Prince Charles Edward Stuart - grandson of the Catholic king James II, who had abandoned the throne and fled England in 1688 - landed in the Outer Hebrides in the summer of 1745. His intention was to lead a Jacobite rebellion in Scotland that would attract French support for an invasion of England and pave the way for the overthrow of George II (referred to here as the Elector of Hanover).

The optimism of Bonnie Price Charlie's scheme is illustrated by his proclamation. Initially he met with success: his forces took Edinburgh, defeated government forces at Prestonpans, and were able to move south to Derby. But ultimately his ambitions proved to have been hopelessly idealistic. Following a retreat to Scotland, he was defeated by the Duke of Cumberland at Culloden in April 1746 and Jacobitism was extinct as a political force.
Catalogue reference: SP 36/67, p. 88 (22 August 1745)