Donald Cameron of Lochiel (c.1700-October 1748), the "Gentle Lochiel" of Scottish folklore, was the 19th chief of Clan Cameron and He the eldest son of the 18th chief John Cameron of Lochiel. Like his father was a staunch Jacobite, and he and his brother, Archibald, played a major part in the Jacobite Rising of 1745. Events January 1 - Russia accepts Julian calendar. ... Events April 24 - A congress assembles at Aix-la-Chapelle with the intent to conclude the struggle known as the War of Austrian Succession - at October 18 - The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle is signed to end the war Adam Smith begins to deliver public lectures in Edinburgh Building of... // History Clan Cameron is a Highland Scottish clan, with two main branches; that of Lochiel, and that of Erracht. ... Jacobite refers to: A follower of Jacobitism, the political movement dedicated to the return of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England and Scotland A member of the Jacobite Orthodox Church of Syria. ... Each Jacobite Rising formed part of a series of military campaigns by Jacobites attempting to restore the Stuart kings to the thrones of England and Scotland (and after 1707, Great Britain) after James VII of Scotland and II of England was deposed in 1688 and the thrones claimed by his...

His father was a key participant in the First Jacobite Rising of 1715, being created "Lord Lochiel" in the Jacobite peerage, but with the failure of the rising he fled to a permanent exile in France. Shortly thereafter Donald became the acting chief of the clan. After the deposition of King James II and VII from the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland, he and his successors continued to create peers and baronets. ...

With the outbreak of the War of the Austrian Succession, and the resumption of hostilities between Britain and France, Lochiel offered to raise twenty thousand armed clansmen if a Jacobite invasion was made with French support. A proposed invasion of England in 1744 was abandoned, however, and Prince Charles, the 'Young Pretender', decided to begin a rising in the Highlands. The War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748) became inevitable after Maria Theresa of Austria had succeeded her father Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor in his Habsburg dominions in 1740, namely becoming Queen of Hungary and Bohemia, Archduchess of Austria, and Duchess of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla. ... Charles Edward Stuart Bonnie Prince Charlie Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Silvester Maria Stuart (December 31, 1720 – January 31, 1788), was the exiled claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and was commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie. ...

Lochiel urged him not to do this - at least not without extensive French support - but Charles was undaunted, arriving on the west coast in August 1745 with a handful of men and no supplies, munitions or money. The local lairds showed little enthusiasm for the rising, whilst Lochiel played for time, hoping that the prince would see the futility of his plans and return to France. However, Charles burned his bridges, sending his ships away and placing himself irretrievably in the hands of Clan Cameron. When the standard was raised, the largest contingent present was that raised by Lochiel, finally persuaded that the endeavour was inevitable.

Lochiel had no military experience - having been a child during the 1715 rising - but quickly showed himself competent; he was instrumental in capturing Edinburgh, and successfully led the main attack at the Battle of Prestonpans. In late 1745 he was appointed the governor of Edinburgh, leading the siege against the government forces in Edinburgh Castle. Edinburgh (pronounced ; Scottish Gaelic: ) is the capital of Scotland and its second-largest city. ... Combatants British Army Jacobites Commanders John Cope Charles Edward Stuart Strength ca. ... The castle from below (2003) Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress which from its position on Castle Rock, dominates views of the city of Edinburgh, and is Scotlands most famous landmark. ...

At this point, he counselled the Prince to stop; he argued that Jacobite forces were in effective control of Scotland, and with French support could mount an effective defence against what troops were available in England. He returned to this position at Derby in December, when the army finally called off the march on London and turned back northwards. He was wounded at Falkirk in January 1746, and travelled north to Fort William, where the garrison still held out. He abandoned the siege in April, and rejoined the Prince's army outside Inverness in time for the Battle of Culloden, which effectively ended the rising. For other uses, see Derby (disambiguation). ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... During the Second Jacobite Rising, the Battle of Falkirk was the last noteworthy Jacobite success. ... Fort William may refer to Fort William, Scotland, a town in the Scottish Highlands. ... Combatants Government Army Jacobite Forces Commanders William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender Strength ca. ...

Clan Cameron lost about half their strength at Culloden, and Lochiel himself was badly wounded; he eventually made to to France with the Prince in October. Despite attempting to persuade Louis XV to mount a second landing, he never returned to Scotland; he took command of a French regiment in 1747, and died in Flanders in October 1748. Louis XV (February 15, 1710 – May 10, 1774), called the Well-Beloved (French: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1715 to 1774. ...

It is notable that one of his acts whilst in charge of Edinburgh was to order that there be no reprisals against the Whigs for their opposition to the Prince. He had previously given orders to care for the prisoners after Prestonpans, and later he would ensure that Glasgow did not suffer any reprisals for its loyalty to George II. Such acts contributed to his reputation for humanity; he became known to both friends and foes as the "Gentle Lochiel", a name that carried into the romantic myths which would grow up around the Rising. Look up Whig in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Glasgow (disambiguation). ... George II (George Augustus; 10 November 1683 – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Hanover) and Archtreasurer and Prince-Elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death. ...

References

• John Sibbald Gibson, "Cameron, Donald, of Lochiel (c.1700–1748)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004