Book
Following the Drum with Corporal John
First published 2024
Scotland, 1701. Davie Flockhart escapes the hereditary bondage imposed on Scottish colliers and joins the army, hoping military service will place him beyond the reach of his owner, Lord Eskbank. Instead he is carried through the battles of Blenheim and Ramillies while agents pursue him as stolen property.
Supported by fellow soldiers and Rachel, a resilient camp follower, Flockhart’s fight for survival becomes a struggle to be recognised as a free person. The War of the Spanish Succession provides the vast military setting, but the novel’s central historical issue is the limited freedom of labourers whose legal status could follow them even into an army fighting abroad.
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