lord George, secured the pass of Killiecrankie.
Having been apprised, by the arrival of the party from the inn of Blair, of the presence
of the enemy, Sir Andrew Agnew, who held the castle of Blair, instantly got his men under
arms, and left the castle to ascertain who they were that had attacked his posts.
Information of this circumstance was brought about daybreak by an inhabitant of the
village to Lord George Murray, who was then at the bridge of Bruar with a party of
twenty-five men only and a few elderly gentlemen, waiting for the different parties he had
despatched the previous night. This intelligence was of the utmost importance to Lord
George and his party, all of whom would otherwise have probably fallen into the hands of
the garrison. Lord George immediately consulted the gentlemen around him as to the course
they should pursue. Some advised an immediate retreat in the direction of Dalwhinnie, but
others were for crossing the nearest hills, and retiring by roads along which it would be
difficult for the garrison to follow them. His lordship, however, was opposed to both
opinions, as by quitting his post he was afraid that his different parties, as they came
to the appointed place of rendezvous, would be surprised, and made prisoners. While
pondering how to extricate himself from the dilemma in which he was placed, he espied a
long unfinished turf-wall which ran across a field near the bridge. An idea at once
occurred to him, that by disposing the few men that were with him behind this wall at a
considerable distance from one another, and by displaying the colours of both regiments in
front, he might deceive Sir Andrew Agnew's detachment, by inducing them to believe that
they were to be opposed by a large body of men. Having disposed his small party in the way
described, Lord George directed the pipers, (for luckily he had with him all the pipers of
his detachment), to keep their eyes fixed upon the road to Blair, and the moment they saw
any military appear in that direction, to strike up at once with all their bagpipes. Just
as the sun was rising above the horizon, Sir Andrew Agnew's men appeared, and their ears
were instantly saluted by the noise of the bagpipes, when the pipes commenced playing one
of their most noisy pibrochs. The party behind the wall then drew their swords, and, as
they had been previously ordered by Lord George, kept brandishing them above their heads.
This ruse succeeded completely, and Sir Andrew, alarmed by the noise and the spectacle
before him, at which he took only a short glance, ordered his men to the right about, and
retired into the castle.
Being now relieved from all apprehension of attack, Lord George remained at his post till
joined by about 300 of his men, when he marched to Blair, and invested the castle. Having
no battering-cannon, and only two small field-pieces, which could make no impression on
walls that were seven feet thick, he resolved to blockade the castle, which he expected
would be forced to surrender in two or three weeks for want of provisions. To cut off the
communications between the castle and the neighbouring country, Lord George placed a guard
of 300 men at the village of Blair, where he himself was stationed, and another near the
Mains, at some stables which had been recently erected. Being joined by 400 or 500 men
belonging to the district, who had been formerly in the Highland army, Lord George
detached a party to Dunkeld, where they remained till the
approach of the Hessians from Perth. This party then retreated to Pitlochrie, two miles
below the pass of Killiecrankie, where they remained several days, during which time
repeated skirmishes took place between them and the hussars, and some of St George's
dragoons. During the time the Athole men kept possession of Pitlochrie, Lord George Murray
went there generally twice every day to ascertain the state of matters. The Hessians
showed no disposition to leave Dunkeld, where they had taken up their quarters, till the
31st of March, on which day a large body of them came up as far as the Haugh of Dalskean,
about two miles from Pitlochrie. The dragoons and hussars continuing to advance, the
Athole men retired to the foot of the pass of Killiecrankie, where they halted to dispute
the passage; but after remaining six hours waiting for the Hessians, they were informed
that a great part of them had returned to Dunkeld.
At this time the garrison of Blair castle was reduced to great distress from the want of
provisions, and if the blockade had been continued a few days longer they must have
surrendered; but, fortunately for the besieged, Lord George Murray was ordered to return
immediately to Inverness, in consequence of the expected advance of the Duke of
Cumberland. Accordingly, on the 31st of March, Lord George sent off his two pieces of
cannon, that he might not be impeded in his march, and about ten o'clock at night he drew
off the party from the pass to Blair, taking his departure for Inverness, at two o'clock
next morning. Finding the pass clear, Lord Crawford went through it the same morning, but
the Hessians, alarmed at the dreadful aspect which it presented, positively refused to
enter the pass. As, from the expresses which Lord George Murray received, he was led to
infer that the Duke of Cumberland was about to leave Aberdeen, his lordship made a most
rapid march, having performed the journey in seventy hours, four only of which he devoted
to sleep. Cluny's men were left at Ruthven, to guard Badenoch from the incursions of the
royal troops in Athole. |
