Memoirs of Major Alexander Ramkins (1718)

In Short

Alexander Ramkins, a young Scottish gentleman, sells his estate to seek military fortune abroad. He casts his lot with the exiled King James II and serves for nearly three decades across Ireland, France, Flanders, and Germany. Throughout his service, Ramkins witnesses duels, military sieges, highway robberies, and political intrigues. The narrative functions as both a soldier's memoir and an unsparing exposure of French diplomacy, detailing how King Louis XIV continuously exploited the Jacobite cause to further French ambitions while repeatedly abandoning the exiled British monarchs whenever convenient.

The Story

Alexander Ramkins begins his career as an eager young Scot determined to see the world and gain military experience. On the advice of an old captain, he sells his land for fifteen hundred pounds, equips himself, and lodges his capital with an Amsterdam banker. Upon reaching Paris, he encounters his brother and quickly becomes embroiled in the local scene, including the aftermath of a fatal duel involving an overconfident French officer and a young gentlewoman.

Driven by loyalty to the deposed Roman Catholic monarch James II, Ramkins procures a commission as an officer and joins the Jacobite campaign in Ireland. At the Battle of the Boyne, he experiences the chaos of frontline combat firsthand, observing how the engagement devolves into a running fight as French forces quickly withdraw themselves and King James from danger. Captured and granted parole in Dublin, Ramkins resists efforts by Williamite officers to recruit him, still harboring a deep commitment to the Jacobite cause despite growing uneasy about the insincerity of Louis XIV.

Ramkins continues to serve in various European theaters, including Flanders, where he joins the army under the Duke of Luxembourg. At the Battle of Landen, while attempting to storm an entrenchment, he receives a dangerous bullet wound in the shoulder and loses so much blood that he is nearly trampled to death before a drummer pulls him from the field. During his long recovery and subsequent travels through Antwerp, Lyons, and London, Ramkins continuously observes the stark reality of European politics. He meets an assortment of figures, including an imposter peer in Antwerp who swindles a lady out of a valuable diamond ring, and a shrewd Irish prebendary in Lyons who explicitly lays bare the manipulative nature of French statecraft.

Over twenty-eight years, Ramkins watches successive invasion schemes and pretended descents upon England dissolve into nothing. He learns to read the faces of the royal court at St. Germains, realizing that even kingly departures are staged merely to divert British troops from Flanders. When he voices his suspicions about these dilatory tactics, he is briefly placed under house arrest and warned never to criticize the French crown again. During a trip near London, he is ambushed and robbed on Hounslow Heath by highwaymen, an ordeal he takes with pragmatic humor. By the time of the Peace of Ryswick, the death of James II, and the accession of George I, Ramkins fully sheds his youthful bigotry. He concludes that French support for the Pretender was a chimerical delusion designed solely to distract Great Britain, leaving him a wiser, disillusioned veteran.

How It Unfolds

The journey begins After selling his Scottish inheritance for fifteen hundred pounds, Ramkins prepares for his travels under the guidance of a veteran captain. When the captain dies ten days before their departure, Ramkins sets out for Paris, where he immediately encounters his brother and learns of a tragic duel.

The Irish campaign Ramkins purchases a lieutenant's commission, self-promotes to captain, and joins King James's forces in Ireland. At the Battle of the Boyne, he experiences the terrifying smoke and noise of battle before being taken prisoner on parole in Dublin.

Wounded in Flanders Rejoining the war on the Continent, Ramkins marches into Flanders with his brother-in-law under the Duke of Luxembourg. At the Battle of Landen, he takes a musket ball to the shoulder and barely escapes being trampled underfoot.

Insights on the road While recovering and traveling through Lyons, Ramkins lodges with an Irish prebendary who articulates how Louis XIV systematically uses King James as a political tool while neglecting the Jacobite forces.

Staged invasions Ramkins rushes to St. Germains upon hearing of a new invasion project, only to discern by reading the countenances of the King and Queen that the expedition to Calais is merely a feint to hold back English troops.

Robbed on the heath While traveling near London on common hackneys, Ramkins and an Irish companion are stopped on Hounslow Heath by two highwaymen, who strip them of their money and gear and leave them to walk their horses to the next town.

The final disillusionment Following the Peace of Ryswick and the death of Louis XIV, Ramkins reflects on twenty-eight years of deceit, warning his countrymen never again to trust foreign promises or trade British liberty for French schemes.

The People

• Major Alexander Ramkins: A pragmatic, observant Scottish officer who seeks fortune and military glory abroad. Initially fueled by religious and political loyalty to King James II, he gradually sheds his naive idealism as he discovers how foreign courts manipulate his cause, ultimately growing into a clear-eyed critic of French statecraft.
• The Old Captain: A seasoned veteran who advises Ramkins to monetize his land before traveling, cautioning him that the world thinks poorly of merit without money. His death just before their departure forces Ramkins to navigate his early travels alone.
• Ramkins's Brother-in-Law: A man of the legal robe who, driven by curiosity to see a campaign, accompanies Ramkins into Flanders. His presence proves providential, as he nurses Ramkins through a tedious recovery after the Battle of Landen.
• The Irish Prebendary: A well-respected clergyman in Lyons whose sharp political intellect opens Ramkins's eyes to the reality that France never truly intended to restore King James to the throne.
• King James II: The deposed Roman Catholic monarch of England, portrayed as an unfortunate, overly trusting prince who allows himself to be used as a political pawn by the French court.

In Its Own Voice

"'tis not a being in a Battle that makes a Person a capable Judge how to describe it; every Officer has his Post which he must not depart from, and though he may be able to describe the Situation of the Troops before an Engagement, yet afterwards during the Fight, there is so much Noise, Smoak and Confusion, that for my part, I scarce can give a true Narration of what happen'd within a dozen Yards compass."

Ramkins reflects on the chaotic reality of frontline combat during the Williamite War in Ireland.

"Jacobitism (I speak of it in relation to the strong Hopes they have of succeeding by a French Power) is an incurable Distemper. I have often wonder'd to hear Persons, otherwise of great Penetration and Sense, grow constantly Delirious upon this Topick."

The author observes the persistent, self-deluding obstinacy of his fellow Jacobite conspirators.

What It's Really About

The book acts as a scathing critique of international geopolitical manipulation and political self-delusion. Beneath the episodic adventure of a soldier for hire lies a sustained argument against placing faith in foreign powers. Ramkins presents the Jacobite movement not merely as a tragic romance, but as a dangerous infatuation exploited by Louis XIV to distract Great Britain and maintain the balance of power in Europe. The narrative explores how blind ideological zeal obscures obvious truths, demonstrating how whole political factions can willfully ignore clear evidence of their own exploitation. Ultimately, the work champions pragmatic self-preservation, national sovereignty, and the sober examination of political reality over romantic loyalty to an unpromising cause.

Why Read It Today

This work offers a compelling, historical glimpse into the messy realities of early eighteenth-century warfare and espionage. Readers who enjoy military memoirs, historical fiction, and political satire will appreciate Ramkins's dry, direct voice as he maneuvers through duels, army camps, and royal courts. The prose possesses a straightforward, candid rhythm that brings the reader directly into the smoky chaos of the battlefield and the quiet corners of continental inns.

The narrative does present a few period challenges. Readers must navigate eighteenth-century capitalizations, archaic spellings, and dense historical references to the War of the Grand Alliance, the Treaty of Ryswick, and the Jacobite risings. The author assumes a reader familiar with the main political actors of 1718, and the prose occasionally pauses for extended political commentary. Nevertheless, the book remains surprisingly modern in its skepticism toward state propaganda and foreign intervention. What stays with you is Ramkins's hard-won wisdom—the unforgettable image of a soldier slowly unlearning his prejudices and emerging from decades of war with a clear, unvarnished view of human nature.