Based in Perthshire, the Murray family played an important role in all Jacobite rebellions, whether as rebels or supporters of the government. During the Great Rising of 1715, the head of the family the Duke of Atholl remained loyal to the Hanoverian government but three of his sons were Jacobites. Two of these brothers then went on to play major roles in the 1719 Rising and in the more famous '45. What led to their decision to commit to the Jacobite cause? A look at the earlier years of the Murrays at the end of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries sheds light on the family dynamics and helps explain how and why the brothers made the decisions they did. Traditionally the Murrays were thought to have perhaps made a conscious and pragmatic decision to have a foot in both camps, but the evidence presented here shows the brothers possessed a strong rebellious streak. Despite the heavily enforced regime of duty from their father and the Presbyterian piety of their mother, they refused to conform to their parents’ wishes and in varying degrees chose of their own volition, a different path to that expected of them. Set against the backdrop of social unrest and anxiety over against English influence in Scotland, these choices had a significant impact on the history of the family and because of who that family was, a significant impact on the country.

This book examines the evolution and changes in Swedish infantry and artillery uniforms during the Great Northern War. The author reconstructs in detail the appearance of infantry and artillery officers, NCOs, and privates of the time of Charles XII, drawing on a number of studies and articles, and based on extant artifacts, and written and iconographic documents that have survived to our time. The book illustrates both major and minor changes in the cut, style, and adornments of the uniforms of infantry and artillery officers, NCOs, and privates that occurred shortly before or during the war. It also provides detailed insights into the differences between the Carolean uniforms of the “older model” of 1687, which served as the basis for later modifications, and the “younger model” of 1706, as well as into different variations in transitional models existing between the two. The book also studies the different variations of headgear used by Swedish officers, NCOs, and privates, with a particular focus on grenadier caps, and examines soldiers’ accouterments and dress. The uniforms and insignia of Swedish infantry and artillery officers are described in a separate section. Along with published sources, this book also relies on little-known or previously unpublished documents. The text is accompanied with photos of surviving uniforms, archaeological finds and period artworks, and is richly illustrated with the author’s graphic reconstructions of period uniforms. A full-color section is dedicated to the author’s own plates, which show officers, NCOs, and privates of Charles XII’s army during the Great Northern War. These eye-catching graphic reconstructions with detailed descriptions will be helpful for historians, artists, reenactors, and filmmakers. They will also be invaluable to those who are fond of historical figurines and to those who create their own tabletop armies to play out historical battles.

While the First, or 'Great', English Civil War of 1642-6 was largely contested at regional and county level, in often hard-fought and long-lasting local campaigns, historians often still continue to dwell on the well-known major battles, such as Edgehill and Naseby, and the prominent national leaders. To help redress this imbalance, To Settle The Crown: Waging Civil War in Shropshire, 1642-1648 provides the most detailed bipartisan study published to date of how the war was actually organized and conducted at county level. This book examines the practicalities, the 'nuts and bolts', of contemporary warfare by reconstructing the war effort of Royalists and Parliamentarians in Shropshire, an English county on the borderland of Wales - a region that witnessed widespread fighting. Shropshire was contested during the First Civil War - when it became one of the most heavily garrisoned counties in England and Wales - and experienced renewed conflict during the Second Civil War of 1648. Based on a Doctoral thesis, and therefore drawing primarily on contemporary sources revealing much new information, To Settle The Crown examines key aspects of the military history of the English Civil Wars: allegiance and motivation; leadership and administration; recruitment and the form of armed forces; military finance; logistics; and the nature and conduct of the fighting. Furthermore, while previous studies have tended to concentrate on the Parliamentarians, the comparatively plentiful evidence from Shropshire has allowed the Royalist war effort there to be reconstructed in rare detail. This book reveals for the first time the extent of military activity in Shropshire, describing the sieges, skirmishes and larger engagements, while reflecting on the nature of warfare elsewhere across Civil War England and Wales. In also providing a social context to the military history of the period, it explains how Royalist and Parliamentarian activists set local government on a wartime footing, and how the populace generally became involved in the administrative and material tasks of war effort. Extensively illustrated, fully referenced to an extensive bibliography, and including a useful review of Civil War historiography, To Settle The Crown: Waging Civil War in Shropshire, 1642-1648 is a significant fresh approach to the military history of the English Civil Wars.

In autumn 1621, at a fortified camp near Khotyn (Chocim), in the Principality of Moldavia, allied Polish, Lithuanian and Cossack armies faced a large Ottoman army led by Sultan Osman II. It was the concluding act of a war that had started with the defeat of a Polish army at Cecora one year earlier. As such it was actually part of the longer conflict, waged over the Commonwealth’s and the Ottoman’s influence over Moldavia. Throughout the whole of September and the first half of October 1621, the allied army managed to defend their camps against Turks, with both sides taking heavy losses from the hardship of the siege operations and worsening weather conditions. The conflict ended with the Treaty of Khotyn (9 October 1621) which did not particularly favor either of the sides. All the same, stopping the Ottoman was seen as a huge success for the Commonwealth, while attitudes on the Ottoman sides were far from victorious. The aftershock of the war led to the rebellion of janissaries in 1622, resulting in the overthrow and murder of Sultan Osman II. The book focuses on the Khotyn campaign of 1621, describing the day-by-day actions of the combatant armies – assaults, sallies and raids – during the whole of the siege. Additional theaters of war, such as Cossack operations from the summer of 1621 and Tatars raids against the Polish interior, are described as well. The reader will also find here details of the organization and strength of the fighting armies, information about the battle dispositions of the troops at Khotyn and commanders leading the troops. Actions leading to the outbreak of the open conflict between the Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire are explained in a separate chapter, providing a good historical background of the war. Another chapter covers the outcome of the war and the ways that influenced the internal and external situation of both the Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire. As with his previous works, the author has utilized a large number of primary sources: from the diaries of soldiers taking part in the campaign, through chronicles, official letters and documents from the period to army musters. Among the documents used are not only those written by Poles and Lithuanians, but also documents from Cossacks, Germans and Ottomans. Modern works, especially from Polish and Ukrainian historians, have also been used, in order to provide the most up-to-date and in-depth research. As this topic has previously not had much coverage in English, this book will be a valuable addition to the library of anyone interested in the history of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, in Zaporozhian Cossacks and in the Ottoman Empire in the early seventeenth century.

This book covers the campaign of 1715-1716 in Scotland which had as its defining moment the battle of Sheriffmuir on 13 November 1715.

Examines the gap that existed in living and working conditions between soldiers and officers in the Continental Army, noting that even as the army reinforced social hierarchy, soldiers and officers were united in an army that fostered social mobility.