Battle of Culloden 1746
Outline: officially registered battlefield boundary.
Key facts
| Date (year) | 1746 | Wikidata P585 point in time |
|---|---|---|
| Century | 18th century | derived |
| Period | Jacobite & later | derived |
| Country | Scotland | derived |
| War / conflict | Jacobite risings | Wikidata |
| Participants | Jacobitism, Kingdom of France, Kingdom of Great Britain | Wikidata |
| Local authority | Highland | HES |
| Registered area | 654.5 ha | HES |
| HES inventory reference | BTL6 | HES |
| Designated | 2011-03-21 | HES |
| Last amended | 2012-12-14 | HES |
About the battle
The Battle of Culloden took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness, in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby ending the Jacobite rising of 1745.
Charles landed in Scotland in July 1745, seeking to restore his father James Francis Edward Stuart to the British throne. He quickly won control of large parts of Scotland, and an invasion of England reached as far south as Derby before being forced to turn back. However by April 1746 the Jacobites were short of supplies, facing a superior and better-equipped opponent.
The Jacobite commanders decided their only option was to stand and fight. When the two armies met at Culloden, the battle was brief, lasting less than an hour, with the Jacobites suffering an overwhelming and bloody defeat. This effectively ended both the 1745 rising and Jacobitism as a significant element in British politics.
Visiting the battlefield
There appears to have been little interest in commemorating the battle before the 1840s. The Inverness Courier's account of the events surrounding the centenary in the spring of 1846 suggests that they had a recreational dimension, but as the century progressed, commemoration became more solemn and elegiac. Thoughts turned to erecting a physical memorial, and in 1849, a foundation stone for a Culloden monument was laid on the battlefield. By 1852, the project had been abandoned due to a lack of funds. A memorial stone carved by Edward Power in 1858 was eventually incorporated into the cairn erected on the battlefield in 1881.
It was the last pitched battle fought on British soil. Today, a visitor centre is located near the site of the battle. It was first opened in December 2007, with the intention of preserving the battlefield in a condition similar to how it was on 16 April 1746. One difference is that it is currently covered in shrubs and heather. During the 18th century, however, the area was used as common grazing ground, mainly for tenants of the Culloden estate. Those visiting can walk the site by way of footpaths on the ground and can also enjoy a view from above on a raised platform.
Location
- Local authority: Highland
- Approximate centre of registered area: 57.4796, -4.1076
- Registered area: 654.5 hectares
Battlefields are often on private farmland: please keep to public rights of way and respect landowners.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Culloden (revision 1370109396), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Commemoration”, “Culloden battlefield today”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations removed. No text added.
Contains Historic Environment Scotland and OS data © Historic Environment Scotland and Crown Copyright and database right 2026, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.