I work at the Universities of Stirling, Glasgow and Dundee.
My research interests primarily include the field of Jacobite studies. My doctoral thesis was entitled 'Lawful Sovereignty: The Political Criminalisation and Decriminalisation of Jacobitism, 1688–1788'. Other interests include broader social aspects of the Jacobite movement, including its diaspora, court politics, material culture and the lives of the exiled Stuarts.
Aside from this topic, I am also interested in other aspects of Scottish history, particularly within the long eighteenth century and in Classical Studies with its significant influence upon later epochs in Scottish and British history. I hope to explore these connections in future research.
"The Jacobite - Journal of the 1745 Association" No. 175e - Summer 2024, 2024
The mythologised and romanticised ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ has often been connected with music in ... more The mythologised and romanticised ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ has often been connected with music in Jacobite popular memory. Since attempting to restore the deposed Stuart dynasty in 1745–46, the Bonnie Prince has become a symbolic figure in folklore, song and balladry. From the Gaelic bards of the ’45 to the most significant poets and songwriters of the late eighteenth century to the most popular folk bands of the last few generations, he has held a place of honour in many musical compositions. Nowadays, there is frequent confusion about the period to which some songs accurately belong. This misunderstanding has arisen because of nineteenth-century assertions that new songs were ageold ballads. However, historians have rarely discussed the factual relationship between music and the man Prince Charles Edward Stuart. As argued herein, Charles was a keen instrumentalist who held music in high regard and retained a special place for it throughout his life. Raised in the style of a European prince at his father, King James VIII and III’s court at the Palazzo del Re in Rome, the Prince was educated from childhood to cultivate the arts and sports loved by royalty and the aristocracy. Accordingly, he engaged with the exiled Stuart Court’s preference for Italian Baroque music and instruments, not those associated with the dynasty’s three lost Kingdoms, including the bagpipes.
Taking its cues from the conclusions of Edward Corp in The Stuarts in Italy, 1719–1766: A Royal C... more Taking its cues from the conclusions of Edward Corp in The Stuarts in Italy, 1719–1766: A Royal Court in Permanent Exile, this article considers the evolution of the princely court held by the two final Stuart claimants, Charles Edward and Henry Benedict Stuart. It surveys the dénouement of this court from the deposed Catholic dynasty’s loss of de jure recognition of sovereignty in 1766 to the death of its last representative in 1807. By analysing the Stuarts’ interactions with the Papacy and European monarchies amid their ongoing struggle to uphold the appearance of royalty, it argues that the changing nature of their court emerged as a significant and distinctive nexus of cultural and symbolic meaning. The court of the exiled Stuarts from 1766 to 1807 emphasised the character, prerogatives and status of retreating Ancien Régime kingship in the decades preceding the French Revolution, during the years of its existence and in the Napoleonic era that followed.
Spark: Stirling International Journal of Postgraduate Research, 2021
This article appears to be the first academic attempt to discuss the crime of Jacobitism as a foc... more This article appears to be the first academic attempt to discuss the crime of Jacobitism as a focal point amongst the various trends in British punishment during the long eighteenth century. Throughout, relevant chosen examples highlight the numerous links and prominence of Jacobitism in both the socio-political and legal spheres of this epoch and how its persistent existence encompassed a pivotal junction of a growing division between public opinion and state policy regarding suitable methods of criminal punishment. The paper also surveys some pertinent connections and divisions within the Scottish and English judicial systems from 1688 to c.1815. It shows how they coincided with the repeated challenges that were instigated by the Jacobite movement as Enlightenment ideas permeated across Europe, influencing eighteenth-century policymakers and jurists. Consequently, the paper argues that the enduring survival of Jacobitism conceivably prolonged the practice of some punishments instead of its gradual suppression falling more generally amid those employed across this ‘extended’ century.
The History Teaching Review Yearbook by the Scottish Association of Teachers of History (SATH), 2020
This article examines the global reach and impact of the external Jacobite diasporas between 1688... more This article examines the global reach and impact of the external Jacobite diasporas between 1688 and 1788. It surveys the four most common geographical areas associated with Jacobite emigration and exile: Continental Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, and the North American colonies. Within these respective regions, pertinently chosen case studies of individuals who made important contributions to their host communities - including the martial, commercial, financial, scientific and socio-political fields - are highlighted throughout. Thus, the paper argues that both the significance of these contributions and the global dispersion of the Jacobite movement make it an important sub-field for further research within Jacobite and diaspora studies and beyond.
The Jacobite epoch broadly lasted from 1688–1807, and an atmosphere of fervour surrounded the exi... more The Jacobite epoch broadly lasted from 1688–1807, and an atmosphere of fervour surrounded the exiled Catholic Stuarts – or Jacobite pretenders – and their displaced, itinerant court for many decades. Eventually, with the death of King Henry I and IX in 1807, the banished dynasty’s struggles to reclaim their foregone thrones came to be beheld with a quasi-religious, romantic nostalgia that still resonates for some to this day. Numerous individuals, through various motives, continue to express great enthusiasm for this ‘Lost Cause’. Several, including Basil William Sholto Mackenzie, second Baron Amulree of Strathbraan, did so by amassing an eclectic collection of Jacobite artefacts and associated memorabilia or Jacobitiana. Upon his death in 1983, the entire assemblage of items was bequeathed to the University of Stirling.
This dissertation evaluates the Amulree Jacobite collection. It first contextualises the collection’s value. To do so, it surveys four other Scottish Jacobite collections: the MacBean collection, the Walter Blaikie collection, the corporate Drambuie Jacobite collection and the Jacobite artefacts of Traquair House. Some evaluation criteria are also established to help place the Amulree collection among them. It then analyses the collection’s contents beginning summarily with its copious subset of secondary items and, specifically, by interrogating its three primary Jacobite-period mini sub-collections. Each sub-collection is connected to the final three exiled Stuarts. After a brief evaluation, their worth is highlighted as important to their respective area of broader Jacobite studies.
Following this initial evaluation, the collection proves to be a valuable addition to the catalogue of more well-known Jacobite compendia. Amulree’s combined interests in amassing Jacobitiana and undertaking scholarship characterise this collection’s importance as an example of social memory and an arbitrary and investigative assortment. By producing initial research on this intriguing assemblage, this dissertation emphasises insights that the Amulree Jacobite collection provides to the field of Jacobite studies. It argues that greater attention should be given to its material and cultural significance.
This article explores how the myths and legends of the classical world provided a wealth of mater... more This article explores how the myths and legends of the classical world provided a wealth of material that Scottish Jacobites exploited to signal support for and spread messages about the exiled Stuarts. Delving into these clandestine allusions in architecture, text and material culture, reveals that the exiled Stuarts rejected classical allusion in their official propaganda.
This article explores the choice by the Prince of Wales to style himself King Charles III upon th... more This article explores the choice by the Prince of Wales to style himself King Charles III upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, comes with a weighty historical legacy and is full of political significance at a time of constitutional uncertainty in the 21st-century United Kingdom. This short article highlights some of these issues and takes the view that the choice of the name Charles by the modern monarchy is a calculated one.
This article looks at Scotland's lost Gypsy royal dynasty, whose reign flourished in the Borders ... more This article looks at Scotland's lost Gypsy royal dynasty, whose reign flourished in the Borders for over two centuries.
The Amulree Jacobite collection has rested in the University of Stirling's library archives, prac... more The Amulree Jacobite collection has rested in the University of Stirling's library archives, practically unexplored following its bequeathal to the institution almost four decades ago. This article discusses its author, his antiquarian and authorial legacy and his fascinating collection of Jacobite-related material culture.
This 'Spotlight: Jacobites' column article explores the professional relationships, personal frie... more This 'Spotlight: Jacobites' column article explores the professional relationships, personal friendships, and influence of two Scottish Jacobite exiles on the future first President of the United States of America, George Washington.
"The Jacobite - Journal of the 1745 Association" No. 174 - Winter 2024, 2024
Given its length, this article will appear in a special edition of the e-Jacobite in 2024. In it,... more Given its length, this article will appear in a special edition of the e-Jacobite in 2024. In it, Stefano Baccolo and Calum E. Cunningham discuss Prince Charles Edward Stuart’s lifelong relationship with music and highlight his notable virtuosity. An abstract appears on the Jacobite.
"The Jacobite - Journal of the 1745 Association" No. 175e - Summer 2024, 2024
The mythologised and romanticised ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ has often been connected with music in ... more The mythologised and romanticised ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ has often been connected with music in Jacobite popular memory. Since attempting to restore the deposed Stuart dynasty in 1745–46, the Bonnie Prince has become a symbolic figure in folklore, song and balladry. From the Gaelic bards of the ’45 to the most significant poets and songwriters of the late eighteenth century to the most popular folk bands of the last few generations, he has held a place of honour in many musical compositions. Nowadays, there is frequent confusion about the period to which some songs accurately belong. This misunderstanding has arisen because of nineteenth-century assertions that new songs were ageold ballads. However, historians have rarely discussed the factual relationship between music and the man Prince Charles Edward Stuart. As argued herein, Charles was a keen instrumentalist who held music in high regard and retained a special place for it throughout his life. Raised in the style of a European prince at his father, King James VIII and III’s court at the Palazzo del Re in Rome, the Prince was educated from childhood to cultivate the arts and sports loved by royalty and the aristocracy. Accordingly, he engaged with the exiled Stuart Court’s preference for Italian Baroque music and instruments, not those associated with the dynasty’s three lost Kingdoms, including the bagpipes.
Taking its cues from the conclusions of Edward Corp in The Stuarts in Italy, 1719–1766: A Royal C... more Taking its cues from the conclusions of Edward Corp in The Stuarts in Italy, 1719–1766: A Royal Court in Permanent Exile, this article considers the evolution of the princely court held by the two final Stuart claimants, Charles Edward and Henry Benedict Stuart. It surveys the dénouement of this court from the deposed Catholic dynasty’s loss of de jure recognition of sovereignty in 1766 to the death of its last representative in 1807. By analysing the Stuarts’ interactions with the Papacy and European monarchies amid their ongoing struggle to uphold the appearance of royalty, it argues that the changing nature of their court emerged as a significant and distinctive nexus of cultural and symbolic meaning. The court of the exiled Stuarts from 1766 to 1807 emphasised the character, prerogatives and status of retreating Ancien Régime kingship in the decades preceding the French Revolution, during the years of its existence and in the Napoleonic era that followed.
Spark: Stirling International Journal of Postgraduate Research, 2021
This article appears to be the first academic attempt to discuss the crime of Jacobitism as a foc... more This article appears to be the first academic attempt to discuss the crime of Jacobitism as a focal point amongst the various trends in British punishment during the long eighteenth century. Throughout, relevant chosen examples highlight the numerous links and prominence of Jacobitism in both the socio-political and legal spheres of this epoch and how its persistent existence encompassed a pivotal junction of a growing division between public opinion and state policy regarding suitable methods of criminal punishment. The paper also surveys some pertinent connections and divisions within the Scottish and English judicial systems from 1688 to c.1815. It shows how they coincided with the repeated challenges that were instigated by the Jacobite movement as Enlightenment ideas permeated across Europe, influencing eighteenth-century policymakers and jurists. Consequently, the paper argues that the enduring survival of Jacobitism conceivably prolonged the practice of some punishments instead of its gradual suppression falling more generally amid those employed across this ‘extended’ century.
The History Teaching Review Yearbook by the Scottish Association of Teachers of History (SATH), 2020
This article examines the global reach and impact of the external Jacobite diasporas between 1688... more This article examines the global reach and impact of the external Jacobite diasporas between 1688 and 1788. It surveys the four most common geographical areas associated with Jacobite emigration and exile: Continental Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, and the North American colonies. Within these respective regions, pertinently chosen case studies of individuals who made important contributions to their host communities - including the martial, commercial, financial, scientific and socio-political fields - are highlighted throughout. Thus, the paper argues that both the significance of these contributions and the global dispersion of the Jacobite movement make it an important sub-field for further research within Jacobite and diaspora studies and beyond.
The Jacobite epoch broadly lasted from 1688–1807, and an atmosphere of fervour surrounded the exi... more The Jacobite epoch broadly lasted from 1688–1807, and an atmosphere of fervour surrounded the exiled Catholic Stuarts – or Jacobite pretenders – and their displaced, itinerant court for many decades. Eventually, with the death of King Henry I and IX in 1807, the banished dynasty’s struggles to reclaim their foregone thrones came to be beheld with a quasi-religious, romantic nostalgia that still resonates for some to this day. Numerous individuals, through various motives, continue to express great enthusiasm for this ‘Lost Cause’. Several, including Basil William Sholto Mackenzie, second Baron Amulree of Strathbraan, did so by amassing an eclectic collection of Jacobite artefacts and associated memorabilia or Jacobitiana. Upon his death in 1983, the entire assemblage of items was bequeathed to the University of Stirling.
This dissertation evaluates the Amulree Jacobite collection. It first contextualises the collection’s value. To do so, it surveys four other Scottish Jacobite collections: the MacBean collection, the Walter Blaikie collection, the corporate Drambuie Jacobite collection and the Jacobite artefacts of Traquair House. Some evaluation criteria are also established to help place the Amulree collection among them. It then analyses the collection’s contents beginning summarily with its copious subset of secondary items and, specifically, by interrogating its three primary Jacobite-period mini sub-collections. Each sub-collection is connected to the final three exiled Stuarts. After a brief evaluation, their worth is highlighted as important to their respective area of broader Jacobite studies.
Following this initial evaluation, the collection proves to be a valuable addition to the catalogue of more well-known Jacobite compendia. Amulree’s combined interests in amassing Jacobitiana and undertaking scholarship characterise this collection’s importance as an example of social memory and an arbitrary and investigative assortment. By producing initial research on this intriguing assemblage, this dissertation emphasises insights that the Amulree Jacobite collection provides to the field of Jacobite studies. It argues that greater attention should be given to its material and cultural significance.
This article explores how the myths and legends of the classical world provided a wealth of mater... more This article explores how the myths and legends of the classical world provided a wealth of material that Scottish Jacobites exploited to signal support for and spread messages about the exiled Stuarts. Delving into these clandestine allusions in architecture, text and material culture, reveals that the exiled Stuarts rejected classical allusion in their official propaganda.
This article explores the choice by the Prince of Wales to style himself King Charles III upon th... more This article explores the choice by the Prince of Wales to style himself King Charles III upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, comes with a weighty historical legacy and is full of political significance at a time of constitutional uncertainty in the 21st-century United Kingdom. This short article highlights some of these issues and takes the view that the choice of the name Charles by the modern monarchy is a calculated one.
This article looks at Scotland's lost Gypsy royal dynasty, whose reign flourished in the Borders ... more This article looks at Scotland's lost Gypsy royal dynasty, whose reign flourished in the Borders for over two centuries.
The Amulree Jacobite collection has rested in the University of Stirling's library archives, prac... more The Amulree Jacobite collection has rested in the University of Stirling's library archives, practically unexplored following its bequeathal to the institution almost four decades ago. This article discusses its author, his antiquarian and authorial legacy and his fascinating collection of Jacobite-related material culture.
This 'Spotlight: Jacobites' column article explores the professional relationships, personal frie... more This 'Spotlight: Jacobites' column article explores the professional relationships, personal friendships, and influence of two Scottish Jacobite exiles on the future first President of the United States of America, George Washington.
"The Jacobite - Journal of the 1745 Association" No. 174 - Winter 2024, 2024
Given its length, this article will appear in a special edition of the e-Jacobite in 2024. In it,... more Given its length, this article will appear in a special edition of the e-Jacobite in 2024. In it, Stefano Baccolo and Calum E. Cunningham discuss Prince Charles Edward Stuart’s lifelong relationship with music and highlight his notable virtuosity. An abstract appears on the Jacobite.
Uploads
This dissertation evaluates the Amulree Jacobite collection. It first contextualises the collection’s value. To do so, it surveys four other Scottish Jacobite collections: the MacBean collection, the Walter Blaikie collection, the corporate Drambuie Jacobite collection and the Jacobite artefacts of Traquair House. Some evaluation criteria are also established to help place the Amulree collection among them. It then analyses the collection’s contents beginning summarily with its copious subset of secondary items and, specifically, by interrogating its three primary Jacobite-period mini sub-collections. Each sub-collection is connected to the final three exiled Stuarts. After a brief evaluation, their worth is highlighted as important to their respective area of broader Jacobite studies.
Following this initial evaluation, the collection proves to be a valuable addition to the catalogue of more well-known Jacobite compendia. Amulree’s combined interests in amassing Jacobitiana and undertaking scholarship characterise this collection’s importance as an example of social memory and an arbitrary and investigative assortment. By producing initial research on this intriguing assemblage, this dissertation emphasises insights that the Amulree Jacobite collection provides to the field of Jacobite studies. It argues that greater attention should be given to its material and cultural significance.
https://www.historyscotland.com/history/spotlight-jacobites-george-washington-and-the-scottish-jacobites/
This dissertation evaluates the Amulree Jacobite collection. It first contextualises the collection’s value. To do so, it surveys four other Scottish Jacobite collections: the MacBean collection, the Walter Blaikie collection, the corporate Drambuie Jacobite collection and the Jacobite artefacts of Traquair House. Some evaluation criteria are also established to help place the Amulree collection among them. It then analyses the collection’s contents beginning summarily with its copious subset of secondary items and, specifically, by interrogating its three primary Jacobite-period mini sub-collections. Each sub-collection is connected to the final three exiled Stuarts. After a brief evaluation, their worth is highlighted as important to their respective area of broader Jacobite studies.
Following this initial evaluation, the collection proves to be a valuable addition to the catalogue of more well-known Jacobite compendia. Amulree’s combined interests in amassing Jacobitiana and undertaking scholarship characterise this collection’s importance as an example of social memory and an arbitrary and investigative assortment. By producing initial research on this intriguing assemblage, this dissertation emphasises insights that the Amulree Jacobite collection provides to the field of Jacobite studies. It argues that greater attention should be given to its material and cultural significance.
https://www.historyscotland.com/history/spotlight-jacobites-george-washington-and-the-scottish-jacobites/