Jacobite Spy Wars - Moles, Rogues and Treachery

The Jacobite story is more than the tale of Bonnie Prince Charlie, his unlucky father and grandfather and a handful of battles - the Boyne, Sheriffmuir, Preston, Prestonpans, Falkirk and Culloden. It is also one of history's longest-running spy sagas, the story of the Jacobite years, of spies and counter-spies, treachery and manipulation. This book unravels an unending intelligence war on and off the battlefield, as across Europe, moles dug for secrets at every court, and kings, ambassadors, soldiers, cardinals and royal mistresses all took part, from the great Duke of Marlborough to Madame Pompadour and the devious King Louis XV. As for the Prince, he was a master of disguise and intrigue, which fooled his enemies, yet his arrogance and impetuosity contributed greatly to the Jacobites' eventual defeat in the espionage war. In the final analysis all the battles won and lost during the Jacobite century do not account for the failure of the Stuarts to be restored to the kingdoms they lost at the Glorious Revolution - ultimate defeat lay in their failure to win the intelligence war.