Description
Inscribed with sitter's name old label verso, oil on canvas
Dimensions
68.5cm x 51cm (27in x 20in)
Footnote
Provenance:
Fingask Castle, 26th - 28th April 1993, Christies Scotland lot 256
Exhibition:
Loan Exhibition of Scottish National Portraits, Edinburgh 1884 No. 467 titled 'A Portrait of Alistair MacDonnell of Glengarry'
Notes:
This historic portrait depicts one of the Jacobite story's most controversial and fascinating characters: Alasdair Ruadh MacDonell, 13th chief of Glengarry of Invernesshire, alias Pickle the Spy. Correspondence from Pickle to the English Government date as early as 1752, and it is known that the information he supplied to the Duke of Newcastle and George II was at points hugely detrimental to the Jacobite cause. Such sensitive and significant information could only have come from a close and therefore trusted ally of Prince Charles.
Over the centuries many have speculated as to Pickle's true identity. For years the finger of suspicion pointed at James Mohr MacGregor, Rob Roy's son. As poetic as this may have been, little evidence supported this theory and his role as a spy is now considered to be a minor one.
In 1897 the author Andrew Lang undertook a detailed analysis of Pickle's letters - of which many survive - and found that the evidence pointed emphatically to The Young Glengarry, as MacDonnell was known. The timing of events, his relationship to Charles and the sway he held over the Highland clans all strongly support the truth of Lang's theory. Combining these circumstantial factors with the similarities in the tone of their letters (including interesting idiosyncrasies of spelling shared by Pickle and MacDonnell), the case becomes more compelling still, and culminates with the fact that he was at one point publically denounced by the widow of Archibald Cameron, the "last Jacobite Martyr".
The MacDonells were, at that time, the most significant Catholic clan in Scotland and had begun staunchly in support of Prince Charles' cause. In 1738 the teenaged MacDonnell was dispatched to France where in 1743 he joined Lord Drummond's regiment of Royal Scots Guards in the French service. In 1745, he was employed by the Highland chiefs on a secret mission to the Prince, the aim of which was to dissuade him from landing in Scotland without first securing significant European support. As we know, this advice was not heeded and the Prince continued rashly with his plan. MacDonnell nonetheless sustained his support of Charles' mission but was captured soon after by the English and imprisoned in the Tower of London from 1745 until 1747. It was probably this period of imprisonment that secured the unwavering trust of his Prince, whilst ironically providing MacDonnell with the time to re-consider his affiliations. It was not long after his release that The Young Glengarry succeeded as Chief of the Clan in 1754, simultaneously inheriting the deep financial woes that troubled his estate.
Lang suggests that Glengarry became deeply disillusioned with the lack of remuneration afforded the loyal followers of the Jacobite cause. He took a calculated risk, born out of self-interest perhaps, or through the realisation that Charles' plans were becoming increasingly unworkable, and turned coat. Through his popularity and standing within the Clans, MacDonnell was perfectly positioned to, as Lang puts it, "paralyse a serious, or promote a premature, rising in the Highlands, as seemed best to his English employers".
This portrait, which is illustrated opposite the title page of Lang's 1897 publication, depicts a handsome young man with a "frank and pleasing face" and a graceful bearing. One can easily picture how hard it would have been for his peers to suspect a man of such standing. It is also one of the few paintings to exist that shows the change and development in Scottish Highland dress; MacDonnell is shown earing a belted plaid, and his manservant stood behind him is wearing a version of what we know today as the modern kilt.
A further version of this painting can be found in the collection at Armadale Castle, Scotland.