The Amazonian rebellion: women, power, and propaganda in the Jacobite '45

This article examines the role of women in the Jacobite Rising of 1745, arguing that female participation was far more significant to the military and political efforts of the Stuart cause than has been recognised in existing historiography. Drawing on manuscript sources, printed propaganda, and prison records, the article traces women's contributions across three areas: recruitment of soldiers through both direct and indirect means; involvement in the military campaign itself, including intelligence-gathering, logistical support, and the raising of clan levies; and the Hanoverian response to female Jacobitism through criminal punishment and print propaganda. The article demonstrates that women such as Anne Mackintosh, Jean Cameron, Charlotte Robertson, and Lady Nairne exercised considerable agency in sustaining the Jacobite army, employing familial, social, and feudal networks to mobilise manpower in both the Gàidhealtachd and the Lowlands. It further argues that the Hanoverian regime, recognising the threat posed by Jacobite women but constrained by kinship ties and public sympathy from pursuing judicial punishment against those of high social standing, turned instead to printed media — pseudo-biographical pamphlets, satirical prints, and theatrical productions — to discredit prominent female Jacobites and deter future participation. The article challenges the tendency to treat Jacobite women as anomalies or curiosities, situating them instead as representatives of a broader demographic whose contributions were essential to the longevity of the Rising.