Ruthven Barracks
Encyclopedia
Ruthven, Highland
Ruthven is a small settlement in Badenoch, in the Highland council area, Scotland. It lies south of Kingussie, and to the south of Inverness, in the former county of Inverness-shire. The ruins of the 18th century Ruthven Barracks are nearby, on the site of the earlier Ruthven Castle...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
are the smallest but best preserved of the four barracks built in 1719 after the 1715 Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
rising, set on an old castle mound. It comprises two large three-storey blocks occupying two sides of the enclosure each with two rooms per floor. The barracks and enclosing walls were loopholed for musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
firing, and bastion towers were built at opposite corners.
The first castle
The first castle recorded to have been built on this site appeared in 1229. By 1279 it formed the centre of activity of Alexander Stewart, 1st Earl of BuchanAlexander Stewart, 1st Earl of Buchan
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, Alasdair Mór mac an Rígh, and called the Wolf of Badenoch , was the third surviving son of King Robert II of Scotland and youngest by his first wife, Elizabeth Mure of Rowallan. He was the first Earl of Buchan since John Comyn, from 1382 until his death...
and younger son of King Robert II of Scotland
Robert II of Scotland
Robert II became King of Scots in 1371 as the first monarch of the House of Stewart. He was the son of Walter Stewart, hereditary High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert I and of his first wife Isabella of Mar...
. Alexander is better remembered as the Wolf of Badenoch. He is notoriously remembered for falling out with the bishop of Moray
Bishop of Moray
The Bishop of Moray or Bishop of Elgin was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Moray in northern Scotland, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics...
and in retaliation destroying Elgin Cathedral
Elgin Cathedral
Elgin Cathedral, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, sometimes referred to as The Lantern of the North is a historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, north-east Scotland. It was established in 1224 on an area of ground granted by Alexander II that was close to the River Lossie and outside of the burgh of...
and much of Elgin
Elgin, Moray
Elgin is a former cathedral city and Royal Burgh in Moray, Scotland. It is the administrative and commercial centre for Moray. The town originated to the south of the River Lossie on the higher ground above the flood plain. Elgin is first documented in the Cartulary of Moray in 1190...
in 1390. The first castle at Ruthven was destroyed in 1451, but a second castle was re-built in its place in 1459 as a much grander fortification.
The Civil War
The second castle built at Ruthven was fought over during the Civil Wars of the 17th century and was badly damaged by John Graham, 1st Viscount of DundeeJohn Graham, 1st Viscount of Dundee
John Graham of Claverhouse, 1st Viscount Dundee , known as the 7th Laird of Claverhouse until raised to the viscounty in 1688, was a Scottish soldier and nobleman, a Tory and an Episcopalian...
and the Jacobites in the rising of 1689.
Jacobite uprisings
During the 18th century after the 1715 Jacobite Uprisings the British Government decided to tighten its grip on the Scottish Highlands by building four fortified barracks in strategic locations. Ruthven Barracks was one of them. All of the remains of the earlier castles were removed to make way for the structure you see today. The barracks were completed in 1721.The barracks was designed to house 120 troops, split between two barrack blocks. The officers lived separately to the troops. The stables which stood slightly to the west of the barracks were built in 1734 to house 28 horses for dragoons. By this time the strategic importance had been enhanced by the building of military roads from Perth
Perth, Scotland
Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...
, Fort Augustus
Fort Augustus
Fort Augustus is a settlement in the Scottish Highlands, at the south west end of Loch Ness. The village has a population of around 646 ; its economy is heavily reliant on tourism....
and Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
that came together at Fort Ruthven.
In August 1745 some 200 Jacobites tried to capture Ruthven Barracks. A force of just 12 British redcoats, commanded by a Sergeant Terrence (sometimes noted as Terrance/Terence) Molloy (Guise's 6th Regiment of Foot), fought them off with the loss of just one man ("who had raised his head above parapet, contrary to orders"). By February 1746 Sergeant Molloy had been promoted to Lieutenant. He was still in charge when a larger force of Jacobites, commanded by Gordon of Glenbucket arrived, this time equipped with artillery. As a result the government garrison surrendered and was given safe passage to Perth.
On the day after the Battle of Culloden
Battle of Culloden
The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. Taking place on 16 April 1746, the battle pitted the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, loyal to the British government...
as many as 3,000 Jacobites assembled at Fort Ruthven with the intention of fighting on. However awaiting them was a message from their leader Prince Charles Edward Stuart
Charles Edward Stuart
Prince Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or The Young Pretender was the second Jacobite pretender to the thrones of Great Britain , and Ireland...
saying that each man should save himself as best he could.