My only sort-of "Outlander" contribution

Culloden is this quiet field a few miles outside of Inverness, yet not really on the way to anything. But it used to be a mucky bog, and it was on the way for the Bonnie Prince Charlie and his Jacobite army of mostly pissed-off Scots to try to sneak up on the British army, which was a few miles away celebrating its commander's 25th birthday.

Culloden would prove to be the site of the seminal battle in the Jacobite rebellion of 1745 – commonly known in Scotland as "The Forty-Five" – and didn't end well for the Jacobites. But first a little context.

It's hard to believe, but this beautiful field was once the place of some of the bloodiest, most ferocious fighting in Scottish history. 

Bonnie Prince Charlie, the grandson of King James II of England and the heir of the Stuart dynasty, had secretly returned to the UK from exile in France to lead a rebellion. Many Scots welcomed him because of their frustration with not having a Parliament and the feeling that Scottish culture was getting the shaft. (Spoiler alert: that was going to get much worse after the failed rebellion.)

Upon his secret arrival on the Isle of Skye, Charlie started boasting that his cousin, the King of France, would soon be sending ships, soldiers, weapons and cash to help his cause. That rallied more clans to his cause – as did Charlie's promise to restore Parliament. 

The Scots began marching in 1745 and began winning battles, surprising the British commanders, who didn't at first think "The Pretender" was back in town. The Jacobites beat the British to a poorly-fortified Edinburgh and captured the capital. 

But instead of re-installing Parliament as  promised, Bonnie Prince Charlie concocted his strategy to march all the way to London. That was a mistake. The Jacobites started taking more casualties and failed to pick up many English supporters, so they returned to Scottish soil early in 1746. 

The Duke of Cumberland, who was commanding the British Army, started winning skirmishes, and it all seemed be barreling toward a climactic battle. Charlie and his commanders thought they could sneak up on Cumberland, who was celebrating his 25th birthday while being camped in Nairn, and planned a half-baked, last-minute night attack. But the march proved to be too much with slow-going over the mucky bogs and in the pitch black of a moonless night. So the marshes of Culloden would be where the British and Jacobites would meet. 

One thing I know about Outlander is that a main character is named Jamie Fraser, and he fought at Culloden. I found this memorial to the Fraser Clan, and based on the number of flowers at its base, so did a lot of Outlander fans.

It was a bloodbath for the Scots. More than 1,500 of them -- including many clan leaders -- died as they charged almost diagonally into the English line.

That effectively broke the rebellion. The Brits cracked down on Scottish culture, including wearing kilts and would kill men or boys on site who carried weapons. And Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped to France, including by wearing the clothes of a chambermaid. 

One thing that struck me was how so few records remain. Only a couple hundred names of Scottish fighters who died were recorded and no one knows for sure where most of the 300 killed British soldiers were buried. This memorial was built in 1881.