The Jacobite uprisings are often highly romanticised by authors, but who can blame them when we have characters like Roderick MacKenzie and the sacrifices they made for a cause they believed in.

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After the Jacobite defeat at the Battle of Culloden a bounty was put on the head of Bonnie Prince Charlie of £30,000 equivalent to around £10 Million in today’s money. This life changing sum was ignored by all who assisted Charlie’s escape, from Clan Chiefs to recent widows and even lowly bandits.

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Several attempts were made to divert the British troops from Charlie’s true locations, one of which was carried out by ‘Roderick’, the son of a watchmaker, who was said to have quite a striking resemblance to the fugitive prince.

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In Glenmoriston Roderick, himself a fugitive of Culloden was met by some British troops and a fight broke out during which Roderick was killed; it is reported that he pretended to be Prince Charlie even with his dying words “You have killed your Prince”.

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Roderick’s head was taken to Fort Augustus for identification and the search for Charlie lost a lot of its momentum. The Jacobite prisoners in Fort Augustus refused to identify the head so it eventually had to be taken to London. When in London the head was confirmed as not belonging to Prince Charlie, but Roderick had now bought the prince valuable time, allowing him to leave the Scottish mainland as he engineered a safe passage to safety in France.

The spot where Roderick MacKenzie gave his life for the Jacobite cause is marked with a cairn, while his once secret grave is located nearby. Roderick's story is one of the many Little Treasures we love to share during our tours and a location we urge people to stop at when travelling between Skye and Loch Ness.