Pretty Young Rebel: Author Lecture with Flora Fraser

Home Plan Your Visit Calendar Special Events

In this probing, evocative portrait of a tumultuous life, master historian Flora Fraser peels away the layers of misinformation, legend, and myth to reveal a fascinating picture of this headstrong and irrepressible woman named Flora Macdonald. This is the captivating biography of the remarkable young Scotswoman whose bold decision to help “Bonnie” Prince Charlie—the Stuart claimant to the British throne—evade capture and flee the country has become the stuff of legend.

A book signing and reception with complimentary beer, wine, and hors-d'oeuvres will take place after the lecture. 

This event is part of the 2023 Michelle Smith Lecture Series. Tickets are available only as a three-lecture package.

Member Tickets

In PersonVirtualBuy the Book

General Public Tickets

In PersonVirtual

The Michelle Smith Lecture Series is supported by an endowment established by a generous grant from the late Robert H. and Clarice Smith.
Add to Calendar 04/13/2023 19:00:00 04/13/2023 20:00:00 America/New_York Pretty Young Rebel: Author Lecture with Flora Fraser

In this probing, evocative portrait of a tumultuous life, master historian Flora Fraser peels away the layers of misinformation, legend, and myth to reveal a fascinating picture of this headstrong and irrepressible woman named Flora Macdonald. This is the captivating biography of the remarkable young Scotswoman whose bold decision to help “Bonnie” Prince Charlie—the Stuart claimant to the British throne—evade capture and flee the country has become the stuff of legend.

A book signing and reception with complimentary beer, wine, and hors-d'oeuvres will take place after the lecture. 

This event is part of the 2023 Michelle Smith Lecture Series. Tickets are available only as a three-lecture package.

Member Tickets

In PersonVirtualBuy the Book

General Public Tickets

In PersonVirtual

The Michelle Smith Lecture Series is supported by an endowment established by a generous grant from the late Robert H. and Clarice Smith.
 George Washington's Mount Vernon George Washington's Mount Vernon tickets@mountvernon.org MM/DD/YYYY 15

Special Event Showing On

Cost

3-Lecture Series:
In-person: $150 for members, $175 for non-members (subscribers will receive the virtual link)
Virtual: $40 for members, $55 for non-members

Location

In-person Attendees:
Robert H. and Clarice Smith Auditorium located in the Mount Vernon Inn complex

Virtual Attendees:
Tune in to our online broadcast

The Michelle Smith Lecture Series

Special Events Today at Mount Vernon
Online Event
On-site event
More Events

Pretty Young Rebel: The Life of Flora Macdonald

After his decisive defeat at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, Prince Charles Edward Stuart was a man on the run. Seeking refuge in Scotland's Outer Hebrides, hoping to escape to France, he found an unlikely ally in Flora Macdonald, a young woman in her early twenties, loyal to the Stuarts. Disguising the prince as an Irish maid, petticoats and all, Flora conveyed Charles by boat to Skye, where they lodged safely with her family, until the prince’s inexpert handling of feminine attire caused concern, and he was persuaded to forgo the ruse before fleeing the area undetected. Flora never saw him again.

This famous incident led to Flora’s enduring appeal as a courageous Scottish heroine, inspiring and influencing countless novels, poems, and songs—most notably, the classic ballad “Skye Boat Song” adapted from a traditional tune in the late nineteenth century. But her remarkable life didn’t come to a close with her clandestine mission to Skye. Faced with a confession from one of the boatmen, Flora was arrested and taken to London on charges of treason, where under interrogation, she wittily deflected questions and staunchly defended her motives. She was eventually released under the 1747 Act of Indemnity, but disaster would befall her yet again: in 1774, Flora and her husband, Allan Macdonald, fled the impoverished highlands for a brighter future in Cross Creek, North Carolina—utterly unaware of the burgeoning revolution that would upend their lives there, with Allan imprisoned and Flora fleeing, penniless, back home to the Hebrides.

In this probing, evocative portrait of a tumultuous life, master historian Flora Fraser peels away the layers of misinformation, legend, and myth to reveal Flora Macdonald in full. Fraser presents a fascinating picture of this headstrong and irrepressible woman. As Samuel Johnson declared upon visiting her in Scotland, her name was “a name that will be mentioned in history, and if courage and fidelity be virtues, mentioned with honor.”

Flora Fraser

Flora Fraser is an award-winning British biographer. She is the author of Beloved Emma: The Life of Emma, Lady Hamilton; The Unruly Queen: The Life of Queen Caroline; Princesses: The Six Daughters of George III; and Pauline Bonaparte: Venus of Empire. Her book, The Washingtons, won the 2016 George Washington Prize. She is chair of the Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography, established in 2003 in affectionate memory of her biographer grandmother. She was awarded Mount Vernon’s 2017 Georgian Papers Fellowship during which time she undertook research among those Papers in the Royal Archives at Windsor Castle, in the Washington Library, and elsewhere in the U.S. for Pretty Young Rebel.

Contact

Stephen A. McLeod

Director, Library Programs

703.799.8686

smcleod@mountvernon.org

Share this event
Mail

#gwmountvernon

Login
Buy Tickets

Quick Links

Activities Calendar Shop Restaurant Give Membership
Estate Hours

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

iconDirections & Parking
buy tickets online & save