BattlefieldsAction at Dunbar after Prestonpans 1745
Jacobite Risings

Action at Dunbar after Prestonpans 1745

1745
East Lothian, Scotland
Era
Jacobite Risings
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
East Lothian, Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Government: Cope with Prestonpans survivors c.500 at Dunbar
VS
Victor
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Jacobite cavalry pursuing
Outcome
Cope rallies Prestonpans survivors at Dunbar; Jacobite cavalry presses to town outskirts; pursuit halted
The Battle

History & Significance

After the Battle of Prestonpans, General Cope rallied the surviving remnants of his army at Dunbar. Cope himself had escaped the battlefield on horseback and arrived at Dunbar ahead of his own men, making him the object of the famous jest that he was the first general in history to bring news of his own defeat. Government dragoons who had fled the battlefield without fighting straggled into Dunbar. Jacobite cavalry patrols pursued as far as the town's outskirts, skirmishing with government rear-guards before withdrawing. Prince Charles chose not to press the pursuit to destruction — his army needed reorganisation and he was already planning the march south. The Dunbar garrison was reinforced and became a government foothold on the East Lothian coast.

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

Aubrey Research

Explore the landscape around East Lothian

Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in Britain — drawing on Domesday records, scheduled monuments, Victorian OS maps, geological data and archaeological archives to tell the full story of a place.

Research a location near East Lothian