"Bonnie Charlie", aka "Will ye no come back again?"/ Jean Redpath

Prince Charles Edward Stuart, 1720 - 1788. Eldest Son of Prince James Francis Edward Stuart

Bonnie Charlie

Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart(31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1766 as Charles III. During his lifetime, he was also known as "the Young Pretender" and "the Young Chevalier"; in popular memory, he is known as Bonnie Prince Charlie.

 

 

Born in Rome to the exiled Stuart court, he spent much of his early and later life in Italy. In 1744, he travelled to France to take part in a planned invasion to restore the Stuart monarchy under his father.  When the French fleet was partly wrecked by storms, Charles resolved to proceed to Scotland following discussion with leading Jacobites. This resulted in Charles landing by ship on the west coast of Scotland, leading to the Jacobite rising of 1745. The Jacobite forces under Charles initially achieved several victories in the field, including the Battle of Prestonpans in September 1745 and the Battle of Falkirk Muir in January 1746. However, by April 1746, Charles was defeated at Culloden, which effectively ended the Stuart cause. Although there were subsequent attempts such as a planned French invasion in 1759, Charles was unable to restore the Stuart monarchy.

 

With the Jacobite cause lost, Charles spent the remainder of his life on the continent, except for one secret visit to London.  On his return, Charles lived briefly in France before he was exiled in 1748 under the terms of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Charles eventually returned to Italy, where he spent much of his later life living in Florence and Rome. He had a number of mistresses before marrying Princess Louise of Stolberg-Gedern in 1772.  In his later life, Charles's health declined greatly and he was said to be an alcoholic. However, his escapades during the 1745 and 1746 uprising, as well as his escape from Scotland, led to his portrayal as a romantic figure of heroic failure.  His life and the once possible prospects of a restored Stuart monarchy have left an enduring historical legend that continues to have a legacy today.

 

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"Bonnie Charlie", also commonly known as "Will ye no come back again?", is a Scots poem by Carolina Oliphant (Lady Nairne), set to a traditional Scottish folk tune.

 

As in several of the author's poems, its theme is the aftermath of the Jacobite Rising of 1745, which ended at the Battle of Culloden. Written well after the events it commemorates, it is not a genuine Jacobite song, like many other songs that were "composed in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, but ... passed off as contemporary products of the Jacobite risings."

 

Lady Nairne came from a Jacobite family, and Prince Charles had stopped to dine at Nairne House on 4 September 1745, during the march to Edinburgh. Her father was exiled the year after, but the family "hoarded" a number of objects "supposedly given to him by Prince Charles."

 

The song, especially its melody, is widely and traditionally used as a song of farewell – often in association with Auld Lang Syne, and generally with no particular Jacobite or other political intent.

 

Theme

The "Bonnie Charlie" of the song is "Bonnie Prince Charlie" or the Young Pretender, the last serious Stuart claimant to the British throne. After Culloden, he escaped to the continent with the help of Flora MacDonald, and other loyal followers. The song expresses joy in Bonnie Charlie's escape from capture and possible execution, and celebrates the loyalty of his followers and their longing for his return.

 

The song has been described as evoking a type of nostalgic idealism: "Who that hears "Bonnie Charlie" sung...but is touched by that longing for the unattainable which is the blessing and the despair of the idealist?"

Use

The song has long been a "time honored Scottish farewell."

 

Will Ye No Come Back Again?

This is a sad Jacobite song.

Bonnie Prince Charlie has escaped from Scotland after the 1745 Rising and is safe in France. The Highland Scots who fought for him and sheltered him in secret after the terrible battle of Culloden, even though big rewards were offered for him, wish he would return again.

 

But the song was written at least 30 years later than the events it describes.

 

Bonnie Charlie's now awa'
Safely owre the friendly main;
Mony a heart will break in twa,
Should he ne’er come back again.

 

Will ye no come back again?
Will ye no come back again?
Better lo'ed ye canna be,
Will ye no come back again?

 

Ye trusted in your Hieland men,
They trusted you, dear Charlie.
They kent your hidin' in the glen,
Your cleadin was but barely.

 

English bribes were aa in vain,
An e’en tho puirer we may be;
Siller canna buy the heart
That beats aye for thine and thee.

 

Sweet’s the laverock’s note and lang,
Lilting wildly up the glen;
But aye to me he sings ae sang,
Will ye no come back again?

 

♫ Scottish Bagpipes - Will Ye No Come Back Again ♫

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl9240HWXBU 

 

 

Will Ye No Come Back Again' played on the famous Scottish bagpipes with scenes of Scotland.

 

 

Jack Churchill was an Englishman who admired Scottish culture. He carried an English Longbow, Scottish Claymore and Bagpipes in battle. He possessed a deep love of fighting and adventure, shared by both the English & Scots. I'd say he represents Great Britain itself perfectly.

 

Just take a moment and picture mortar shells falling left and right, just an absolute hell of a battlefield, but walking right up the middle is a company, led by a man with a longbow on his back, scottish broadsword swinging in it's hilt, and bagpipes in his hand playing this song. That was MAD JACK CHURCHILL, in case you were confused.

 

 

An allied commander in WWII, and an avid fan of surfing, Captain Jack Malcolm Thorpe Fleming Churchill aka "Fighting Jack Churchill" aka "Mad Jack" was basically the craziest motherfucker in the whole damn war. He volunteered for commando duty, not actually knowing what it entailed, but knowing that it sounded dangerous, and therefore fun. He is best known for saying that "any officer who goes into action without his sword is improperly dressed" and, in following with this, for carrying a sword into battle. In WWII. And not one of those sissy ceremonial things the Marines have. No, Jack carried a fucking claymore. And he used it, too. He is credited with capturing a total of 42 Germans and a mortar squad in the middle of the night, using only his sword. Churchill and his team were tasked with capturing a German fortification creatively called "Point 622." Churchill took the lead, charging ahead of the group into the dark through the barbed wire and mines, pitching grenades as he went. Although his unit did their best to catch up, all but six of them were lost to silly things like death. Of those six, half were wounded and all any of them had left were pistols. Then a mortar shell swung in and killed/mortally wounded everyone who wasn't Jack Churchill. When the Germans found him, he was playing "Will Ye No Come Back Again?" on his bagpipes. Oh, we didn't mention that? He carried them right next to his big fucking sword. After being sent to a concentration camp, he got bored and left. Just walked out. They caught him again, and sent him to a new camp. So he left again. After walking 150 miles with only a rusty can of onions for food, he was picked up by the Americans and sent back to Britain, where he demanded to be sent back into the field, only to find out (with great disappointment) the war had ended while he was on his way there. As he later said to his friends, "If it wasn't for those damn Yanks, we could have kept the war going another 10 years!"

 

By Marc Russel February 04, 2009