In 1773 a Doctor Beaton was summoned to help a woman give birth in the utmost secrecy, complete with cloak-and-dagger blindfolds to his location, swearing never to reveal what he had seen and to leave the country (Tuscany) etc. Beaton recognized the portrait on the wall of the room as being of James III, and the curious mixture of Italian, English and German in which he had been summoned, not to mention he had reportedly seen the masked-woman earlier - in the company of Bonnie Prince Charlie as Louise of Stolberg.
That said, the masked woman gave birth to a son who was then smuggled out of Italy in the care of Admiral O'Halloran back to Scotland.
Now, let us assume for a moment that firstly, this account is at least half-true, but with the amount of cloak-and-dagger is discarded, and that this boy would be born with as much pomp and ceremony as any legitimate heir to the English, Scottish and Irish thrones. What if Louise had really given birth to a son in 1773? According to most historians, the Jacobite movement was a dying ember post-1745, but how might this affect history of the British Isles and the world later per se?
That said, the masked woman gave birth to a son who was then smuggled out of Italy in the care of Admiral O'Halloran back to Scotland.
Now, let us assume for a moment that firstly, this account is at least half-true, but with the amount of cloak-and-dagger is discarded, and that this boy would be born with as much pomp and ceremony as any legitimate heir to the English, Scottish and Irish thrones. What if Louise had really given birth to a son in 1773? According to most historians, the Jacobite movement was a dying ember post-1745, but how might this affect history of the British Isles and the world later per se?