- 7 weeks ago
Delve into the rich tapestry of historical details woven into Outlander's captivating narrative. From the rugged Scottish Highlands to the burgeoning American colonies, this beloved series masterfully grounds its epic love story in actual events and figures. Join us as we explore the real historical moments that shaped Jamie and Claire’s journey, showcasing how Diana Gabaldon's world reflects genuine 18th-century history. Prepare to learn more about the factual underpinnings of this incredible show!
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00:00This is just the start of what America will become.
00:04Eventually it will reach all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
00:07Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 moments in Outlander
00:12that reflect real historical events as closely as possible.
00:15Spoiler alert!
00:16Masary had said we could change the future.
00:19Perhaps we already had.
00:23Number 10, Jamie Fraser.
00:25How does that feel?
00:28Yes, sir. Thank you.
00:30Technically, the dashing Highland warrior Claire falls in love with isn't real,
00:34though the character was partly inspired by a real person.
00:37Diana Gabaldon drew from Eric Linklater's book, Prince in the Heather,
00:40which mentions the only Jacobite said to have survived British execution.
00:43Following the Battle of Culloden,
00:4519 wounded Jacobite officers took refuge in a farmhouse for days,
00:49but only one narrowly escaped execution.
00:52Even those who fled the field yesterday will not get far.
00:55I heard the British troops passing by quick marks.
00:59It'll want to be hard for them to hunt down her bedraggled lot.
01:02He was a Fraser from the Master of Lovitz Regiment,
01:05and Gabaldon later used that surname for her hero.
01:07As for the name Jamie,
01:09Gabaldon borrowed it from the Doctor Who character Jamie McCrimmon.
01:12Beyond the shared name and Culloden's survival connection,
01:14the similarities between the fictional Fraser and the real one are minimal.
01:24Are you alive?
01:27Number 9.
01:27The Dress Act and Cultural Suppression
01:29Tax collectors will come to me when they know
01:33it's my land after all.
01:34Throughout seasons 1 and 2 of Outlander,
01:37we got used to seeing Jamie in his kilt,
01:39which felt like part of his identity as a proud Highlander.
01:42By season 3, that familiar look is gone.
01:44If you're wondering, it wasn't simply an artistic choice
01:47to swap Jamie's kilt for British clothing.
01:49That change is rooted in real history.
01:51Following the Jacobite defeat at the Battle of Culloden,
01:53the British passed the Dress Act of 1746,
01:56which banned traditional clothing like plaids and kilts.
01:59Because these garments were associated with rebellion,
02:01the ban was meant to suppress Highland culture
02:03and prevent further rebellion.
02:05As a result, men like Jamie had to stop wearing kilts
02:07or risk imprisonment.
02:09Yeah, Gabaldon truly knows her history.
02:11I'll manage.
02:13Number 8.
02:14Colonial America and the Politics of Revolution
02:20Like most historical dramas,
02:22Outlander takes some creative liberties,
02:24yet it incorporates many well-researched moments from history.
02:27When the story shifts to North Carolina,
02:29the series begins to mirror the deep division
02:31forming in colonial society.
02:33Before the American Revolutionary War,
02:35communities were split between those who supported independence
02:37and those who remained loyal to the crown.
02:40The show reflects this reality through its Scottish dwellers,
02:42many of whom attempted to raise loyalist forces during this conflict.
02:47I admire and respect General Fraser,
02:50but it is necessary that he should die.
02:53Caught in the middle of these competing loyalties
02:55is Jamie Fraser himself.
02:57The series sees him fight for the Patriots
02:59at the Battle of Saratoga,
03:00a true turning point for the Americans,
03:02as Claire correctly notes.
03:03Even the Cherokee storyline reflects research
03:05into the region's history.
03:16Number 7.
03:17Freedom of Religion and Freemasonry
03:19Any man can be a Mason,
03:21so long as he believes in a supreme being,
03:26as I do.
03:27In season 6,
03:28Outlander continues weaving history into its storytelling.
03:31When the story moves deeper into America,
03:33it highlights religious and ideological tensions
03:35that existed at the time.
03:37Tom Christie represents a strict Protestant value,
03:40which often clashes with Jamie's worldview.
03:42As a Freemason,
03:43Jamie attempts to maintain peace between Protestants and Catholics,
03:46uniting them under Freemasonry's core belief
03:48in one supreme being,
03:50rather than allegiance to any single religion.
03:52In a colonial world where Catholics faced persecution
03:55and the Church of England demanded conformity,
03:57Freemasonry offered a rare middle ground.
03:59That detail is historically grounded,
04:01especially considering that some of America's prominent founding fathers,
04:05including George Washington,
04:06were also Freemasons.
04:08He's your wee brother.
04:11He needs your protection.
04:13You understand?
04:14Yes, Grandpa.
04:16Number 6.
04:17Medicine.
04:17Neither one of us is a witch.
04:19It doesn't matter what you are,
04:20it's what people think you are.
04:22And people thought you were a witch
04:24long before this English last came into it.
04:26When Claire Fraser travels back in time in Outlander,
04:29she brings something incredibly powerful with her.
04:31Modern medical knowledge.
04:32It's precisely why she's branded a witch,
04:35when in reality she's simply a woman
04:36with the training of a World War II nurse.
04:38She understands sterilization, infection, and anesthesia.
04:42Concepts most 18th century doctors couldn't grasp yet.
04:45It does smell queer, doesn't it?
04:46Don't breathe it in.
04:47Don't you're falling over in the middle of an operation.
04:50The problem?
04:51She's stuck in a time without antibiotics,
04:53surgical tools, and hospitals.
04:55So Claire has to recreate modern medicine
04:57using alcohol, herbs, and whatever she can find.
05:00The show even explains how she manages to produce
05:02a dangerous, volatile substance like ether
05:04for use as anesthetic.
05:06The clash between modern medical knowledge
05:07and historical reality is part of what makes
05:10her story so compelling.
05:11He's not dead.
05:12He's just asleep.
05:14Number 5.
05:15The Gaelic.
05:23After Claire arrives in 18th century Scotland,
05:26she feels completely out of place.
05:28One big reason?
05:29She can't understand Scottish Gaelic,
05:31which puts viewers in the same position,
05:33lost alongside her.
05:34For the sake of accuracy,
05:35the show made a real effort to get the language right.
05:37I still need to walk a killer.
05:40I've seen cola maroon,
05:42nor harnavet sloy.
05:44Gabaldon conducted extensive research
05:46while writing her books.
05:47And the show went even further
05:48by hiring a Gaelic consultant,
05:50Agavobroen.
05:51He coached actors on pronunciations
05:53and ensured the dialogue reflected
05:55the correct time and region.
05:56That authenticity matters
05:57because Gaelic was widely spoken
05:59across the Scottish highlands
06:00in the 18th century.
06:01Like the kilt,
06:02it became another aspect of highland culture
06:04suppressed after the Jacobite rising.
06:11Number four,
06:12Scotts in 18th century Carolina.
06:15It was granted land.
06:17Well, the house,
06:18the sawmill,
06:19planted tobacco.
06:20Starting from season four,
06:22Outlander focuses on Jamie and Claire
06:24building their own colony in North Carolina,
06:26known as Fraser's Ridge.
06:27They're not alone.
06:28Other Scots settle there as well.
06:30That storyline reflects real patterns
06:31of Scottish emigration in the 18th century.
06:34Just like Jamie faces economic hardship
06:35after the Jacobite rising,
06:37many highlanders did too.
06:39Emigration offered a way out.
06:40Like Jamie,
06:41some received land grants,
06:43settled in North Carolina,
06:44and participated in the American Revolutionary War.
06:46One of the first major waves
06:48came in 1739,
06:49with many settling near the Cape Fear River.
06:51Even the colonial leadership
06:53reflected these colonial ties.
06:54Scottish-born Gabriel Johnston
06:56served as governor from 1734
06:58until 1752.
07:00Fiction or not,
07:01Outlander is doing a fine job
07:02teaching as history.
07:03There is established
07:04a system of land grants
07:05whereby large acreage
07:07may be given to men
07:08who would undertake
07:09to persuade numbers of emigrants
07:11to come and settle on part of it.
07:13Number three,
07:14Lord Lovett existed.
07:16It's time to talk politics
07:18with my grandson
07:19and my rival.
07:20Although Jamie Fraser is fictional,
07:22some characters in his family
07:24are loosely based
07:24on real historical figures.
07:26The Old Fox,
07:27Jamie's grandfather,
07:28is inspired by the real Scottish nobleman
07:30Simon Fraser,
07:3211th Lord Lovett.
07:33Known as one of the most notorious
07:34Highland chiefs of the 18th century,
07:36Lord Lovett played both sides.
07:38For £30,000,
07:40the British could end this rebellion
07:42before it even starts.
07:44A fair sight less
07:45than it would cost them
07:46to wage a war.
07:48In the lead up to,
07:49and during the Jacobite Rising of 1745,
07:52Lovett tried to protect himself
07:53by appearing loyal
07:54to both the British government
07:55and the Jacobite cause.
07:56But that didn't save his neck.
07:58He was ultimately executed for treason,
08:01becoming the last person
08:02to be beheaded in Britain.
08:03So that cunning,
08:04manipulative,
08:05and opportunistic character
08:06you see as Jamie's grandfather
08:07was true to historic reality.
08:09Fascinating, right?
08:11Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
08:14Oh, Christ, laddie!
08:19Number two,
08:20The Dunbonnet.
08:21I'm here for the Dunbonnet.
08:22The Dunbonnet?
08:24No one here goes by that name.
08:27I should think not openly.
08:29In Outlander Season 3,
08:31Jamie lives in hiding
08:32to avoid capture by the British
08:33after the Battle of Culloden.
08:35To protect his identity,
08:36locals who helped him
08:37called him Dunbonnet.
08:39Once again,
08:39Outlander draws from real history.
08:41There was indeed a Fraser chief
08:43who hid in the cave
08:44for seven years,
08:45like Jamie did,
08:45and was called Dunbonnet.
08:47With this nickname,
08:48locals could discuss him
08:49without the British troops
08:50realizing they were talking
08:51about a fugitive.
08:52The cave is believed
08:53to be located near
08:54Fall of Foyers,
08:55close to Loch Ness.
08:56If you're looking for
08:56the exact cave,
08:57that might be a difficult task.
08:59Both the fictional
09:00and real-life caves
09:01are located in
09:02undisclosed parts of Scotland.
09:04If you were to say that
09:05in the 20th century,
09:07you would be the king
09:08of all men.
09:17Before we continue,
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09:28Where are you,
09:30my love so near?
09:31Say the word
09:32and I'll appear.
09:33I wrote this song
09:34just for you
09:35to tell you
09:36what I always knew.
09:43number one.
09:45The Battle of Culloden.
09:52Although Outlander
09:53is primarily a romantic
09:54time travel story
09:55about Claire and Jamie,
09:56it places their story
09:57within major historical events.
09:59One of the most important
10:00is the Battle of Culloden,
10:02which ended the Jacobite Rising
10:03led by Charles Edward Stewart.
10:04The battle happens
10:05at the end of Season 2,
10:07with Claire and Jamie
10:08desperately trying to stop
10:09the Jacobite Rebellion.
10:10But history plays out
10:11as it must.
10:12According to history,
10:13it lasted less than an hour
10:15with a smaller force of Jacobite
10:17facing a far larger British army.
10:19The aftermath was devastating.
10:21Thousands of Jacobite lives
10:22were lost
10:22and their cause
10:23effectively crushed.
10:24The British government
10:25then passed laws
10:26to weaken the clan culture,
10:28nearly dismantling
10:28the traditional
10:29Highland way of life.
10:30Tell me!
10:31Tell me who won!
10:33The Battle of Culloden!
10:34Tell me!
10:34Tell me now!
10:35In the British!
10:36Cumberland in the British!
10:38You let me go!
10:41Which of these historical moments
10:43is the most fascinating?
10:44Let us know in the comments.
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