The Highland charge was a battlefield
shock tactic used by the
clans
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship
and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...
of the
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...
which incorporated the use of firearms.
Historical development

Prior to the 17th century, Highlanders fought in tight formations, led by a heavily armed warrior elite who carried heavy
battle axes or
claymores (two-handed swords whose name comes from the
Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...
''claidheamh mòr'', meaning "great sword").
However, with the introduction of
musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually dis ...
s and
cannon
A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...
, such formations became vulnerable. As a result, in the 17th century, Highlander warriors developed a lighter, one-handed,
basket-hilted broadsword that protected the hand. This was generally used with a
shield
A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...
or
targe strapped to the weak arm and a
dirk or ''biotag'' ("long knife") held in the other hand.
The Scottish and Irish warrior
Alasdair Mac Colla
Alasdair Mac Colla Chiotaich MacDhòmhnaill ( – 13 November 1647), also known by the English variant of his name Sir Alexander MacDonald, was a military officer best known for his participation in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, notably the I ...
is sometimes credited with inventing the Highland charge during the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were a series of conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, then separate entities in a personal union un ...
to meet a particular set of battlefield challenges. It was initially known as the Irish charge, due to the Irish component of Alasdair Mac Colla's Royalist military invasion of Covenanter Scotland. The use of the charge greatly resembled older
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foot ...
fighting styles of battle in which one side would rush at the other in an attempt to break the line of battle.
The charge
The charge required a high degree of commitment as the men were rushing into musket range and would suffer casualties from at least one volley. Speed was essential, so the Highlanders preferred to employ the charge downhill and over firm ground; they removed clothing from their lower body for the same reason. They ran forward in clusters of a dozen (often blood relatives), which formed a larger, wedge-shaped formation. Once in effective musket range (60 yards), those with firearms would shoot; gun smoke from this mass discharge having obscured enemies' aim, the Highlanders obtained further protection from the expected return volley from the opposing force by crouching low to the ground immediately after firing. Then, firearms were dropped and edged weapons drawn, whereupon the men made the final rush on the enemy line with a Gaelic battle cry. Upon reaching striking distance, the Highlander would attempt to take the opponent's sword or bayonet point on his
targe while lunging in low to deliver an upward thrust to his enemy's torso.
Bayonet technology and the charge
Before the adoption of ring attachments for
bayonet
A bayonet (from Old French , now spelt ) is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , now spelt ) is a knife, dagger">knife">-4; we might wonder whethe ...
s, the attachment consisted of a plug inserted into the barrel, which meant a musket could not be fired or reloaded with a fixed bayonet. During their charge Highlanders made a relatively instant transition from firearms to swords as they swiftly closed with the opposing force. Those enemy soldiers with plug attachments (some carried a
pike) had only moments to fix bayonets while under psychological pressure from the onrushing Highlanders brandishing swords and roaring their war cries. At the 1689
Battle of Killiecrankie Scottish professional soldiers, veterans of the
Dutch Republic
The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...
's Scots Brigade, were overwhelmed by the Highland Jacobites of
Clan Cameron
Clan Cameron is a West Scottish Highlands, Highland Scottish clan, with one main branch Lochiel, and numerous cadet branches. The Clan Cameron lands are in Lochaber, and within their lands lies Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isl ...
; the Highlanders secured a complete victory by a charge which killed 2000 redcoats for the loss of 800 Highlanders.
The ring bayonet reduced the effectiveness of the Highland charge, but it remained an example of
shock tactics, with the key factor being psychological; the charge aimed at causing some enemy troops in the opposing line to break ranks thereby leaving openings which could be exploited to 'roll up' the rest. This happened at the 1644
Battle of Tippermuir and the
1745 Battle of Falkirk Muir.
Battle of Culloden
One of the less successful uses of the Highland charge was in 1746 during the final confrontation of the
Jacobite rising of 1745
The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of t ...
, the
Battle of Culloden
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 endi ...
. The battle pitted the Jacobite forces of
Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by
Prince William, Duke of Cumberland loyal to the British government. The under-nourished and unpaid Jacobite force was badly outnumbered and outgunned by well-trained regular troops who maintained discipline when charged.
Against the advice of his military advisors,
Charles Edward Stuart insisted on making a stand against the pursuing army of
Cumberland
Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...
on the open moorland of Culloden with the intention of fighting defensively, a decision that most historians have seen as playing into the hands of the government forces. The Jacobites failed to take advantage of the opportunity of attacking before the enemy had positioned their artillery and were ready for action. Cumberland's artillery bombarded the Jacobite army, which was stationary and exposed, until up to a third of Charles's men were dispersed or made casualties (including a groom decapitated while holding Charles Edward's horse). At this point – and without orders from the Jacobite command – Clan Mackintosh in the center of the Jacobite line began to charge.
Donald Cameron of Lochiel led the Camerons to join them and some other clans followed in a spontaneous charge in which many failed to use their firearms. Despite
canister shot and volleys, the charge reached – and in places broke through – the Government front line (though many Highlanders were without
targes to protect from bayonets). However,
Coehorn mortar shelling and devastating enfilade musket fire from the deeply echeloned government forces killed those who had made a breakthrough, while the others, after suffering heavy casualties, fell back in a retreat that quickly became a rout.
Battle of the Plains of Abraham
The Highland Charge's first known use in North America, and last known successful use, occurred during the
Battle of the Plains of Abraham
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe the North American theatre). The battle, which took place on 13 Sept ...
in 1759 during the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...
(a part of the greater
Seven Years War) just outside of Quebec. After an unsuccessful advance by the French Army and militia toward British lines the French suffered devastating casualties, which caused a panic and disorganized rout. The
78th Fraser Highlanders unsheathed their broadswords and led the British counterattack with a Highland charge cutting down multiple French units and securing a British victory.
Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge
The last known time that the Highland Charge was implemented was in 1776 during the American Revolution in
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
at the
Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge. In this engagement, a battalion of Loyalist
Royal Highland Emigrants under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Donald MacLeod and Captain John Campbell attempted a Highland Charge across a Bridge at Moore's Creek in an attempt to defeat patriot militia. The patriots had previously removed some of the bridge's planking and greased the rails in order to slow an attack, and several men were cut down by patriot fire before they could use their swords. The loyalists retreated and hundreds were captured, ending in a victory for the patriot forces.
See also
*
Military history of Scotland
*
Human wave attack
*
Banzai charge
*
Battle of Prestonpans
The Battle of Prestonpans, also known as the Battle of Gladsmuir, was fought on 21 September 1745, near Prestonpans, in East Lothian, the first significant engagement of the Jacobite rising of 1745.
Jacobitism, Jacobite forces, led by the Stua ...
(1745)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Highland Charge
History of the Scottish Highlands
Assault tactics
Wars involving Scotland