Introduction to the 1745 Jacobite Rising

"Tha tighin fodham, fodham, fodham!

Tha tighin fodham, fodham, fodham!

Tha tighin fodham, fodham, fodham!

Rise and follow Charlie!"~Rise and Follow Charlie

You may be thinking that the author just inserted some gibberish above the picture. "Tha tighin fodham (pronounced HA Cheen FOAM) " is not nonsense, but instead Gaelic. It translates to, "I have the wish." In this song excerpt, it means that the singer wishes he could follow Charlie in the Jacobite Rising of 1745.

The 1745 Jacobite Rising is Scotland's last moment of fleeting glory. This time encompasses many Highland heroes, from the famous Bonnie Prince Charlie, to the loyal Flora MacDonald, and Lord George Murray, along with a whole host of other characters. Some were gallant, noble and brave, while others were treacherous and self-serving.

I first heard of the battle of Culloden in an old book on John Paul Jones, called John Paul Jones, Fighting Sailor by Armstrong Sperry, while Jacobites featured prominently in Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson. To add to this, the author's heritage is part Scottish, drawing from Clans Ogilvy, Henderson, and Brown.

I wished to learn more about the '45, as it has been termed, and began several months of study. Nearing the end, I have learned exponentially, and drawn a few colored plates for events and people which had no illustration to my knowledge. Lord willing, I will give you a short history of the Jacobites, from Charlie's landing at Glenfinnan to his famous escape to Skye and the legacy of the Jacobites. While all the facts presented here are, to the best of the author's knowledge, accurate, I encourage you to dig into the primary source accounts to find the truth.

~Jordan (the author of the popular entry for the 250th anniversary of Quebec)

P.S. For an audio sample of the song "Rise and Follow Charlie," visit http://www.charliezahm.com.