page_title: Battle of Falkirk Muir
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Falkirk Muir / Background
caption_attribution_description: Lord George Murray
context_page_description: The Battle of Falkirk Muir, also known as the Battle of Falkirk took place on 17 January 1746 during the Jacobite rising of 1745. While considered a tactical Jacobite victory, it had little impact on the campaign.
  In early January, the Jacobite army besieged Stirling Castle and on 13 January, government forces under Henry Hawley advanced north from Edinburgh to relieve it. He arrived at Falkirk on 15 January and the Jacobites attacked late in the afternoon of 17 January.
  Fought in failing light and heavy snow, Hawley's left wing was routed but his right held firm; in the confusion, the Jacobites failed to follow up, allowing the government troops to withdraw and regroup in Edinburgh. When they resumed their advance on 30 January, the Jacobites abandoned the siege and withdrew to Inverness, before the rebellion ended at the Battle of Culloden in April.
  The battlefield has been inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Historic Environment Act 2011.
context_section_description: Although the invasion of England had few tangible benefits, reaching Derby and returning to Scotland was a considerable military achievement. This brought in new recruits, while in late November, John Drummond arrived from France with weapons, money and 150 Irish and Scots regulars. In early January, Jacobite morale and numbers were at their peak, with 8,000 to 9,000 effectives.
  Success at Inverurie on 23 December gave the Jacobites temporary control of the North-East, which they now attempted to extend to the Central Lowlands. Their objective was Stirling Castle, one of the strongest fortifications in Scotland and a position of major strategic importance that controlled access between the Highlands and the Lowlands. 
  Split into two columns, the main army left Glasgow on 4 January for Stirling, where they would rendezvous with Drummond's troops. Lord George Murray and the first column marched on Falkirk, then turned north towards Stirling, leaving a cavalry detachment under Lord Elcho at Linlithgow to patrol the Edinburgh road. The second passed through Kilsyth, en route to Bannockburn, where Prince Charles established his headquarters at Bannockburn House, owned by the Jacobite Sir Hugh Paterson.
  The town of Stirling quickly surrendered but the castle was a far greater challenge, with strong defences and a garrison of 600 to 700 troops, under William Blakeney, an experienced and determined Irish veteran. Siege operations began on 8 January but for a number of reasons, progress was slow. On 13 January, Henry Hawley, government commander in Scotland, ordered his deputy Major General John Huske and 4,000 men to advance on Stirling, while he followed with another 3,000. They reached Falkirk on 15 January and made camp just outside the town; Murray withdrew to Plean Muir, southeast of Bannockburn, where he was joined by Charles and O' Sullivan, with all the troops that could be spared from the siege.
caption: Lord George Murray, Jacobite commander at Falkirk
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