Lady Grange’s Captivity on St Kilda

Feb 25, 2025

In the annals of Scottish history, few stories are as dramatic and tragic as that of Lady Grange, born Rachel Chiesley, a woman who was kidnapped, imprisoned, and ultimately exiled to the remote island of St Kilda. Her tale is one of political intrigue, domestic discord, and a husband's ruthless ambition. For 13 years, she lived in forced isolation, far from the aristocratic circles of Edinburgh, enduring one of the most unusual imprisonments in British history.

The Fiery Woman Behind the Legend

Rachel Chiesley was born into privilege, the daughter of John Chiesley of Dalry, a notorious figure in Scottish history who was executed for the murder of a judge in 1689. This violent legacy may have shaped Rachel’s own forceful personality, for she was known for her intelligence, outspokenness, and, at times, volatile temper.

She married James Erskine, Lord Grange, a respected lawyer and politician, in 1709. Though he was deeply involved in Scotland’s political scene, Lord Grange had a secret: while publicly loyal to the British crown, he had Jacobite sympathies, aligning himself with those who sought to restore the exiled Stuart monarchy. This duplicity would later prove crucial in Rachel’s downfall.

Their marriage was far from happy. Rachel was fiercely independent and reportedly had a sharp tongue, which made her many enemies, including her husband. Over time, the couple's relationship deteriorated, and by the early 1730s, she had become an inconvenient liability to Lord Grange’s ambitions.

A Sinister Plot: The Abduction of Lady Grange

Rachel was no mere socialite; she was politically aware and knew dangerous secrets about her husband and his Jacobite connections. As tensions between them escalated, she began threatening to expose his double dealings. This put Lord Grange in a precarious position—if his Jacobite sympathies were made public, it could ruin his career and even cost him his life.

Faced with this threat, he devised an extraordinary solution: he would silence his wife by having her kidnapped and exiled.

On the night of January 22, 1732, a group of Highlanders burst into Rachel’s Edinburgh home. She was bound, gagged, and carried away in the dead of night. Over the next several weeks, she was transported across Scotland, moved secretly from one remote location to another—first to the Highlands, then to the Outer Hebrides. At every step, she was closely watched, unable to contact friends or family.

For two years, she was held on the Isle of Skye and later on the isolated island of Hesker. She made desperate attempts to send letters pleading for help, but her captors intercepted them. Eventually, fearing discovery, her jailers made the fateful decision to send her to the most remote place in Scotland: the desolate island of St Kilda.

Life in Exile: St Kilda’s Harsh Isolation

In 1734, Rachel was transported to St Kilda, a wind-battered island in the Atlantic Ocean, about 40 miles from the Outer Hebrides. Even by the standards of the time, St Kilda was a place of extreme isolation, with a small, self-sufficient community of Gaelic-speaking islanders who lived a harsh, subsistence-based life.

For nearly eight years, Lady Grange lived among the islanders, utterly cut off from the world she had once known. She was unable to speak Gaelic, further isolating her from those around her. The cold, damp climate, the primitive living conditions, and the relentless solitude must have been unbearable for a woman accustomed to the luxuries of Edinburgh’s aristocratic society.

Despite her imprisonment, Rachel never stopped fighting. She attempted to smuggle messages off the island, writing letters that she wrapped around pieces of cork, hoping that the ocean currents would carry them to safety. Some of these messages did reach the mainland, but the political climate at the time, combined with Lord Grange’s influence, ensured that no serious rescue attempt was made.

Final Years and Legacy

After almost a decade on St Kilda, Rachel was moved once again—first to Harris, then to Skye, where she spent the final years of her life under guard. She died in 1745, the same year that saw the last great Jacobite rebellion under Bonnie Prince Charlie. She never regained her freedom, nor did she see her children again.

Her abduction was an open secret among Scotland’s elite, but few dared to challenge Lord Grange. Some accounts suggest that her brother attempted to intervene, but he was unable to marshal the political power necessary to secure her release.

Over time, the story of Lady Grange became a legend, symbolizing both the power struggles of 18th-century Scotland and the personal cost of political ambition.

Reflections on a Tragic Tale

Lady Grange’s story is a chilling reminder of the vulnerabilities of women in 18th-century society, particularly those who challenged powerful men. Her forced exile was not only a personal tragedy but also a political act, demonstrating how personal vendettas could be masked as matters of state security.

Today, St Kilda is a UNESCO World Heritage site, uninhabited except for conservation workers and occasional military personnel. The ruins of the old village remain, a haunting reminder of the island's past. Somewhere among those ruins, perhaps, stood the humble stone house where Lady Grange spent her final years of captivity.

Her story, once almost forgotten, has been revived in historical accounts, novels, and even theatrical performances. It stands as a powerful testament to resilience in the face of betrayal and injustice, a tale of one woman’s indomitable spirit against overwhelming odds.