Page:English Historical Review Volume 37.djvu/379

 1922 IN THE ' FORTY-FIVE ' 371 the failure to provide efficient gunners either at Fort George or Fort Augustus ; but neglect and abuse had been the fate of what artillery there was in Scotland, and Cope in August 1745 could take no artillery with him, because he had no gunners. 1 At Fort Augustus the highlanders had the help of a skilful French engineer, and though their batteries were not formidable in themselves they were sufficient for the purpose. Again the fullest account comes from the narrative of a private soldier, who had served in the siege and afterwards escaped. James Hart reported that the siege was opened on 22 February with three batteries, one of four 4-pounders in the garden against the main gate, and two others of two guns each behind the rock on the north ; there was also a battery of three of the king's mortars behind the old barrack. On the very first day the store- house with the loaded shells and powder was blown up and one bastion of the old barrack destroyed by the fire of the enemy's guns. This forced the garrison to retire to the new barrack, and the next day saw a fresh disaster in the explosion of 3,000 cartridges and a barrel of powder. After this, cannonading went on for four days without any great harm done, and then on 1 March the fort was capitulated. 2 The garrison had not lost a single man, and in spite of their misfortunes and the weakness of the fort should have been able to hold out longer. When six months afterwards Major Went worth was brought before a court martial he was sentenced to be dismissed the service. By the capture of Fort Augustus the rebels obtained possession of an abundance of food and, what was more serious, of sixteen 4-pounders, two 6-pounders, and six coehorn mortars, with a good supply of ammunition. Apart from this and the encouragement that their successes gave to the rebels, the loss of Forts George and Augustus was not in itself of serious importance. The case was otherwise at Fort William, which Cumberland described as the only fort in the highlands that was of any consequence, since its capture would lay the way open to the lowlands and the fort if once lost might cost much trouble to recover. 3 For these reasons one of his first acts on reaching Aberdeen was to make provision for the defence of the fort, and to appoint to the command of the garrison Captain Caroline Frederick Scott of Guise's, since by all accounts the governor was not fit for a thing of that impor- tance. Alexander Campbell had indeed shown a stout heart during the last two months, as he continued to do during the siege. But he was old and infirm, and his authority had been disputed by Captain Miller, the officer in command of the troops. Cumber- land no doubt judged wisely that it was necessary to have 1 Ibid. ii. 25, no. 44. Ibid. ii. 29, no. 27. Ibid. ii. 28, no. 47, and 29, no. 31. B b2