Battle of Culloden

The Battle of Culloden (; ) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. It was the last pitched battle fought on British soil.
Charles was the eldest son of James Stuart, the exiled Stuart claimant to the British throne. Believing there was support for a Stuart restoration in both Scotland and England, he landed in Scotland in July 1745: raising an army of Scots Jacobite supporters, he took Edinburgh by September, and defeated a British government force at Prestonpans. The government recalled 12,000 troops from the Continent to deal with the rising: a Jacobite invasion of England reached as far as Derby before turning back, having attracted relatively few English recruits.
The Jacobites, with limited French military support, attempted to consolidate their control of Scotland, where by early 1746, they were opposed by a substantial government army. A hollow Jacobite victory at Falkirk failed to change the strategic situation: with supplies and pay running short and with the government troops resupplied and reorganised under the Duke of Cumberland, son of British monarch George II, the Jacobite leadership had few options left other than to stand and fight. The two armies eventually met at Culloden, on terrain that gave Cumberland's larger, well-rested force the advantage. The battle lasted only an hour, with the Jacobites suffering a bloody defeat; between 1,500 and 2,000 Jacobites were killed or wounded, while about 300 government soldiers were killed or wounded. While perhaps 5–6,000 Jacobites remained in arms in Scotland, the leadership took the decision to disperse, effectively ending the rising.
Culloden and its aftermath continue to arouse strong feelings. The University of Glasgow awarded the Duke of Cumberland an honorary doctorate, but many modern commentators allege that the aftermath of the battle and subsequent crackdown on Jacobite sympathisers were brutal, earning Cumberland the sobriquet "Butcher". Efforts were subsequently made to further integrate the Scottish Highlands into the Kingdom of Great Britain; civil penalties were introduced to undermine the Scottish clan system, which had provided the Jacobites with the means to rapidly mobilise an army.
Background.
Queen Anne, the last monarch of the House of Stuart, died in 1714, with no living children. Under the terms of the Act of Settlement 1701, she was succeeded by her second cousin George I of the House of Hanover, who was a descendant of the Stuarts through his maternal grandmother, Elizabeth, a daughter of James VI and I. Many, however, particularly in Scotland and Ireland, continued to support the claim to the throne of Anne's exiled half-brother James, excluded from the succession under the Act of Settlement due to his Roman Catholic religion.
On 23 July 1745 James's son Charles Edward Stuart landed on Eriskay in the Western Islands in an attempt to reclaim the throne of Great Britain for his father, accompanied only by the "Seven Men of Moidart". Most of his Scottish supporters advised he return to France, but his persuasion of Donald Cameron of Lochiel to back him encouraged others to commit, and the rebellion was launched at Glenfinnan on 19 August. The Jacobite army entered Edinburgh on 17 September, and Charles was proclaimed King of Scotland the next day. Attracting more recruits, the Jacobites comprehensively defeated a government force at the Battle of Prestonpans on 21 September; the London government now recalled the Duke of Cumberland, the King's younger son and commander of the British army in Flanders, along with 12,000 troops.
The Prince's Council, a committee formed of 15-20 senior leaders, met on 30 and 31 October to discuss plans to invade England. The Scots wanted to consolidate their position and although willing to assist an English rising or French landing, they would not do it on their own. For Charles, the main prize was England; he argued removing the Hanoverians would guarantee an independent Scotland, and assured the Scots that the French were planning to land in Southern England, while thousands of English supporters would join once across the border.
Despite their doubts, the Council agreed to the invasion on condition the promised English and French support was forthcoming; the Jacobite army entered England on 8 November. They captured Carlisle on 15 November, then continued south through Preston and Manchester, reaching Derby on 4 December. There had been no sign of a French landing or any significant number of English recruits, while they risked being caught between two armies, each one twice their size: Cumberland's, advancing north from London, and Wade's moving south from Newcastle upon Tyne. Despite Charles' opposition, the Council was overwhelmingly in favour of retreat and turned north the next day.
Apart from a minor skirmish at Clifton Moor, the Jacobite army evaded pursuit and crossed back into Scotland on 20 December. Entering England and returning was a considerable military achievement and morale was high; Jacobite strength increased to over 8,000 with the addition of a substantial north-eastern contingent under Lord Lewis Gordon, as well as Scottish and Irish regulars in French service. French-supplied artillery was used to besiege Stirling Castle, the strategic key to the Highlands. On 17 January, the Jacobites dispersed a relief force under Henry Hawley at the Battle of Falkirk Muir, although the siege made little progress.
On 1 February, the siege of Stirling was abandoned and the Jacobites retreated to Inverness. Cumberland's army advanced along the coast and entered Aberdeen on 27 February; both sides halted operations until the weather improved. Several French shipments were received during the winter but the Royal Navy's blockade led to shortages of both money and food; when Cumberland left Aberdeen on 8 April, Charles and his officers agreed giving battle was their best option.
Opposing forces.
Jacobite army.
The Jacobite Army is often assumed to have been largely composed of Gaelic-speaking Catholic Highlanders: in reality nearly a quarter of the rank and file were recruited in Aberdeenshire, Forfarshire and Banffshire, with another 20% from Perthshire. By 1745, Catholicism was the preserve of a small minority, and large numbers of those who joined the Rebellion were Non-juring Episcopalians. Although the army was predominantly Scots, it contained a few English recruits plus significant numbers of Irish, Scottish and French professionals in French service with the Irish Brigade and "Royal Ecossais".
To mobilise an army quickly, the Jacobites had relied heavily on the traditional right retained by many Scottish landowners to raise their tenants for military service. This assumed limited, short-term warfare: a long campaign demanded greater professionalism and training, and the colonels of some Highland regiments considered their men to be uncontrollable. A typical 'clan' regiment was officered by the heavily-armed tacksmen, with their subtenants acting as common soldiers. The tacksmen served in the front rank, taking proportionately high casualties; the gentlemen of the Appin Regiment suffered one quarter of those killed, and one third of those wounded from their regiment. Many Jacobite regiments, notably those from the north-east, were organised and drilled more conventionally, but as with the Highland regiments were inexperienced and hurriedly trained.
The Jacobites started the campaign relatively poorly armed. Although Highlanders are often pictured equipped with a broadsword, targe and pistol, this applied mainly to officers and most men seem to have been drilled in conventional fashion with muskets as their main weapon. As the campaign progressed, supplies from France improved their equipment considerably and by the time of Culloden, many were equipped with calibre French and Spanish firelocks.
During the latter stage of the campaign, the Jacobites were reinforced by French regulars, mainly drawn from or detachments from regiments of the Irish Brigade along with a Franco-Irish cavalry unit, Fitzjames's Horse. Around 500 men from the Irish Brigade fought in the battle, around 100 of whom were thought to have been recruited from 6th (Guise's) Foot taken prisoner at Fort Augustus. The "Royal Écossais" also contained British deserters; its commander attempted to raise a second battalion after the unit had arrived in Scotland. Much of the Jacobite cavalry had been effectively disbanded due to a shortage of horses; Fitzjames', Strathallan's Horse, the Life Guards and the 'Scotch Hussars' retained a reduced presence at Culloden. The Jacobite artillery is generally regarded as playing little part in the battle, all but one of the cannon being 3-pounders.
Government army.
Cumberland's army at Culloden comprised 16 infantry battalions, including four Scottish units and one Irish. The bulk of the infantry units had already seen action at Falkirk, but had been further drilled, rested and resupplied since then.
Many of the infantry were experienced veterans of Continental service, but on the outbreak of the Jacobite rising, extra incentives were given to recruits to fill the ranks of depleted units. On 6 September 1745, every recruit who joined the Guards before 24 September was given £6, and those who joined in the last days of the month were given £4. In theory, a standard single-battalion British infantry regiment was 815 strong, including officers, but were often smaller in practice and at Culloden, the regiments were not much larger than about 400 men.
The government cavalry arrived in Scotland in January 1746. Many were not combat experienced, having spent the preceding years on anti-smuggling duties. A standard cavalryman had a Land Service pistol and a carbine, but the main weapon used by the British cavalry was a sword with a 35-inch blade.
The Royal Artillery vastly out-performed their Jacobite counterparts during the Battle of Culloden. However, up until this point in the campaign, the government artillery had performed dismally. The main weapon of the artillery was the 3-pounder. This weapon had a range of and fired two kinds of shot: round iron and canister. The other weapon used was the Coehorn mortar. These had a calibre of inches (11 cm).
Lead-up to battle.
Following the defeat at Falkirk, Cumberland arrived in Scotland in January 1746 to take command of government forces. Deciding to wait out the winter, he moved his main army northwards to Aberdeen: 5,000 Hessian troops under Prince Frederick were stationed around Perth to suppress a possible Jacobite offensive in that area. The weather had improved to such an extent by 8 April that Cumberland resumed the campaign: his army reached Cullen on 11 April, where it was joined by six further battalions and two cavalry regiments. On 12 April, Cumberland's force forded the Spey. This had been guarded by a 2000-strong Jacobite detachment under Lord John Drummond, but Drummond retreated towards Elgin and Nairn rather than offering resistance, for which he was sharply criticised after the rising by several Jacobite memoirists. By 14 April, the Jacobites had evacuated Nairn, and Cumberland's army camped at Balblair just west of the town.
Several significant Jacobite units were still "en route" or engaged far to the north, but on learning of the government advance their main army of about 5,400 left its base at Inverness on 15 April and assembled in battle order at the estate of Culloden 5 miles (8 km) to the east. The Jacobite leadership was divided on whether to give battle or abandon Inverness, but with most of their dwindling supplies stored in the town, there were few options left for holding their army together. The Jacobite adjutant-general, John O'Sullivan, identified a suitable site for a defensive action at Drummossie Moor, a stretch of open moorland between the walled enclosures of Culloden Parks to the north and those of Culwhiniac to the south.
Jacobite lieutenant-general Lord George Murray stated he "did not like the ground" at Drummossie Moor, which was relatively flat and open, and suggested an alternative, steeply sloping site near Daviot Castle. This was inspected by Brigadier Stapleton of the Irish Brigade and Colonel Ker on the morning of 15 April; they rejected it as the site was overlooked and the ground "mossy and soft". Murray's choice also failed to protect the road into Inverness, a key objective of giving battle. The issue had not been fully resolved by the time of the battle and in the event circumstances largely dictated the point at which the Jacobites formed line, some distance to the west of the site originally chosen by Sullivan.
Night attack at Nairn.
On 15 April, the government army celebrated Cumberland's twenty-fifth birthday by issuing two gallons of brandy to each regiment. At Murray's suggestion, the Jacobites tried that evening to repeat the success of Prestonpans by carrying out a night attack on the government encampment.
Murray proposed that they set off at dusk and march to Nairn; he planned to have the right wing of the first line attack Cumberland's rear, while the Duke of Perth with the left wing would attack the government's front. In support of Perth, Lord John Drummond and Charles would bring up the second line. The Jacobite force, however, started out well after dark, partly due to concerns they would be spotted by ships of the Royal Navy then in the Moray Firth. Murray led them across country with the intention of avoiding government outposts: Murray's one time "aide-de-camp", James Chevalier de Johnstone later wrote, "this march across country in a dark night which did not allow us to follow any track [was] accompanied with confusion and disorder".
By the time the leading troop had reached Culraick, still from where Murray's wing was to cross the River Nairn and encircle the town, there was only one hour left before dawn. After a heated council with other officers, Murray concluded that there was not enough time to mount a surprise attack and that the offensive should be aborted. Sullivan went to inform Charles Edward Stuart of the change of plan, but missed him in the dark. Meanwhile, instead of retracing his path back, Murray led his men left, down the Inverness road. In the darkness, while Murray led one-third of the Jacobite forces back to camp, the other two-thirds continued towards their original objective, unaware of the change in plan. One account of that night even records that Perth's men made contact with government troops before realising the rest of the Jacobite force had turned home. A few historians, such as Jeremy Black and Christopher Duffy, have suggested that if Perth had carried on the night attack might have remained viable, though most have disagreed, as perhaps only 1200 of the Jacobite force accompanied him.
Not long after the exhausted Jacobite forces had made it back to Culloden, an officer of Lochiel's regiment, who had been left behind after falling asleep in a wood, arrived with a report of advancing government troops. By then, many Jacobite soldiers had dispersed in search of food or returned to Inverness, while others were asleep in ditches and outbuildings; several hundred of their army may have missed the battle.
Battle on Culloden Moor.
Following the abortive night attack, the Jacobites formed up in substantially the same battle order as the previous day, with the Highland regiments forming the first line. They faced north-east over common grazing land, with the Water of Nairn about 1 km to their right. Their left wing, anchored on the Culloden Park walls, was under the command of the titular Duke of Perth, James Drummond; his brother John Drummond commanded the centre. The right wing, flanked by the Culwhiniac enclosure walls, was led by Murray. Behind them the 'Low Country' regiments were drawn up in column, in accordance with French practice. During the morning snow and hail "started falling very thick" onto the already wet ground, later turning to rain, though the weather turned fair as the battle started.
Cumberland's army had struck camp and were underway by leaving the main Inverness road and marching across country. By the Jacobites finally saw them approaching at a distance of around at from the Jacobite position Cumberland gave the order to form line, and the army marched forward in full battle order. John Daniel, an Englishman serving with Charles's army, recorded that on seeing the government troops the Jacobites began to "huzza and bravado them", though without response: "on the contrary, they continued proceding, like a deep sullen river". Once within 500 metres, Cumberland moved his artillery up through the ranks.
As Cumberland's forces formed into line of battle, it became clear that their right flank was in an exposed position and Cumberland moved up additional cavalry and other units to reinforce it. In the Jacobite lines, Sullivan moved two battalions of Lord Lewis Gordon's regiment to cover the walls at Culwhiniac against a possible flank attack by government dragoons. Murray also moved the Jacobite right slightly forwards: this "changement", as Sullivan called it, had the unintended result of skewing the Jacobite line and opening gaps, so Sullivan ordered Perth's, Glenbucket's and the Edinburgh Regiment from the second line to the first. While the Jacobite front rank now substantially outnumbered that of Cumberland, their reserve was further depleted, increasing their reliance on a successful initial attack.
Artillery exchange.
At approximately 1 p.m. Finlayson's Jacobite batteries opened fire, possibly in response to Cumberland sending forward Lord Bury to within 100 metres of the Jacobite lines to "ascertain the strength of their battery". The government artillery responded shortly afterwards: while some later Jacobite memoirs suggest their troops were then subjected to artillery bombardment for 30 minutes or more while Charles delayed an advance, government accounts suggest a much shorter exchange before the Jacobites attacked. Campbell of Airds, in the rear, timed it at 9; Cumberland's aide-de-camp Yorke suggested only 2 or 3 minutes.
The duration implies that the government artillery are unlikely to have fired more than thirty rounds at extreme range: statistical analysis concludes that this would have caused only 20-30 Jacobite casualties at this stage, rather than the hundreds suggested by some accounts.
Jacobite advance.
Shortly after 1 pm, Charles issued an order to advance, which Col. Harry Kerr of Graden first took to Perth's regiment, on the extreme left. He then rode down the Jacobite line giving orders to each regiment in turn; Sir John MacDonald and Brigadier Stapleton were also sent forward to repeat the order. As the Jacobites left their lines, the government gunners switched to canister; this was augmented by fire from the coehorn mortars situated behind the government front line. As there was no need for careful aiming when using canister the rate of fire increased dramatically, and the Jacobites found themselves advancing into heavy fire.
On the Jacobite right, the Atholl Brigade, Lochiel's and the Appin Regiment left their start positions and charged towards Barrell's and Munro's regiments. Within a few hundred yards, however, the centre regiments, Lady Mackintosh's and Lovat's, had begun to swerve rightwards, either trying to avoid canister fire or in order to follow the firmer ground along the road running diagonally across Drummossie Moor. The five regiments became entangled as a single mass, converging on the government left. The confusion was worsened when the three largest regiments lost their commanding officers, who were all at the front of the advance: MacGillivray and MacBean of Lady Mackintosh's both went down; Inverallochie of Lovat's fell, and Lochiel had his ankles broken by canister within a few yards of the government lines.
The Jacobite left, by contrast, advanced much more slowly, hampered by boggy ground and by having several hundred yards further to cover. According to the account of Andrew Henderson, Lord John Drummond walked across the front of the Jacobite lines to try and tempt the government infantry into firing early, but they maintained their discipline. The three MacDonald regiments - Keppoch's, Clanranald's and Glengarry's - stalled before resorting to ineffectual long-range musket fire; they also lost senior officers, as Clanranald was wounded and Keppoch killed. The smaller units on their right - Maclachlan's Regiment and Chisholm's and Monaltrie's battalions - advanced into an area swept by artillery fire, and suffered heavy losses before falling back.
Engagement of government left wing.
The Jacobite right was particularly hard hit by a volley from the government regiments at nearly point blank range, but many of its men still reached the government lines and, for the first time, a battle was decided by a direct clash between charging Highlanders and formed infantry equipped with muskets and socket bayonets. The brunt of the Jacobite impact, led by Lochiel's regiment, was taken by just two government regiments – Barrell's 4th Foot and Dejean's 37th Foot. Barrell's lost 17 and suffered 108 wounded, out of a total of 373 officers and men. Dejean's lost 14 and had 68 wounded, with this unit's left wing taking a disproportionately higher number of casualties. Barrell's regiment temporarily lost one of its two colours. Major-General Huske, who was in command of the government's second line, quickly organised the counter attack. Huske ordered forward all of Lord Sempill's Fourth Brigade which had a combined total of 1,078 men (Sempill's 25th Foot, Conway's 59th Foot, and Wolfe's 8th Foot). Also sent forward to plug the gap was Bligh's 20th Foot, which took up position between Sempill's 25th and Dejean's 37th. Huske's counter formed a five battalion strong horseshoe-shaped formation which trapped the Jacobite right wing on three sides.
With the Jacobite left under Perth failing to advance further, Cumberland ordered two troops of Cobham's 10th Dragoons to ride them down. The boggy ground, however, impeded the cavalry and they turned to engage the Irish Picquets whom Sullivan and Lord John Drummond had brought up in an attempt to stabilise the deteriorating Jacobite left flank. Cumberland later wrote: "They came running on in their wild manner, and upon the right where I had place myself, imagining the greatest push would be there, they came down there several times within a hundred yards of our men, firing their pistols and brandishing their swords, but the Royal Scots and Pulteneys hardly took their fire-locks from their shoulders, so that after those faint attempts they made off; and the little squadrons on our right were sent to pursue them".
Jacobite collapse and rout.
With the collapse of the left wing, Murray brought up the "Royal Écossais" and Kilmarnock's Footguards who were still at this time unengaged, but by the time they had been brought into position, the Jacobite first line was in rout. The "Royal Écossais" exchanged musket fire with Campbell's 21st and commenced an orderly retreat, moving along the Culwhiniac enclosure in order to shield themselves from artillery fire. Immediately the half battalion of Highland militia, commanded by Captain Colin Campbell of Ballimore, which had stood inside the enclosure ambushed them. In the encounter Campbell of Ballimore was killed along with five of his men. The result was that the "Royal Écossais" and Kilmarnock's Footguards were forced out into the open moor and were engaged by three squadrons of Kerr's 11th Dragoons: the fleeing Jacobites must have put up a fight, for Kerr's 11th recorded at least 16 horses killed during the entirety of the battle.
The Irish Picquets under Stapleton bravely covered the Highlanders' retreat from the battlefield, preventing the fleeing Jacobites from suffering heavy casualties: this action cost half of the 100 casualties they suffered in the battle. The "Royal Écossais" appear to have retired from the field in two wings; one part surrendered after suffering 50 killed or wounded, but their colours were not taken and a large number retired from the field with the Jacobite Lowland regiments. A few Highland regiments also withdrew in good order, notably Lovat's first battalion who retired with colours flying; the government dragoons let them withdraw rather than risk a confrontation.
The stand by the French regulars gave Charles and other senior officers time to escape. Charles seems to have been rallying Perth's and Glenbucket's regiments when Sullivan rode up to Captain Shea, commander of his bodyguard: "Yu see all is going to pot. Yu can be of no great succor, so before a general deroute wch will soon be, Seize upon the Prince & take him off ...". Contrary to government depictions of Charles as a coward, he yelled "they won't take me alive!" and called for a final charge into the government lines: Shea however followed Sullivan's advice and led Charles from the field, accompanied by Perth and Glenbucket's regiments.
From this point on the fleeing Jacobite forces were split into several groups: the Lowland regiments retired in order southwards, making their way to Ruthven Barracks, while the remains of the Jacobite right wing also retired to the south. The MacDonald and other Highland left wing regiments however were cut off by the government cavalry, and forced to retreat down the road to Inverness. The result was that they were a clear target for government dragoons: Major-general Humphrey Bland led the pursuit of the fleeing Highlanders, giving "Quarter to None but about Fifty French Officers and Soldiers".
Conclusion: casualties and prisoners.
Jacobite casualties are estimated at 1,500–2,000 killed or wounded, with many of these occurring in the pursuit after the battle. Cumberland's official list of prisoners taken includes 154 Jacobites and 222 "French" prisoners (men from the 'foreign units' in the French service). Added to the official list of those apprehended were 172 of the Earl of Cromartie's men, captured after a brief engagement the day before near Littleferry.
In striking contrast to the Jacobite losses, the government losses were reported as 50 dead and 259 wounded. Of the 438 men of Barrell's 4th Foot, 17 were killed and 104 were wounded. However, a large proportion of those recorded as wounded are likely to have died of their wounds: only 29 men out of the 104 wounded from Barrell's 4th Foot later survived to claim pensions, while all six of the artillerymen recorded as wounded died.
Several senior Jacobite commanding officers were casualties including Keppoch, Viscount Strathallan, commissary-general Lachlan Maclachlan and Walter Stapleton, who died of wounds shortly after the battle. Others, including Kilmarnock, were captured. The only government officer casualty of high rank was Lord Robert Kerr, the son of William Kerr, 3rd Marquess of Lothian. Sir Robert Rich, 5th Baronet, who was a lieutenant-colonel and the senior officer commanding Barrell's 4th Foot, was badly wounded, losing his left hand and receiving several wounds to his head, and a number of captains and lieutenants had also been wounded.
Aftermath.
Collapse of the Jacobite campaign.
As the first of the fleeing Highlanders approached Inverness they were met by the 2nd battalion of Lovat's regiment, led by the Master of Lovat. It has been suggested that Lovat shrewdly switched sides and turned upon the retreating Jacobites, an act that would explain his remarkable rise in fortune in the years that followed.
Following the battle, the Jacobites' Lowland regiments headed south, towards Corrybrough and made their way to Ruthven Barracks, while their Highland units made their way north, towards Inverness and on through to Fort Augustus. There they were joined by Barisdale's battalion of Glengarry's regiment and a small battalion of MacGregors. At least two of those present at Ruthven, James Johnstone and John Daniel, recorded that the Highland troops remained in good spirits despite the defeat and eager to resume the campaign. At this point, continuing Jacobite resistance remained potentially viable in terms of manpower: at least a third of the army had either missed or slept through Culloden, which along with survivors from the battle gave a potential force of 5-6000 men. However the roughly 1,500 men who assembled at Ruthven Barracks received orders from Charles to the effect that the army should disperse until he returned with French support.
Similar orders must have been received by the Highland units at Fort Augustus, and by 18 April the majority of the Jacobite army was disbanded. Officers and men of the units in French service made for Inverness, where they surrendered as prisoners of war on 19 April. Most of the rest of the army broke up, with men heading for home or attempting to escape abroad, although the Appin Regiment amongst others was still in arms as late as July.
Many senior Jacobites made their way to , where Charles Edward Stuart had first landed at the outset of the campaign in 1745. Here on 30 April they were met by two French frigates – the "Mars" and "Bellone". Two days later the French ships were spotted and attacked by three smaller Royal Navy sloops – the "Greyhound", "Baltimore", and "Terror". The result was the last real engagement of the campaign; during the six hours in which the battle continued the Jacobites recovered cargo which had been landed by the French ships, including £35,000 of gold.
With visible proof that the French had not deserted them, a group of Jacobite leaders attempted to prolong the campaign. On 8 May, nearby at Murlaggan, Lochiel, Lochgarry, Clanranald and Barisdale all agreed to rendezvous at Invermallie on 18 May, as did Lord Lovat and his son. The plan was that there they would be joined by what remained of Keppoch's men and Macpherson of Cluny's regiment, which had not taken part in the battle at Culloden. However, things did not go as planned; after about a month of relative inactivity, Cumberland moved his army into the Highlands and on 17 May three battalions of regulars and eight Highland companies reoccupied Fort Augustus. The same day, the Macphersons surrendered. On the day of the planned rendezvous, Clanranald never appeared and Lochgarry and Barisdale only showed up with about 300 combined, most of whom immediately dispersed in search of food: Lochiel, who commanded possibly the strongest Jacobite regiment at Culloden, was only able to muster 300 men. The group dispersed, and the following week the Government launched punitive expeditions into the Highlands which continued throughout the summer.
Following his flight from the battle, Charles Edward Stuart made his way towards the Hebrides, accompanied by a small group of supporters. By 20 April, Charles had reached on the west coast of Scotland. After spending a few days with his close associates, he sailed for the island of Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides. From there he travelled to Scalpay, off the east coast of Harris, and from there made his way to Stornoway. For five months Charles criss-crossed the Hebrides, constantly pursued by government supporters and under threat from local lairds who were tempted to betray him for the £30,000 upon his head. During this time he met Flora Macdonald, who famously aided him in a narrow escape to Skye. Finally, on 19 September, Charles reached Borrodale on in , where his party boarded two small French ships, which ferried them to France. He never returned to Scotland.
Repercussions and persecution.
The morning following the Battle of Culloden, Cumberland issued a written order reminding his men that "the public orders of the rebels yesterday was to give us no quarter". Cumberland alluded to the belief that such orders had been found upon the bodies of fallen Jacobites. In the days and weeks that followed, versions of the alleged orders were published in the "Newcastle Journal" and the "Gentleman's Journal". Today only one copy of the alleged order to "give no quarter" exists. It is however considered to be nothing but a poor attempt at forgery, for it is neither written nor signed by Murray, and it appears on the bottom half of a copy of a declaration published in 1745. In any event, Cumberland's order was not carried out for two days, after which contemporary accounts report then that for the next two days the moor was searched and all those wounded were put to death. On the other hand, the orders issued by Lord George Murray for the conduct of the aborted night attack in the early hours of 16 April suggest that it would have been every bit as merciless. The instructions were to use only swords, dirks and bayonets, to overturn tents, and subsequently to locate "a swelling or bulge in the fallen tent, there to strike and push vigorously". In total, over 20,000 head of livestock, sheep, and goats were driven off and sold at Fort Augustus, where the soldiers split the profits.
While in Inverness, Cumberland emptied the jails that were full of people imprisoned by Jacobite supporters, replacing them with Jacobites themselves. Prisoners were taken south to England to stand trial for high treason. Many were held on hulks on the Thames or in Tilbury Fort, and executions took place in Carlisle, York and Kennington Common. The common Jacobite supporters fared better than the ranking individuals. In total, 120 common men were executed, one third of them being deserters from the British Army. The common prisoners drew lots amongst themselves and only one out of twenty actually came to trial. Although most of those who did stand trial were sentenced to death, almost all of these had their sentences commuted to penal transportation to the British colonies for life by the Traitors Transported Act 1746 (20 Geo. II, c. 46). In all, 936 men were thus transported, and 222 more were banished. Even so, 905 prisoners were actually released under the Act of Indemnity which was passed in June 1747. Another 382 obtained their freedom by being exchanged for prisoners of war who were held by France. Of the total 3,471 prisoners recorded, nothing is known of the fate of 648. The high ranking "rebel lords" were executed on Tower Hill in London.
Following up on the military success won by their forces, the British Government enacted laws further to integrate Scotland – specifically the Scottish Highlands – with the rest of Britain. Members of the Episcopal clergy were required to give oaths of allegiance to the reigning Hanoverian dynasty. The Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746 ended the hereditary right of landowners to govern justice upon their estates through barony courts. Previous to this act, feudal lords (which included clan chiefs) had considerable judicial and military power over their followers – such as the oft quoted power of "pit and gallows". Lords who were loyal to the Government were greatly compensated for the loss of these traditional powers, for example the Duke of Argyll was given £21,000. Those lords and clan chiefs who had supported the Jacobite rebellion were stripped of their estates and these were then sold and the profits were used to further trade and agriculture in Scotland. The forfeited estates were managed by factors. Anti-clothing measures were taken against the highland dress by an Act of Parliament in 1746. The result was that the wearing of tartan was banned except as a uniform for officers and soldiers in the British Army and later landed men and their sons.
Culloden battlefield today.
Today, a visitor centre is located near the site of the battle. This centre was first opened in December 2007, with the intention of preserving the battlefield in a condition similar to how it was on 16 April 1746. One difference is that it currently is covered in shrubs and heather; during the 18th century, however, the area was used as common grazing ground, mainly for tenants of the Culloden estate. Those visiting can walk the site by way of footpaths on the ground and can also enjoy a view from above on a raised platform. Possibly the most recognisable feature of the battlefield today is the tall memorial cairn, erected by Duncan Forbes in 1881. In the same year Forbes also erected headstones to mark the mass graves of the clans. The thatched roofed farmhouse of Leanach which stands today dates from about 1760; however, it stands on the same location as the turf-walled cottage that probably served as a field hospital for government troops following the battle. A stone, known as "The English Stone", is situated west of the Old Leanach cottage and is said to mark the burial place of the government dead. West of this site lies another stone, erected by Forbes, marking the place where the body of Alexander McGillivray of Dunmaglass was found after the battle. A stone lies on the eastern side of the battlefield that is supposed to mark the spot where Cumberland directed the battle. The battlefield has been inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Historic Environment (Amendment) Act 2011.
Since 2001, the site of the battle has undergone topographic, geophysical, and metal detector surveys in addition to archaeological excavations. Interesting finds have been made in the areas where the fiercest fighting occurred on the government left wing, particularly where Barrell's and Dejean's regiments stood. For example, pistol balls and pieces of shattered muskets have been uncovered here which indicate close quarters fighting, as pistols were only used at close range and the musket pieces appear to have been smashed by pistol/musket balls or heavy broadswords. Finds of musket balls appear to mirror the lines of men who stood and fought. Some balls appear to have been dropped without being fired, some missed their targets, and others are distorted from hitting human bodies. In some cases it may be possible to identify whether the Jacobites or government soldiers fired certain rounds, because the Jacobite forces are known to have used a large quantity of French muskets which fired a slightly smaller calibre shot than that of the British Army's "Brown Bess". Analysis of the finds confirms that the Jacobites used muskets in greater numbers than has traditionally been thought. Not far from where the hand-to-hand fighting took place, fragments of mortar shells have been found. Though Forbes's headstones mark the graves of the Jacobites, the location of the graves of about sixty government soldiers is unknown. The recent discovery of a 1752 silver "Thaler", from the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, may however lead archaeologists to these graves. A geophysical survey, directly beneath the spot where the coin was found, seems to indicate the existence of a large rectangular burial pit. It is thought possible that the coin was dropped by a soldier who once served on the continent, while he visited the graves of his fallen comrades.
The National Trust of Scotland is currently attempting to restore Culloden Moor, as closely as possible, to the state it was in during the Battle of Culloden Moor. They are also attempting to expand the land under its care to ensure the full battlefield is protected under the NTS. Another goal is to restore Leannach Cottage and allow visitors to once again tour the interior.
Order of battle: Culloden, 16 April 1746.
Jacobite army.
Charles Edward Stuart
Colonel John William Sullivan
Government army.
Captain-General: Duke of Cumberland
Commander-in-Chief North Britain: Lieutenant-General Henry Hawley


First Happy Time

The early phase of the Battle of the Atlantic during which German Navy U-boats enjoyed significant success against the British Royal Navy and its Allies was referred to by U-boat crews as "the Happy Time" ("Die Glückliche Zeit"), and later the First Happy Time, after a second successful period was encountered.
It started in July 1940, almost immediately after the Fall of France, which brought the German U-boat fleet closer to the British shipping lanes in the Atlantic. From July 1940 to the end of October, 282 Allied ships were sunk off the north-west approaches to Ireland for a loss of 1,489,795 tons of merchant shipping.
The reason for this successful Axis period was the British lack of radar and huff-duff equipped ships which meant that the U-boats were very hard to detect when they made nighttime surface attacks – ASDIC (sonar) could only detect submerged U-boats.
When it ended is a matter of interpretation, with some sources claiming October 1940 and others extending it to April 1941, after the Germans lost three prominent U-boat commanders: Günther Prien, Joachim Schepke and Otto Kretschmer.


Shenandoah Plaza National Historic District

The U.S. Naval Air Station, Sunnyvale Historic District, also known as Shenandoah Plaza, is a historic district located on at Moffett Field, California.
Hangars One, Two, and Three, and the adjacent Shenandoah Plaza are inclusively designated as the historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Historic District was nominated by the US Navy and accepted into the National Register of Historic Places on Feb. 24, 1994. The Historic District was conveyed to NASA on July 1, 1994, as part of a federal military base reduction and closure action.
The historic district consists of:
History.
In 1931, the city of Sunnyvale acquired a 1,000 acre (4 km²) parcel of farmland bordering San Francisco Bay, paid for with nearly $480,000 raised by the citizens of Santa Clara County, then "sold" the parcel for $1 to the US government as a home base for the Navy airship USS "Macon".
The location proved to be ideal for an airport, since the area is often clear while other parts of the San Francisco Bay are covered in fog. This is due to the Coast Range to the west which blocks the cold oceanic air which is the cause of San Francisco fog.
The base, originally named Airbase Sunnyvale CAL (it was thought that calling it Mountain View would cause officials to fear airships colliding with mountainsides), was accepted by the U.S. Navy on 12 February 1931 and dedicated NAS Sunnyvale on 12 April 1933. After the death of Rear Admiral William A. Moffett, who is credited with the creation of the airfield, in the loss of the USS "Akron" on 4 April 1933, the airfield at Naval Air Station Sunnyvale was named Moffett Field on 1 September 1933.
After the ditching of the USS "Macon" on 12 February 1935, and until 1942, the Navy transferred claimancy of Moffett Field to the War Department and the installation was under the control of the U.S. Army Air Corps.
On April 16, 1942, control of the facility was returned to the Navy and it was recommissioned as NAS Sunnyvale. Four days later it was renamed NAS Moffett Field. From the end of World War II until its closure, NAS Moffett Field saw the development and use of several generations of land-based anti-submarine warfare and maritime patrol aircraft, including the Lockheed P2V Neptune and Lockheed P-3 Orion. Until the demise of the USSR and for some time thereafter, daily anti-submarine, maritime reconnaissance, Fleet support, and various training sorties flew out from NAS Moffett Field to patrol along the Pacific coastline, while Moffett's other squadrons and aircraft periodically deployed to other Pacific, Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf bases for periods of up to six months.
Hangar One.
Hangar One is one of the world's largest freestanding structures, covering .
The hangar was constructed in 1931.
Moffett Field's "Hangar One" was built during the Depression era for the USS "Macon". Hangar One is still one of the largest unsupported structures in the country. The airship hangar is constructed on a network of steel girders sheathed with galvanized steel. It rests firmly upon a reinforced pad anchored to concrete pilings.
The airship hangar itself, measures 1,133 feet (343 m) long and 308 feet (93 m) wide. The floor covers eight acres (32,000 m²) and can accommodate Six (6) (360 feet x 160 feet) football fields.
The building has aerodynamic architecture. Its walls curve upward and inward, to form an elongated dome 198 feet (60 m) high. The clam-shell doors were designed to reduce turbulence when the "Macon" moved in and out on windy days. The "orange peel" doors, weighing 500 tons (511.88 tonnes) each, are moved by their own 150 horsepower motors operated via an electrical control panel.
The airship hangar's interior is so large that fog sometimes forms near the ceiling. A person unaccustomed to its vastness is susceptible to optical disorientation. Looking across its deck, planes and tractors look like toys. Along its length maintenance shops, inspection laboratories and offices help keep the hangar busy. Looking up, a network of catwalks for access to all parts of the structure can be seen. Two elevators meet near the top, allowing maintenance personnel to get to the top quickly and easily.
Narrow gauge tracks run through the length of the hangar. During the period of airship, the rails extended across the apron and into the fields at each end of the hangar. This tramway facilitated the transportation of an airship on the mooring mast to the airship hangar interior or to the flight position. During the brief period that the USS Macon (ZRS-5) was based at Moffett, Hangar One accommodated not only the giant airship but several smaller non-rigid lighter-than-air craft simultaneously.
Hangars Two and Three.
Moffett Field's Hangars Two and Three (Mountain View, California) were built at the beginning of WWII for a program of coastal defense. The Hangars are still among the world's largest freestanding unsupported wood structures.
In 1940, the US Navy proposed to the US Congress the development of a lighter-than-air station program for anti-submarine patrolling of the coast and harbors. This program proposed the construction, in addition to the expansion at NAS and Lakehurst, the construction of new stations.
The original contract was for steel hangars, long, wide and , helium storage and service, barracks for 228 men, a power plant, landing mat, and a mobile mooring mast. The Second Deficiency Appropriation Bill for 1941, passed July 3, 1941, changed the authorization to the construction of 8 facilities to accommodate a total of 48 airships (as requested in 1940), but due to steel rations, a total of 17 large wooden hangars were built among 10 LTA bases.
As finally developed in 1943, LTA facilities in addition to NAS Lakehurst (2) and NAS Moffett Field (2), included NAS South Weymouth (1), NAS Weeksville (1), NAS Glynco (2), NAS Richmond (3), NAS Houma (1), NAS Hitchcock (1), NAS Santa Ana (2) and NAS Tillamook (2). In the initial program, accommodations were provided for six airships at each station. This was later increased to twelve at seven of the stations and to eighteen at NAS Richmond as a result of an increase in the authorized strength to 200 airships.
Seven (7) of the original seventeen (17) of the wooden hangars still exist: Moffett Field (2), Tustin, California (2), Tillamook, Oregon (1), and Lakehurst, New Jersey(2).
Popular culture.
An episode of the Discovery Channel TV show "MythBusters" used one these smaller hangars to disprove the myth that it is not possible to fold a sheet of paper in half more than seven times. The sheet of paper covered nearly the full width of the airship hangar. Other episodes of Mythbusters have utilized the hangar to test myths such as "Inflating a football with helium allows longer kick distances" and "Airworthy aircraft can be constructed of concrete."
Other historic buildings.
Many of the buildings at Moffett Field which once supported its active military presence have been contaminated with asbestos within the structures, and require restoration. This is an ongoing project within NASA Research Park an annex to NASA Ames Research Center
There are


Battle of Shrewsbury

The Battle of Shrewsbury was a battle fought on 21 July 1403, waged between an army led by the Lancastrian King Henry IV and a rebel army led by Henry "Harry Hotspur" Percy from Northumberland. The battle, the first in which English archers fought each other on English soil, reaffirmed
the effectiveness of the longbow and ended the Percy challenge to King Henry IV of England.
Part of the fighting is believed to have taken place at what is now Battlefield, Shropshire, England, three miles north of the centre of Shrewsbury. It is marked today by Battlefield Church and Battlefield Heritage Park.
Background.
The Percys had previously supported Henry IV in a war against King Richard II of England, which ended when Henry IV took the throne in 1399. The Percys subsequently supported Henry IV in Wales, early in the rebellion of Owain Glyndŵr, and in Scotland, in both negotiations and conflict against the Scots.
King Henry IV had been supported by a number of wealthy landowners to whom he had promised land, money and royal favour in return for their continued support. When the war ended, lands in and around Cumberland promised to the Percys were instead given to a rival. The promised money never materialised, and so the Percys revolted. Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, and Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester, publicly renounced their allegiance to King Henry IV. They charged him with perjury because he claimed the throne in addition to his old lands and titles, taxed the clergy despite his promise not to without the consent of Parliament, imprisoned and murdered King Richard II, did not allow a free Parliamentary election, and refused to pay a just ransom to Owain Glyndŵr, who was then holding Edmund Mortimer. The King also retained custody of the Scottish nobles captured at Homildon Hill as prisoners of war rather than permitting the Percys to release them for ransom.
Henry Percy, nicknamed "Hotspur," raised a group initially of about 200 retainers in early July 1403, and started the long march south to meet his uncle, Thomas Percy. Some nobles joined him, such as Lord Bardolf, but he recruited most of his army in Cheshire, an area hostile to Henry IV, which provided many experienced soldiers, notably its Cheshire archers, some of whom had served as Richard II's bodyguard. Henry Percy may have hoped for reinforcements from Wales under the self-proclaimed Prince of Wales, Owain Glyndŵr, but he was disappointed. Glyndŵr, at the time fighting in Carmarthenshire, was unaware that Hotspur had acted. Some Welsh forces from the Cheshire borders may have joined him. The rebels then marched towards Shrewsbury, the heavily defended county town in Shropshire.
King Henry IV only became aware of the Percy forces on 12 July, apparently while he was marching an army north to assist the Percys against the Scots, receiving the news at Burton-on-Trent. He may have anticipated the Percys' change of heart, but instantly altered his plans to meet the immediate threat posed by the Percys. He changed direction and marched west towards Shrewsbury with his army, arriving before the Percys could capture the town.
Both forces arrived in the Shrewsbury area on 20 July and set up camp to the north and south of the Severn River, which loops around the town. Hotspur based himself initially at the house of William Betton, his army camping close to the town. The next day the King's forces crossed the River Severn at Uffington, about a mile to the east of Shrewsbury to cut off Percy's line of retreat to Chester. They failed and the armies took up position in a field that was variously named: "Haytleyfield", "Husefeld", "Berwykfeld", "Bolefeld". The battle commenced in the manor of Harlescott about a mile south west of where Battlefield Church now stands. (The owner of this manor, Richard Hussey, swore to this fact under oath in the escheator's court in January 1416). The battle took place in a large field of peas.
Estimates of the sizes of the two armies vary widely, and the medieval chronicles are subject to exaggeration. "Annales Henrici Quarti" states 14,000 Royal troops, far fewer than Waurin's estimate of 60,000. Although Henry's army is generally agreed to have been larger, John Capgrave writing in the "Chronicle of England" quotes Percy's army as 14,000.
For much of the morning of Saturday 21 July, the two forces parleyed. Thomas Prestbury, the Abbot of Shrewsbury and the Abbot of Haughmond presented the King's terms. Hotspur declined any terms and Thomas Percy spoke to the King, trading insults. Henry Percy was somewhat inclined toward accepting the King's position, while his uncle Thomas Percy was not. Negotiations ended near noon, and the two forces advanced closer for the fight. One rebel, later pardoned, went over to the royal army and the king knighted several of his followers.
Battle.
About two hours before dusk, King Henry IV raised his sword. The battle opened with a massive archery barrage, arrows killing or wounding many men before they could meet hand to hand in the field. Percy's Cheshire bowmen proved generally superior. Thomas Walsingham recorded how the King's men "fell like leaves in Autumn, every one [arrow] struck a mortal man". According to the "Dieulacres Chronicle" the King's right wing under the command of the Earl of Stafford (who was killed) fled from the field. Far more than this wing may have fled as well, as there is evidence that some baggage was looted and after the battle the Cheshire rebels were "prosecuted" for taking some 7,000 horses with them. Prince Henry, Prince of Wales was hit in the face with an arrow during the fighting, sustaining a terrible wound. He later recovered due to the skilled treatment of the Physician General John Bradmore, who used honey, alcohol and a specially designed surgical instrument to extract the arrowhead. He was left with a permanent scar. Bradmore recorded treating Prince Henry in his Latin manuscript, "Philomena." An account of this can also be found in Thomas Morstede's 1446 surgical treaty.
Enough of the King's men remained on the field, particularly on the left wing, which was under the command of the Prince of Wales. Perhaps in desperation, Hotspur led a charge aimed at killing the King himself, during which the Royal Standard was overthrown and its bearer, Sir Walter Blount, was hacked down by Archibald Douglas, 4th Earl of Douglas. Hotspur was killed in the charge, reputedly shot in the face with an arrow when he opened his visor. His death was initially not realised, and some point soon afterwards the Northumbrian knights hailed the death of Henry IV, exclaiming "Henry Percy King!". Henry IV was not dead however, and retaliated by shouting "Henry Percy is dead"; the absence of a reply confirmed that Henry Percy was indeed dead. The battle ended soon after. It is recorded that many did not know who had won. The King's forces sustained greater losses than the rebels, and Henry IV very nearly lost both his life and his throne.
Aftermath.
Henry Percy was initially buried by his nephew Thomas Nevill, 5th Baron Furnivall at Whitchurch, Shropshire, with honours, but rumours soon spread that he was not really dead. In response the King had him disinterred. His body was salted, set up in Shrewsbury impaled on a spear between two millstones in the marketplace pillory, with an armed guard, and was later quartered and put on display in Chester, London, Bristol and Newcastle upon Tyne. His head was sent to York and impaled on the north gate, looking toward his own lands. In November his grisly remains were returned to his widow Elizabeth.
The Earl of Worcester was beheaded and Sir Richard Venables, Sir Richard Vernon and Sir Henry Boynton were publicly hanged, drawn and quartered in Shrewsbury on 23 July and their heads publicly displayed, Thomas Percy's on London Bridge.
Battlefield Church is said to have been erected over the site of the mass burial pit dug immediately after the battle. It was built initially as a memorial chapel, on the orders of King Henry IV and paid for by him, with prayers and masses being said continually for the dead on both sides. The chapel was replaced in 1460 by a church, which was further restored in 1862. A drain being dug in a corner of the churchyard may have inadvertently opened part of the burial pit. Workmen were surprised by the mass of bones which they thought showed the hurried nature of the burials. They may have merely unearthed a charnel pit containing bones of a variety of different ages.
In 2006, the BBC show "Two Men in a Trench" proved only that an area to the west of the church was not in fact a graveyard.
There were two other 15th century churches associated with battles. The one at Towton no longer exists but remains of it have been identified as lying beneath the present day Towton Hall by the archaeologist Tim Sutherland. The other for the battle of Wakefield still stands on Wakefield Bridge. Neither was near the battlefield.
Cultural references.
The battle itself and many of the key people involved appear in Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part 1", with the fictional participation of Sir John Falstaff and Hotspur being killed by Prince Henry. It is also depicted in the 1966 movie "Chimes at Midnight" (released in the UK as "Falstaff"), in the 2012 BBC Two adaptation of Shakespeare's play, and in the climax to a historical novel by Edith Pargeter, "A Bloody Field by Shrewsbury" (1972) (US title: "The Bloody Field").
The battle features early in the 2019 David Michod film "The King", in which Prince Hal offers to duel Hotspur in single combat for the outcome of the battle. The duel begins with swords and descends into an armored brawl in the mud, in which Hal triumphs when he kills Hotspur by stabbing him in the neck with a dagger.
References.
Online:


ON convoys

The ON convoys were a series of North Atlantic trade convoys running Outbound from the British Isles to North America during the Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945).
History.
From 7 September 1939, shortly after the outbreak of World War II, OB convoys sailed from Liverpool south through St George's Channel to the open Atlantic. Off Land's End the convoy would be joined by an OA convoy from London on the River Thames via the English Channel. The combined OA/OB convoys were escorted for about four days to get beyond the range of U-boat patrols before the ships dispersed to reach their individual destinations. After the fall of France in June 1940, OA and OB convoys sailed north to join in the Western Approaches. As German aircraft, submarines, and surface ships reached further into the Atlantic, ships formerly assigned to OA/OB convoys were formed into ON convoys sailing from Liverpool via the North Channel and escorted all the way to Halifax Harbour. These convoys were sequentially numbered from ON 1 sailing on 26 July 1941 to ON 305 sailing on 27 May 1945.
From August 1942, the Mid-Ocean Escort Force of British and Canadian ships (with a few United States Coast Guard cutters) delivered ON convoys to the Royal Canadian Navy Western Local Escort Force (WLEF) off Halifax; and the WLEF escorted most convoys from ON 125 through ON 301 to New York City.
Most ships in ON convoys were in ballast, although some carried coal or other export goods. A total of 14,864 ships sailed in 307 ON convoys. One ON convoy sailed in Fast and Slow sections and two others were cancelled. U-boats sank 81 of these ships, and another 23 were lost to marine accidents. These figures do not include stragglers; although the majority of casualties to U-boats were ships that had fallen out of convoys or were sailing independently. Ten warships on escort duty were also lost.
Slow convoys.
Until April 1943, ships capable of speeds between were assigned to odd-numbered (fast) convoys—sometimes designated ON(F); while ships capable of speeds between were assigned to even-numbered (slow) convoys—sometimes designated ON(S) or (ambiguously) ONS. This situation, which has proved confusing to modern historians, prevailed until a new and separate series of ONS (Outbound North Slow) convoys was organised. These convoys were sequentially numbered from ONS 1 sailing on 4 April 1943 to ONS 51 sailing on 21 May 1945. ON 171 was a fast convoy, as were all subsequent ON convoys. The ONS series were suspended in the summer of 1944 as escort groups were diverted to cover the Normandy landings. A total of 1873 ships sailed in 51 ONS convoys. Only 5 of these were attacked (around 10%), though two of these battles were of major significance; ONS 5 is regarded as the turning point of the campaign, while ONS 18 was the last major convoy battle in the campaign. Nineteen ships were lost (around 1%) from ONS convoys.
Notable battles around ON and ONS convoys.
The Outbound Northern convoys saw some of the major convoy battles of the Atlantic campaign; of the 40 convoys which lost 6 or more ships, 8 were in the ON series (of which 5 were Slow, and 3 were Fast) and one was in the ONS series.


Ackerman Boat Company

Ackerman Boat Company was a wooden shipbuilding company in Newport Beach, California. Ackerman Boat Company built small barges in Newport Harbor working with Star D Iron Works, in Santa Ana. To support the World War 2 demand for ships Ackerman Boat Company shipyard switched over to military construction and built: US Army Harbor Tugboats and US Navy Landing Craft Mechanized Model LCM Mark 3. Clarence Ackerman started the Ackerman Boat Company was in 1943. Ackerman Boat Company worked with Consolidated Steel's Wilmington shipyard to build the Tugboat and Landing Craft. Near the end of the war, Ackerman sold the yard to Consolidated Steel but purchased it back in 1947. Ackerman sold the shipyard in 1958. The shipyard was at 151 Shipyard Way, Newport Beach on the Lido Peninsula at the corner of Rhine Place. The current site has been the Newport Harbor Shipyard since 1981, which repairs and restoration of yachts.
Ackerman Boat Company.
Ackerman Boat Company boats built in 1943 and 1944:
Consolidated Steel.
Consolidated Steel boats with Consolidated Steel hull #, built in 1945 and 1946:
Ackerman Boat Company.
Ackerman Boat Company buit from 1944 to 1957:


Operation Mandibles

During World War II, Operation Mandibles was a planned 1940/1941 British amphibious assault on Rhodes, Leros and the Dodecanese Islands in the Aegean Sea. Planned by Roger Keyes of the Special Operation branch, it was never executed." A disastrous invasion of the islands, the Dodecanese campaign, was conducted in 1943.


Battle of Stow-on-the-Wold

The Battle of Stow-on-the-Wold (21 March 1646) took place during the First English Civil War. It was a Parliamentarian victory by detachments of the New Model Army over the last Royalist field army.
In the spring of 1646, King Charles I of England was getting ever more desperate to hold the Royalist cause together whilst waiting for the long promised relief forces from Ireland, Scotland and France. Sir Jacob Astley took command of the Royalist forces in the west and began to gather up the remnants from the handful of Royalist garrisons still left in the West Midlands to create a new field army. At this point in the war, Royalist morale was low. However, Astley, a stalwart of the Royalist commanders and an experienced soldier, was able to cobble together a force of 3,000. While returning to Oxford he was intercepted and defeated at Stow-on-the-Wold.
Prelude.
The year of 1646 began badly for Charles I. On no side was there the smallest break in the gloom that surrounded him. He had no army, and there was but small chance of his being able to raise one. All his resources were exhausted. Without money, without arms, without supplies, his fate was clear. But, what was still worse, if possible, was the disunion among the Royalists: Charles' quarrel with his nephews, although patched up, might break out again at any minute.
It was obvious to all, Royalists or Parliamentarians, that whatever the rights or wrongs of the struggle might originally have been, its continuance could do no good to either party, and only aggravated the prevailing discontent.
Lord Astley left Oxford on 22 December 1645, to go round the different garrisons in the West Midlands, trying to raise an army. His task was a difficult one, and not the less so by his extreme want of money. Had Astley a good supply of this, he might have raised a fairly formidable force, without it he could do nothing with the drunken dissolute bands of robbers who formed the bulk of the soldiers in the Royalist garrisons. Astley arrived at Worcester early in 1646. One of his first acts was to march out to Madresfield. The Royalist garrison there had been besieged since October, by men from the Gloucester and Evesham Parliamentary garrisons, but it had held out, and Astley was now able, with a party from the Worcester garrison, to drive off the besiegers and raise the siege.
Astley went from Worcester to Ludlow, intending to unite with Sir William Vaughan, but the presence of Parliamentarian troops and the floods arising from the breaking up of the great frost and the thaw made movement impossible, and prevented Astley from attempting anything. He fell back towards Bewdley. On 5 February 1646, Chester surrendered. Lord Byron had held out to the last and had to yield from want of fuel and of food. Horses, dogs, and cats had been eaten, and Byron was unable to do more. He had held the place for sixteen weeks, and there was no hope of relief.
The fall of Chester was a serious blow to the Royalist cause, in that it set free a large force who would now operate upon the other Royalist garrisons. Astley, finding that it was useless to look towards Chester, set to work to collect men to go to the relief of the King at Oxford (see Siege of Oxford (1646)). But he was too late. In the Cotswolds, barring his way, was Sir Thomas Morgan, the governor of the Gloucester garrison, with a formidable force. On his right flank was John Birch, the governor of Hereford, with a force more than equal to any that Astley could bring into the field, while in his rear, pushing him onwards towards Morgan and Birch, was Sir William Brereton, his army now able to act as Chester had fallen.
Astley had visited Stafford and other garrisons to collect his force. He had tried to relieve the besieged High Ercall Hall, but had failed. At last, he perceived that, if he was to join the Charles I at Oxford, the time had come to do so. Therefore, in the beginning of March, he gave orders for all the men from the different garrisons who would join him, to rendezvous at Bridgnorth; here he collected some 3,000 men.
Astley was in dire need of money, so much so that he had to borrow from the corporation of Bridgnorth to pay his personal expenses there. It may be imagined to what straits the Royalists were reduced when it is said that out of these more than half were "reformado" officers, that is, officers of regiments that had either ceased to exist, from being destroyed or disbanded, or become so reduced in numbers there was no need for such officers. They formed a desperate band of broken men, who had all to gain by plunder and everything to lose by peace.
Having collected his men Astley advanced from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster. Some sort of a post, probably a look-out post, to watch any movement of men, was kept at Trimpley. A skirmish took place near Kidderminster, as the registers show that Captain Charles Dungham and one of his soldiers were killed and buried.
From Kidderminster, Astley marched to Worcester, where he halted for a few days, and his troubles began. He was aware that Morgan and Birch were waiting for him at Broadway, and Brereton was moving up in his rear and pressing him forward. Astley's task was a difficult one. Evesham had a Parliamentary garrison and the River Avon could not be crossed there. In the hills, on his road to Oxford, were Morgan and Birch, waiting for the first sight of his men to unite and fall on him; while still nearer Oxford, if he got past these forces, Charles Fleetwood was waiting between Stow and Oxford to intercept any Royalist attempt to relieve Astley, or to cut off any of Astley's men who got past Morgan.
Astley's first move quite deceived his opponents. He sent some of his men forward towards Evesham, but with the main body he marched back to Droitwich, thus leading Brereton to think he was about to attack him. Then making across country by Feckenham and Inkberrow to Bidford and Cleve Prior, he crossed the Avon, and pushed down Buckle Street to Honeybourne, leaving Morgan at Broadway on his right, he marched past his flank to Campden, Blockley, Bourton-on-the-Hill, for Stow.
Battle.
On 20 March, Morgan, finding that Astley had out-manoeuvred him, made a series of attacks on his rearguard, harassing and delaying their march, so as to give time for Birch to come up in front and Brereton to advance in the rear. Astley, by pushing on, had reached Donnington, a village in Gloucestershire about two miles from Stow-on-the-Wold.
Astley chose a low hill just to the west of Donnington to make his last stand. Brereton having now come up, Morgan attacked the wearied Royalists in the dark, two hours before dawn, on the 21 March. Birch in front, and Morgan in the rear tried to surround the Royalists. Morgan charged Astley's rear with 200 firelocks and 400 horse. He was repulsed twice, and Astley nearly succeeded in breaking through the ring that was surrounding him. But as Astley pressed through Morgan's men in the rear, Birch pressed his charges home in the front. Still Astley showed a stubborn resistance. Birch's horse was shot under him, his regiment had 32 men killed. The Royalists fought a running retreat into the streets of Stow.
In spite of all the Royalist efforts, the ring gradually tightened round Astley. At last, seeing a possible way of escape, some of the Royalists broke and fled; through their broken ranks Birch's horse rode in; there was nothing then left but to surrender.
Aftermath.
With the surrender, and the last Royalist field army ceased to exist. Lord Astley, Sir Charles Lucas, Colonel Corbet, Colonel Gerrard, Colonel Molesworth, Lieutenant Colonel Broughton, and Major Billingsley were among the prisoners. Out of the 3,000 men Astley had with him Morgan returned 1,600 prisoners. Many were killed, more were wounded, the rest dispersed. Those who had broken through were possibly the worst off; they were overtaken, cut down and killed by Fleetwood's dragoons. All the Royalist arms and ammunition were taken.
The rout was complete; Astley's force, which he had collected with so much care and manoeuvred with so much skill, was destroyed. Astley fully recognised this. Worn out by his marches, his manoeuvres and his fight, he sat down on a drum and, addressing Morgan's men, said:
This was a fitting epitaph to the last major battle of the First Civil War from the man who is often quoted for his soldiers' prayer at the first major battle. So ended the last Royalist field army, because as Clarendon wrote in his history: "There remained from that time no possibility for the King to draw any other troops into the field". Charles had fought from August, 1642, to March, 1646, with the result that the Parliament only had to reduce the few strongholds that still held out for him. When this was done Parliament's military victory was completed.
Legacy.
In St. Edward's Church, there is a monument to Sir Hastings Keyte, who was a Royalist captain killed in the battle, aged 23.
References.
Attribution


Amoy Operation

The Amoy Operation () was part of a campaign by Japan during the Second Sino-Japanese War to blockade China to prevent it from communicating with the outside world and importing needed arms and materials. Control of Amoy Island would provide a base to make the blockade of Fujian province more effective.
Like the Canton Operation, the Amoy Operation was overseen by Koichi Shiozawa (1881-1943), who was the commander-in-chief of the Fifth Fleet during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). The fleets warships bombarded the city to cover the landing of more than 2,000 invading troops. The poorly equipped defenders of the city were forced to withdraw and move to Sung-yu. The blockade was successful so that China's ability to counterattack was effectively crippled.


Attack on Broome

The town of Broome, Western Australia, was attacked by Japanese fighter planes on 3 March 1942, during World War II. At least 88 civilians and Allied military personnel were killed.
Although Broome was a small pearling port at the time, it was also a refuelling point for aircraft, on the route between the Netherlands East Indies and major Australian cities. As a result, Broome was on a line of flight for Dutch and other refugees, following the Japanese invasion of Java, and had become a significant Allied military base. During a two-week period in February–March 1942, more than a thousand refugees from the Dutch East Indies—many of them in flying boats, which often served as airliners at the time—passed through Broome.
The number of refugees has previously been given as 8,000, but new research by Dr Tom Lewis contends that this figure is massively overstated. The figure was first quoted in the relevant Australian Official War History and has been reproduced in many publications since. The actual number of aerial evacuees passing through Broome at this time is estimated to have been only 1,350. Most of these were military personnel. There were approximately 250 Dutch civilian refugees, most of whom were family members of Dutch aircrews.
The attack.
Lt Zenjiro Miyano—the commander of "Dai 3 Kōkūtai" (3rd Air Group) of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service—led nine Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero fighters and a Mitsubishi C5M2 reconnaissance plane from their base at Kupang, Timor in the attack, on the morning of 3 March.
From about 09:20, the Zeros made strafing attacks on the flying boat anchorage at Roebuck Bay and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base at Broome Airfield. No bombs were dropped, although some were reported, perhaps a result of witnesses seeing the Zero pilots releasing their drop tanks. The raid lasted an hour.
The Japanese fighters destroyed at least 22 Allied aircraft. These included an airborne United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) B-24A Liberator, full of wounded personnel—nearly 20 died when it crashed in the sea, about off Broome. The Allies also lost 15 flying boats at anchorage; many Dutch refugees were on board and the exact number and identities of all those killed is unknown but the ages and names of some were recorded when they were moved from Broome to the Perth War Cemetery at Karrakatta in 1950 (the known casualties include 9 children, the youngest being just 1). At the airfield, the Japanese fighters destroyed two B-17E Flying Fortresses and a B-24 belonging to the USAAF, two Lockheed Hudsons belonging to the RAAF and a Lockheed Lodestar belonging to the Royal Netherlands East Indies Air Force (ML-KNIL).
The aircraft destroyed included: eight PBY Catalinas operated by the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Netherlands Navy Air Service (MLD), United States Navy and the Royal Air Force; two Short Empires belonging to the RAAF and QANTAS, and five Dornier Do 24s belonging to the MLD.
A KLM Douglas DC-3 airliner—PK-AFV (carrying refugees from Bandung)—was pursued and attacked by three Zeroes north of Broome. The aircraft managed to limp on to perform a successful landing on a beach near Broome, but was then strafed, resulting in the loss of four lives and the theft of diamonds worth £150,000 – 300,000 (now approximately A$20–40 million).
There were no Allied fighter planes based in Broome at the time. The Zeroes encountered some light arms fire from the ground. One Zero pilot—Warrant Officer Osamu Kudō—was killed by ground fire from a Dutch ML-KNIL pilot, First Lieutenant Gus Winckel, using a 7.9mm machine gun he had removed from his Lodestar. Winckel balanced the weapon on his shoulder and sustained burns to his left forearm when it touched the barrel of the gun after firing. Another Zero ran out of fuel and ditched while returning to his base, although the pilot survived.
In 2010, new research argued instead that Kudo's Zero was shot down by the tail guns in the B-24A "Arabian Knight", which itself was downed by Kudo's attack with the loss of 19 of the 20 American military personnel on board.
Aftermath.
Following the attack, an RAAF officer—Pilot Officer Frank Russell, who had been on one of the flying boats during the raid—wrote of
Charlie D'Antoine—an Aboriginal flying boat refueller—helped two passengers from the planes to reach the shore, swimming through burning fuel and wreckage. D'Antoine later received a bravery award from the Dutch government and was invited to attend a royal reception in the Netherlands.
At least one U.S. serviceman—Sgt. Melvin Donoho—managed to swim about from the crashed B-24 to shore, a journey which took him more than 36 hours. Some accounts say that a Sgt. Willard J. Beatty also made it ashore but died soon afterwards; other sources suggest that this was a false report, emanating from one newspaper article.
Japanese aircraft later made several smaller attacks on the Broome area. On 20 March, Mitsubishi G4M2 "Betty" medium bombers made a high-altitude attack on the airfield. One civilian was killed and there was some crater damage. The last attack was in August 1943.
Postscript.
The Australian journalist, broadcaster and author Coralie Clarke Rees (1908–1972) published a less prosaic, and highly personal account of the Broome air raid in her 1946 elegy to her dead airman brother, "Silent His Wings":
<poem>You in a tiny hand-picked bunch of sappers
chosen to gelignite Broome in the teeth
of the down-swooping Jap, saw stately Dutch flying-boats,
lovely Dutch women, riddled with bullets, blasted, floating,
American Liberators and quaking Malays spine-shattered
by the hail of yellow bombs. You smelt and tasted death
and the tang of it never left your tongue.</poem>
For outstanding work for Netherlands forces and civilians in very trying circumstances, Lieutenant David Llewellyn Davis, RANVR, was awarded the Cross of Merit (Netherlands): Lieutenant Davis, as deputy Naval Officer in charge of Broome, Port Hedland district during an enemy attack on Netherlands navy planes at Broome on 3 March 1942, showed conspicuous organising ability, handled transport in a masterly manner and rendered great assistance to those aboard this plane.
Over the years, wrecks of flying boats become visible at very low tides, with tour guides and sightseers visitations. Part of the fuselage of a Catalina flying boat is believed to have been stolen as a souvenir by November 2020. The RSL was seeking the area be treated like war graves.


Shingbwiyang

Shingbwiyang [Shing Bwi Yang/Tawa], Kachin State, is a town in Burma. The town was located in the China Burma India Theater during World War II, and the Ledo Road and an airbase were built there during this period. It is also known as Tawa Gaq (a local Naga term). There are 90 permanent people living in the township of Naga. It is linked to Tarung, a large Naga village adjoining Tanai Town, and to the north-west links with Nanyun (Taiyawng) Town.
On October 24th, 1943 the 38th and 22nd Divisions of the second Chinese Expeditionary unit X Force saw their first combat fighting the Imperial Japanese Army in the town and on October 29th, they successfully captured the village.


Battle of Lewes

The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264. It marked the high point of the career of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, and made him the "uncrowned King of England". Henry III left the safety of Lewes Castle and St. Pancras Priory to engage the barons in battle and was initially successful, his son Prince Edward routing part of the baronial army with a cavalry charge. However, Edward pursued his quarry off the battlefield and left Henry's men exposed. Henry was forced to launch an infantry attack up Offham Hill where he was defeated by the barons' men defending the hilltop. The royalists fled back to the castle and priory and the King was forced to sign the Mise of Lewes, ceding many of his powers to Montfort.
Background.
Henry III was an unpopular monarch due to his autocratic style, displays of favouritism and his refusal to negotiate with his barons. The barons eventually imposed a constitutional reform known as the Provisions of Oxford upon Henry that called for a thrice-yearly meeting led by Simon de Montfort to discuss matters of government. Henry sought to escape the restrictions of the provisions and applied to Louis IX of France to arbitrate in the dispute. Louis agreed with Henry and annulled the provisions. Montfort was angered by this and rebelled against the King along with other barons in the Second Barons' War.
The war was not initially openly fought, each side toured the country to raise support for their army. A series of massacres of Jews in Worcester, London, Canterbury and other cities were conducted by Montfort's allies.
By May the King's force had reached Lewes where they intended to halt for a while to allow reinforcements to reach them. The King encamped at St. Pancras Priory with a force of infantry, but his son, Prince Edward (later King Edward I), commanded the cavalry at Lewes Castle to the north. De Montfort approached the King with the intention of negotiating a truce or failing that to draw him into open battle. The King rejected the negotiations and de Montfort moved his men from Fletching to Offham Hill, a mile to the north-west of Lewes, in a night march that surprised the royalist forces.
Deployment.
The royalist army was up to twice the size of de Montfort's. Henry held command of the centre, with Prince Edward, William de Valence, 1st Earl of Pembroke, and John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, on the right; and Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, and his son, Henry of Almain, on the left. The barons held the higher ground, overlooking Lewes and had ordered their men to wear white crosses as a distinguishing emblem. De Montfort split his forces into four parts, giving his son, Henry de Montfort command of one quarter; Gilbert de Clare with John FitzJohn and William of Montchensy another; a third portion consisting of Londoners was placed under Nicholas de Segrave whilst de Montfort himself led the fourth quarter with Thomas of Pelveston.
Battle.
The baronial forces commenced the battle with a surprise dawn attack on foragers sent out from the royalist forces. The King then made his move. Edward led a cavalry charge against Segrave's Londoners, placed on the left of the baronial line, that caused them to break and run to the village of Offham. Edward pursued his foe for some four miles, leaving the King unsupported. Henry was forced to launch an attack with his centre and right divisions straight up Offham Hill into the baronial line which awaited them at the defensive. Cornwall's division faltered almost immediately but Henry's men fought on until compelled to retreat by the arrival of de Montfort's men that had been held as the baronial reserve.
The King's men were forced down the hill and into Lewes where they engaged in a fighting retreat to the castle and priory. Edward returned with his weary cavalrymen and launched a counterattack but upon locating his father was persuaded that, with the town ablaze and many of the King's supporters having fled, it was time to accept de Montfort's renewed offer of negotiations. The Earl of Cornwall was captured by the barons when he was unable to reach the safety of the priory and, being discovered in a windmill, was taunted with cries of "Come down, come down, thou wicked miller."
Aftermath.
The King was forced to sign the so-called Mise of Lewes. Though the document has not survived, it is clear that Henry was forced to accept the Provisions of Oxford, while Prince Edward remained a hostage of the barons. This put Montfort in a position of ultimate power, which would last until Prince Edward's escape, and Montfort's subsequent defeat at the Battle of Evesham in August 1265. Following the battle, debts to Jews were cancelled, and the records destroyed; this had been a key war aim.
In 1994, an archaeological survey of the cemetery of St Nicholas Hospital, in Lewes, revealed the remains of bodies that were thought to be combatants from the Battle of Lewes. However, in 2014 it was revealed that some of the skeletons may actually be much older, with a skeleton known as "skeleton 180" being contemporary with the Norman invasion.
Location.
There remains some uncertainty over the location of the battle with Offham Hill's eastern and lower slopes covered by modern housing. The top and southern slopes remain accessible by footpaths through agricultural land and the ruins of the priory and castle are also open to visitors.