Fact and Fiction, Telling the Jacobite Story

Join renowned authors Flora Fraser and S. G. Maclean for an afternoon tea and discussion as they delve into the trials and triumphs of portraying the Jacobite period.

Flora Fraser, author of ‘Pretty Young Rebel; the life of Flora Macdonald’ will share insights into the intricacies of writing biography while S.G Maclean, author of ‘The Bookseller of Inverness’ will explore the art of crafting compelling fiction from historic context.

These renowned authors will be discussing the difference between the Jacobites in Fact and Fiction and how they tell their stories.

Tea and coffee will be provided but please let us know if there are any dietary requirements in advance.

Please note this is a busy day for the battlefield, parking may be busy so please be patient and allow time for issues.

Blackwell’s Edinburgh South Bridge

Flora will be discussing the enthralling life of daring adventure, struggle and survival of the remarkable Flora MacDonald, who displayed extraordinary courage in the face of great danger. Join Flora as she talks about her bestselling new book Pretty Young Rebel.

ROYAL CELTIC SOCIETY LECTURE

Flora will address the Royal Celtic Society at this event to be held at The Scottish Arts Club.

The Nantucket Atheneum

Flora will be speaking about her biography of Flora MacDonald at an event co-hosted by the NA and the National Trust for Scotland USA on the evening of 12 July.

Details tbc

Nairn Book and Arts Festival

Flora will be appearing in conversation with Sean Lusk as they discuss their books Pretty Young Rebel and A Woman of Opinion, exploring the theme of ‘Jacobites and Hanoverians’.

St Duthac Book & Arts Festival

Flora will be appearing in conversation with author Philip Paris at the St Duthac Book & Arts Festival.

Portobello Bookshop

Flora will be at Portobello Books at 11am for a book signing.

Beyond Borders

Flora will be appearing at Beyond Borders at 10.30am.

See Border Telegraph article here.

Edinburgh Book Festival

Join Fraser as she discusses her namesake in a story of adventure, courage, and survival with Jenny Brown.

Inverness Museum

A tale of adventure and daring, wit and charm, struggle and survival, Flora Fraser is well versed in Jacobite history and will be giving an illustrated talk followed by a short Q&A session.

Tickets available.

Click here for Inverness Museum Facebook Event.

St Duthac Book & Arts Festival

Flora will be appearing at midday at the St Duthac Book and Arts Festival.

Culloden

In conversation with Flora Fraser as she discusses her biography of Flora Macdonald; exploring the myths and realities of the Jacobite Heroine.

Tickets available at EventBrite.

Toppings St Andrews

A talk with Flora Fraser.

More event information available at Visit Scotland.

Far From the Madding Crowd (Linlithgow)

A talk with Flora Fraser.

The Book Nook

A talk with Flora Fraser.

Tickets available online.

Braemar Literary Festival

Flora will be appearing at the Braemar Festival at 1pm.

Tickets available online.

Read The Scotsman article online

2023 Braemar Festival programme

Southern Historical Association annual conference

Flora will be appearing on a panel considering ‘War and Society in Revolutionary North Carolina’ at the 2023 Southern Historical Association’s annual conference.

Buckingham Literary Festival

Flora will be in conversation with historian Violet Moller and is, of course, the perfect person to write about Flora Macdonald.

Zoom interview with the Glencoe Folk Museum

Flora will be doing a Zoom interview with the Glencoe Folk Museum on 7th June at 7pm UK time.
Details to follow in the spring.

Glencoe Folk Museum Talk

Flora will be speaking at the Glencoe Folk Museum in the afternoon of 27 May. Time to follow.

Aye Write – The Politics of Scottish Biography

James Jauncey and Flora Fraser – The Politics of Scottish Biography.

Two excellent examples of Scottish biography, focussing on very different subjects.

Ann Foster’s Vulgar Histories Podcast

Super Special: A Chat With Flora Fraser (author of Pretty Young Rebel: The Life of Flora MacDonald)

Boswell Book Festival

Flora will be speaking during the Boswell Book Festival, 12 to 14 May. Details to follow.

Toppings Bookshop

Flora will be speaking at Toppings Bookshop in Edinburgh and signing books.

Time to be confirmed.

Boston Athenaeum, MA, USA

Flora will be speaking at the Boston Athenaeum in MA, USA on 14th April.

Tickets available online.

Mount Vernon Author Lecture

In this probing, evocative portrait of a tumultuous life, master historian Flora Fraser peels away the layers of misinformation, legend, and myth to reveal a fascinating picture of this headstrong and irrepressible woman named Flora Macdonald. This is the captivating biography of the remarkable young Scotswoman whose bold decision to help “Bonnie” Prince Charlie—the Stuart claimant to the British throne—evade capture and flee the country has become the stuff of legend.

A book signing and reception with complimentary beer, wine, and hors-d’oeuvres will take place after the lecture.

This event is part of the 2023 Michelle Smith Lecture Series. Tickets are available only as a three-lecture package.

New-York Historical Society – For The Ages: A History Podcast

David Rubinstein  will interview Flora in March for New-York Historical Society’s For The Ages: A History Podcast. Details to follow.

Flora Fraser in conversation with Ketan Sheth

Flora Fraser in conversation with Ketan Sheth.

Tickets available at EventBrite.

Save The Children

Award winning biographer, Flora Fraser, tells the remarkable story of Flora Macdonald, best known for helping Charles Stuart evade government troops after the battle of Culloden 1746.

Tickets £20
Canapés

Doors Open: 6:30pm
Talk: 7:30-8:30pm

Wigtown Book Festival

Acclaimed Biographer Flora Fraser tells the true story of the ultimate Jacobite heroine Flora MacDonald, the 24-year-old who smuggled Bonnie Prince Charlies over the sea to Skye under the noses of government troops in 1746. But what happened to Flora in the years that followed? It is a tale that takes in marriage and emigration to America, where Flora finds herself caught up in the American Revolutionary War. A chance to discover a new side to a familiar historical figure.

Times Radio

Interview with Michael Portillo on Times Radio

Book Signings

Flora Fraser will be appearing at Golden Hare Books in Edinburgh on September 13th, at other bookshops in Edinburgh and elsewhere in Scotland throughout September, and at the Petra Palumbo flagship store on September 15th 2022.

West Highland Museum Talk

“Pretty Young Rebel” – A talk by Flora Fraser

Award-winning biographer, Flora Fraser, has been a professional writer and historical biographer since graduating Oxford University. She grew up between London and Beauly, Invernessshire, and was named after Flora Macdonald. She researched her new book, Pretty Young Rebel in the Macdonald of Sleat and other family papers, in the National Library of Scotland archives, in the Royal Archives, Windsor, and in a range of North American archives. Her previous book The Washingtons: George & Martha: ‘Join’d by Friendship, Crown’d by Love also won the 2016 George Washington Book Prize.

Here is a quick peek into her newest book ‘Pretty Young Rebel’, which will be for sale and signing on the night:

The year is 1746. The Jacobite rebellion has failed catastrophically and Scotland is reeling in the devastating aftermath of the battle of Culloden. Far to the west, on an island in the Outer Hebrides, 24-year-old Flora Macdonald is woken in the dead of night by a messenger with urgent intelligence.

Bonnie Prince Charlie is outside, begging for her help.

With Flora’s assistance, the Stuart prince is disguised as an Irish maid and smuggled to the Isle of Skye, evading government troops. Flora’s bravery and determination soon see her immortalised in ballads and proclaimed a Scottish heroine, but also result in her capture and detention in London. Released the following year and returning to Skye, Flora goes on to marry and emigrate to North Carolina, only then to be caught up in the American Revolutionary War.

Publication Day at Petra Palumbo

Flora will be signing books at the flagship Petra Palumbo.

Golden Hare Books

Flora Fraser will be appearing at Golden Hare Books to discuss her new book, Pretty Young Rebel, with Alan Taylor.

West Highland Museum’s Centenary Exhibition

This iconic exhibition will feature paintings never before displayed together in Scotland and some which have never before been exhibited. The recently rediscovered portrait of a 16-year-old Bonnie Prince Charlie, by renowned Venetian artist Rosalba Carriera, will be showcased at this event.

The exhibition will include paintings of four generations of the Royal House of Stuart, including James VIII (the Old Pretender) and his wife Princess Clementina Sobieska, through to Prince Charles Edward Stuart, (Bonnie Prince Charlie), and his daughter, Charlotte the Duchess of Albany. The series concludes with Charlotte’s daughter Princess Marie Victorie de Rohan. These paintings illustrate the deposed Royal Stuart dynasty, the family who inspired the Jacobite clans to risk so much in their attempts to restore them to the throne of Scotland during the Jacobite risings. This will be the last opportunity to see these paintings before most are moved to a new permanent home, the Museum of the Princes Lubomirski, in the Polish city of Wrocław.