Product Description

Bonnie Prince Charlie is celebrated in Scotland as the Young Pretender, Charles Stuart, the hero whose claim to the British throne divided the kingdom and shook the opulent monarchies of continental Europe In this compelling and absorbing biography, Carolly Erickson brings all her masterly skills to bear in telling the story of the motley band of Highland rebels who challenged George III and embraced Bonnie Prince Charlie as their last hope. She tells the story of their crushing defeat, chronicling with bone-chilling accuracy the massacre at Culloden, where women wailed through the silent spring night after the battle, identifying corpses of their loved ones. Erickson follows Charles after the disaster, homeless but seldom friendless, as he lived out his picaresque life on the continent. Tormented by his own inner demons, the boy-hero gradually became an irascible, misogynistic old man, closeted with his memories of the windswept moors of Scotland, still clinging to the belief that he was meant to be king.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #653514 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

Review
"'A narrative as accomplished as any Ms Erickson has written. In her skilful portrait are the recognizable features both of the romantic hero of Scotland and of the bitter, disappointed exile.' Christopher Hibbert"

The second, and better, biography of the Bonnie Prince to appear in a year (cf. Susan Maclean Kybett's Bonnie Prince Charlie) - this one by the author of Our Tempestuous Day: A History of Regency England (1986), Bloody Mary (1978), and other histories. Where the Kybett volume often got bogged down in heavy scholarly detail, Erickson fluidly chronicles the life of the Great Pretender. The author evokes the drive of the last Stuart heir to recapture his father's crown ("Charles' capacity for singleness of purpose was remarkable. Apparently, he had no vices to distract him"). Despite a ragtag assemblage of Highlanders that formed the backbone of Charles' support, by the age of 24, his military campaign through the English heartland had brought London within his grasp. But then came the massacre of Charles' forces at Culloden; Erickson follows the embittered young man as he was tormented by the memory of his lost men, yet dedicated to his own hopeless cause. With feeling, the author relates Charles' later years, as he "sank deeper into his lethargy and isolation." And what Charles lacked in vices in his single-minded younger years, he more than made up for near the end, yielding to the bottle and corpulence. A very accessible treatment of a popular - and heavily covered - life. (Kirkus Reviews)

About the Author
Carolly Erickson, a prize-winning historian and biographer, became a full-time writer in 1970. She has written ten books, all published in the UK by Robson Books, including To the Scaffold: The Life of Marie Antoinette.

Customer Reviews

The King that never was - the end of the Stuarts
Charles Edward Stuart (1720 - 1788) was the exiled Jacobite claimant as the grandson of King James II to the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland. He is most commonly known in English and Scots as Bonnie Prince Charlie. His opponents referred to him as The Young Pretender. He tried to reclaim his ancestors' throne, but the Battle of Culloden on 16 April 1746 ended all hopes for a restoration. His subsequent flight has become the stuff of legend. The remainder of his life was - with a brief exception - spent in exile. He died without leaving an new heir (he only had a natural daughter); his claim passed to his brother who was a cardinal. Effectively, the Catholic Stuart claim to the throne of England ended with him.

But who really was this Bonnie Prince Charlie, this man of legend? Well, this book shows who he was and why his attempts failed. There is the brief episode of his retrun and escape that gave him fame. But hehind the facade there was not much. One learns to understand this man, this prince and failed king and one understands why he failed in all he did. He ended as an alcoholic and abused his wife. He was a man who did not fullfil his destiny and had nothingelse. Sad in many ways, but in many ways one can be quite happy that he did not reign.

Carolly Erickson captures this prince to perfection. It is not too scholarly and but neither is it shallow.I enjoyed it very much.