Before day-break, General Wills visited the different posts, and gave directions for opening a communication between both divisions of the army to support each other, should necessity require. During the morning, which was that of Sunday the 13th of November, he was occupied in making arrangements for renewing the attack. Meantime General Carpenter arrived about ten o’clock with Churchill’s and Molesworth’s dragoons, accompanied by the Earl of Carlisle, Lord Lumley, and others. This event was as exhilarating to the royalists as it was disheartening to the besieged, who, notwithstanding the defection of their more timorous associates during the preceding night, were, before the accession of Carpenter, fully a match for their assailants. Wills, after explaining to Carpenter the state of matters, and the dispositions he had made, offered to resign the command to him, as his superior officer; but being satisfied with Wills’s conduct, Carpenter declined to accept it, remarking, that as he had begun the affair so well, he ought to have the glory of finishing it. On examining matters himself, however, Carpenter found that the town was not sufficiently invested, particularly at the end of Fishergate street, which led to a meadow by which the insurgents could easily have escaped. He therefore posted Pitt’s horse along the meadow, and lest the whole body of the besieged should attempt to force a retreat that way, he caused a communication to be opened through the enclosures on that side, that the other divisions of the army might the more readily hasten thither to intercept them.
Thus invested on all sides, and pent up within a narrow compass by the gradual encroachments of the royalists, the Jacobite general grew alarmed, and began to think of a surrender. The Highlanders were fully aware of their critical situation, but the idea of surrendering had never once entered their minds, and they had been restrained only by the most urgent entreaties from sallying out upon the royalists, and cutting their way through their ranks, or dying, as they remarked, like men of honour, with their swords in their hands. Neither Forster nor any other officer durst therefore, venture to make such a proposal to them, and Patten asserts, that had they known that Colonel Oxburgh had been sent on the mission he undertook, he would have never seen Tyburn, but would have been shot by common consent before he had passed the barrier. This gentleman, who had great influence over Forster (and who, in the opinion of the last-named author, was better calculated, from the strictness with which he performed his religious duties, to be a priest than a field officer), in conjunction with Lord Widdrington and others, prevailed upon him to make an offer of capitulation, thinking that they would obtain favourable terms from the government general. This resolution was adopted without the knowledge of the rest of the officers, and Oxburgh, who had volunteered to negotiate, went off about two o’clock in the afternoon to Wills’s head-quarters. To prevent suspicion of his real errand, the soldiers were informed that General Wills had sent to offer them honourable terms, if they would lay down their arms.
The reception of Oxburgh by General Wills was very different from what he and his friends had anticipated. Wills, in fact, absolutely refused to hear of any terms, and upon Oxburgh making an offer that the insurgents should lay down their arms, provided he would recommend them to the mercy of the king, he informed him that he would not treat with rebels, who had killed several of his Majesty’s subjects, and who consequently must expect to undergo the same fate. The colonel, thereupon, with great earnestness, begged the general, as an officer and a man of honour, to show mercy to people who were willing to submit. The royalist commander, somewhat softened, replied, that all he would promise was, that if the insurgents would lay down their arms and surrender themselves prisoners at discretion, he would prevent the soldiers from cutting them to pieces till further orders; and that he would allow them an hour for the consideration of his offer. The result of this interview was immediately reported by Oxburgh to his friends, but nothing had transpired to throw any light upon their deliberations. Before the hour had elapsed, Mr. Dalzell, brother of the Earl of Carnwath, appeared at Wills’s head quarters, and requested to know what terms he would grant separately to the Scots; Wills answered that he would not treat with rebels, nor grant any other terms than those already offered.
To bring matters to an immediate issue, General Wills sent Colonel Cotton into the town about three o’clock in the afternoon, to require an immediate answer to Wills’s proposal. He was told, however, that differences existed between the English and Scottish officers upon the subject, but they requested that the general would allow them till seven o’clock next morning to settle their differences, and to consult upon the best method of delivering themselves up. This proposal being reported to Wills, he agreed to grant the Jacobite commanders the time required, provided they would bind themselves to throw up no new entrenchments in the streets, nor allow any of their men to escape; for the performance of which stipulations he required the delivery of approved hostages.—Cotton having returned to the town, the Earl of Derwentwater and Brigadier Mackintosh were pitched upon as hostages for the observance of these stipulations, and sent to the royalist head-quarters.
As soon as the Highlanders perceived that a capitulation was resolved upon, their fury knew no bounds. They declared that sooner than surrender, they would die fighting, and that when they could no longer defend their posts, they would attempt to cut their way through their assailants, and make a retreat. During the night they paraded the streets, threatening destruction to every person who should even allude to a surrender. During these disturbances, several persons were killed, and many wounded, and Mr. Forster, who was openly denounced as the originator of the capitulation, would certainly have been cut to pieces by the infuriated soldiers, had he appeared in the streets. He made a narrow escape even in his own chamber, a gentleman of the name of Murray having fired a pistol at him, the ball from which would have taken effect had not Mr. Patten, the Jacobite chaplain, struck up the pistol with his hand, and thus diverted the course of the bullet.
At seven o’clock next morning, Forster notified to General Wills that the insurgents were willing to surrender at discretion as he had required. Old Borlum being present when this message was delivered, observed that he would not be answerable for the Scots surrendering without terms, as they were people of desperate fortunes; and that he who had been a soldier himself, knew what it was to be a prisoner at discretion. “Go back to your people again,” answered Wills, “and I will attack the town, and the consequence will be I will not spare one man of you.” After this challenge, Mackintosh could not with a good grace remain, and returned to his friends; but he came back immediately, and informed Wills that Lord Kenmure and the rest of the Scots noblemen would surrender on the same conditions as the English.
Colonel Cotton was thereupon despatched with a detachment of 200 men to take possession of the town, and the rest of the government forces thereafter entered it in two grand divisions, amid the sound of trumpets and beating of drums, and met in the market-place, where the Highlanders were drawn up under arms ready to surrender. The number of prisoners taken on this occasion was 1,468, of whom about 463 were English, including 75 noblemen and gentlemen; of the Scots 143 were noblemen and gentlemen. The noblemen and gentlemen were placed under guards in the inns of the town, and the privates were confined in the church. On the part of the insurgents there were only 17 killed and 25 wounded in the different attacks, but the loss on the part of the royalists was very considerable, amounting, it is believed, to five times the number of the former. From the small number of prisoners taken, it would appear that few of the country people who had joined the insurgents when they entered Lancashire, had remained in Preston. They probably left the town during the nights of Saturday and Sunday.[721]
FOOTNOTES:
[686] Annals of 2d year of George I., p. 30.
[687] Idem, pp. 36–7.