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This tale arises from Rutherglen Castle in South Lanarkshire. Well known in her own time, through the centuries her romantic tale has been passed down.

In Fielding's Tom Jones, her name is brought up. When Sophia Weston lies fainting in the inn's parlor, the landlady shows great concern and sympathy thinking this is "hiss Jenny Cameron". When Tom Jones was written c. 1749, the mention of Jenny Cameron implies that, by including the details of her life, she was commonly known. To us the inference is obscure. From this we can also assume that Jenny Cameron was young and lovely.

Jenny Cameron's story is found in an old ballad

Bonnie Jean Cameron Yell a' ha'e heard tell o' Bonnie Jeanie Cameron, How she fell sick, and she was like to dee And a' that they could recommend her Was ae blithe blink o' the Young Pretender. Rare, oh rare, Bonnie Jeanie Cameron ! Rare, oh rare, Jeanie Cameron ! To Charlie she wrote a very long letter, Stating who were his friends and who were his foes; And a' her words were sweet and tender, To win the heart of the Young Pretender. Rare, oh rare, Bonnie Jeanie Cameron ! Rare, oh rare, Jeanie Cameron ! Scarcely had she sealed the letter wi' a ring, When up flew the door, and in cam' her king ; She prayed to the saints, and bade angels defend her, And sank in the arms o' the Young pretender. Rare, oh rare, Bonnie Jeanie Cameron ! Rare, oh rare, Jeanie Cameron !

Jenny, the favorite daughter of Cameron of Glendessary, was born c. 1695. At the age of sixteen, she wandered from the path of maidenhood while attending school in Edinburgh. Her family sent her to a convent in France. Her conduct was such the nuns reported several other incidents. Within four years, Jenny was back in Scotland.

Upon the death of her brother, who meanwhile had succeeded to the family estates, Jenny became tutor or guardian to her nephew. The new, young laird is reported to have been of doubtful intellect.

In 1745, while still acting as her nephew's tutor, being staunchly loyal to Bonnie Prince Charlie, Jenny raised 250 Cameron clansmen and marched with them to the Jacobite headquarters, offering her services to the Prince.

Some accounts say Jenny stayed with the Jacobites, becoming the mistress of Bonnie Prince Charlie. When the Jacobites were retreating from Stirling in 1746, there is some reference to Jenny, called Colonel Cameron, being sent to Edinburgh Castle.

Jenny is described as genteel and handsome, with pretty eyes and jet black hair. Though some inference is made of her relationship with the Prince, evidence supports that Jenny went off with the rest of the hangers-on when the army marched. She was not a camp follower, nor was she ever seen with the Prince, except in public when he held court at Edinburgh.

Some accounts say she led a very respectable life in her later years. Jenny built a house named Mount Cameron in East Kilbride, in what is now South Lanarkshire. There she lived a solitary life, even visited by family members, which they would not have done if her reputation and actions were questionable. In 1773, Jenny died and was buried at Mount Cameron.

Coming Monday, the castles of West Dumbartonshire…

July 2, 2009 13:32 - Glitch

There has been a glitch in my computer. It is being repaired. Meanwhile the blogs from December 2008 through July 1, 2009 are not publishing as before. Hopefully this will be remedied within a few days.

July 2, 2009 12:03 - Castles of Scotland ~ South Lanarkshire

• Bothwell Castle, tower house with curtained wall, 13th century, damaged in multiple sieges, rebuilt and enlarged early 15th century, abandoned 18th century, built by ancestors of Clan Murray, in ruins
  
  Bothwell Castle image courtesy Wikipedia

  Sitting above a bend in the River Clyde, Bothwell Castle played a key role in the Scottish Wars of Independence

  Granted to an Oliphant (Olifard) in the mid-12th century, in 1242 it passed to a Moray (Moravia). Passing to the FitzGilberts, the English took it in 1314. Walter FitzGilbert surrendered to the Scots, was granted the barony of Cadzow. His descendents became the Hamiltons. Joan Moray had married Archibald The Grim Douglas and reconstruction began. The Black Douglases forfeited the castle in 1455. The crown granted Bothwell to Patrick Hepburn. Hepburn exchanged Bothwell for Hermitage Castle or Archibald Bell-the-Cat Douglas. The castle descended to the Earls of Home, then passed into state care in 1935.

  A computer theme and possibly a screensaver for this castle is available from Tartan Themes.

• Cadzow Castle, original castle, built in 12th century, occasional residence for David I, King of Scotland.

  The estate was divided in 1222, with the old castle passing to the Comyn family.
  Forfeited for supported John Baliol, Robert the Bruce granted the castle to Walter FitzGilbert in the early 14th century.

  
  Cadzow Castle image courtesy Historic Scotland

  Built by Sir James Hamilton of Finnart for his half-brother, the Second Earl of Arran, c. 1530. Slighted in the late 16th century, partially rebuilt in the 18th century as a folly within the park. Currently in ruins, the castle sits in Chatelherault Country Park

  Also known as the Castle in the Woods of Hamilton, as it overlooks a parkland called Cadzow Oaks. The town of Cadzow was renamed Hamilton in 1455.

• Craignethan Castle, tower house with walled courtyard, late 16th century
  
  Craignethan Castle image courtesy Wikipedia

  Noted as the last purpose-built fortress in Scotland, held by the Black
  Douglases, forfeited in 1455, granted to the Hamiltons. Forfeited in 1573, the Hamiltons were outlawed in 1579, the castle was then slighted (torn down).

  Regained by the Hamiltons, sold by Duchess Anne in 1659 to Andrew Hay. Sold to Archibald Douglas, passed through his descendants, the Earls of Home. The ruins were stabilized in the late 19th century, passed into state care in 1949.

  Legend claims that the castle was the inspiration for "Tillietudlem Castle" in the Sir Walter Scott novel, Old Mortality. Whether true or not, a nearby railroad station was opened in 1876, bearing the name "Tillietudlem". The local village has adopted the name Tillietudlem.

  A computer theme and possibly a screensaver for this castle is available from Tartan Themes.

• Crawford Castle, on an earlier motte and bailey earthwork built by the Crawford family, pre-1175 tower house, 16th or 17th century additions, in ruins, formerly known as Lindsay Tower, after the Lindsay family, its former owners.
  
  Crawford Castle image courtesy B Beacham

  The castle guarded the approach from England into the Upper Clyde Valley.

  The estate passed from the Thorlongus of the Merse, Overlord of Crawford, pre-1100. Inherited by the Lindsay family in 1215 through marriage. Clan Carmichael of Meadowflat were the hereditary constables.

  Being held by English forces, in the winter and spring of 1297 William Wallace and his men stormed the castle and re-took it. His mother, Margaret Crawford, was the daughter of the Clan Crawford Chief who was then Sheriff of Ayrshire. In 1398 Robert granted the title Earl of Crawford to David Lindsay. The barony passed to Archibald Douglas. They held the castle until 1578 when it was again forfeited to the crown. James V used the castle as a hunting lodge and his mistress, Elizabeth Carmichael was the daughter of the hereditary constable.

  The keepership of the Carmichaels of Meadowflat came to an end in 1595. The castle passed to the Duke of Hamilton, was sold to Sir George Colebrooke in the 18th century. Abandoned at the end of the 18th century, the stone was reused to build the present Crawford Castle Farm.

• Douglas Castle, tower house 13th century, Scottish Baronial mansion, 18th century, in ruins, also known as Castle Dangerous
  
  Douglas Castle image courtesy Wikipedia

  Stronghold of the Douglas family, from the 13th to the 19th century, the castle was the former family seat of Prime Minister Alec Douglas-Home.

  Had the 1757 Baronial mansion been completed, this would have been the largest castle in Scotland. Due to the Duke of Douglas dying in 1761, the castle was not completed. In the 1930's coal mining was developed in the adjacent park, in an attempt to relieve unemployment. The mining caused dangerous structural problems with the castle and it was demolished in 1938.

  Sir Walter Scott used the castle and it's history for the novel Castle Dangerous, giving the castle it's secondary name.

• Gilbertfield Castle, L-plan tower house, 17th century, in ruins
  
  Gilbertfield Castle image courtesy Wikipedia

  Lying within the former barony of Drumsagard, the castle was owned by the Hamiltons. There is a heraldic panel above the door dated 1607.

  Circa 1700 a retired soldier and writer, William Hamilton of Gilbertfield, translated Blind Harry's epic Life of Sir William Wallace.

• Tower of Hallbar, tower house, 16th century, currently a holiday accommodation, also known as Braidwood Castle
  
  Hallbar Tower image courtesy Wikipedia

  The barony of Braidwood was granted in 1326 to John de Monfod, then transferred to Harie Stewart Braidwood in 1581 with Hallbar included. The grant passed to Lord Maitland of Thirestane Castle, then the Marquess of Douglas. In 1681 George Lockhart of Lee Castle bought the estate, as it adjoined his estate.
  By 1850 the castle was in ruins.

  This ceiling panel displays the Lockhart Coat-of-Arms.

  
  Hallbar Tower Ceiling image courtesy Wikipedia

  Sir Norman MacDonald Lockhart, the laird of Lee Castle had the tower restored in 1861. There were several renters until 1984. In 1998 the property was leased to a historic preservation trust.

• Lee Castle, c. 1300, also known as The Lee
  
  Lee Castle image courtesy Clan Lockhart

  Originally granted to William Locard, c. 1272, the Lockharts sold the castle c. 1950 to pay taxes.

  The castle sits in the Valley of the Clyde and is currently for sale until October with an asking price of 8.5 million pounds. The insurance value is over 13 million pounds.

  The barony includes a 25-member band, The Pipes and Drums of the Barony of Lee.

• Rutherglen Castle, 12th century wooden structure, replaced by a stone building in the 13th century, also known as Avondale Castle

  In Gaelic, Rutherglen is An Ruadh Ghleann meaning "the red valley".

  Built by the Bairds, it passed to the Sinclairs, then the Earls of Douglas. In 1455 it was sacked and slighted with little remains. In 1457 a grant was issued to Andrew Stewart, who became Lord Avondale. He either rebuilt or began a new castle, with additions in 1534. In 1611 the castle was sold to James, Marquis of Hamilton. James was Steward of the Royal Household and Master of Works and already possessed Craignethan nearby. Anne, Duchess of Hamilton, was the last resident. The castle was abandoned c. 1717. The roof blew off in a historic storm in 1737 and the stonework was pilfered for more modest homes.

  Located where Castle Street and King Street currently meet in Rutherglen, there are no remains. During the Wars of Scottish Independence the castle changed hands and was besieged several times. In 1569 it was burned to the ground, as an act of revenge on the house of Hamilton.

Coming tomorrow, the tale of Bonnie Jeanie Cameron…

November 30, 2008 15:24 - Test

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