The Skirmish of Loch Ailort, 1746

The Jacobite rising of 1745 was one of the most significant events in Scottish history, and it ended in defeat for the Jacobites at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746. However, the conflict didn’t truly end there, as evidenced by the Skirmish of Loch Ailort that took place almost a month later.

The Skirmish of Loch Ailort took place on 9 May 1746 at Loch Ailort in the district of Moidart in the Scottish Highlands. It was a confrontation between a group of Jacobites led by Young Ranald MacDonald of Clan Macdonald of Clanranald, and a British-Hanoverian Government force. This skirmish was one of the last armed conflicts of the Jacobite rising, and it serves as a reminder of the tenacity of the Jacobite cause.

Young Ranald MacDonald was supposed to have gone to France shortly after the Jacobite defeat at the Battle of Culloden. However, it is clear that he secretly lingered in his own country for at least 18 months after, mainly in the wilds of Moidart, which were apparently fraught with the greatest peril. The Western Highlands of Scotland were coming under the attention of the Royal Navy and also the Campbell of Argyll Militia who supported the Government. This attention was started by Captain John Fergussone and the shore parties of his bomb vessel HMS Furnace.

Fergussone first cruised the Sea of the Hebrides and The Minch and then worked his way north, taking prisoners at the Isle of Canna and the Isle of Barra. He then proceeded east and burnt everything of value on the Isle of Raasay. On May 9, Fergussone sailed up the mainland Loch Nevis and burnt the new house of MacDonald of Barisdale. On the same day when Fergussone searched the caves of Loch Ailort, he came under fire from 500 men who were under the command of Young Clanranald.

it is not specified in the sources to whether the Jacobites were defeated or if the battle ended in a stalemate. It is also not known if there was any significant casualties or capture on either side. The Skirmish of Loch Ailort is considered as one of the last armed conflicts of the Jacobite rising, but it is not clear how it ended.