8. The First Pretender returned to Scotland in 1715
By the time James Edward arrived in Scotland to take part in the insurrection intended to place him on the throne, but which he had not authorized, the rebellion was already in serious trouble. James landed in Scotland at Peterhead in December, but there were few Jacobite followers ready to rally to his cause, since most were already engaged in the fighting which had been instigated prematurely by the Earl of Mar. James Edward moved to Perth in January 1716 to find that the Jacobite forces had been reduced in the north to about 5,000 troops, as well as learning of the defeat of the western forces at the Battle of Preston. Their opposing enemy had strengthened its army with heavy artillery and supporting cavalry. Mar’s attempted to delay their advance using scorched earth tactics to deny the use of supplies to the enemy as he retreated toward Stirling.
Considering the situation to be hopeless, James Edward sailed from Montrose after announcing via a letter to the Scottish Jacobites he was returning to France. During his absence his ally on the French throne, Louis XIV, had died and he was neither welcomed in France nor appreciated by the Scottish people whom he had abandoned. James Edward was forced to accept the shelter and protection of the Papal States under Popes Clement XI and Innocent III. James Edward remained under the protection of the Papal States and participated in several schemes and plots to overthrow the Hanoverians and restore the Stuarts to the British throne, though he participated from inside his royal court in exile, intriguing with spies and agents from the rival monarchies of Europe and from Jacobite leaders in Scotland, Ireland, and England.