The plaque to the Irish soldiers at Culloden
The Irish soldiers at Culloden were regulars from the French army and were treated honorably as prisoners of war, unlike the Highland Scots, who were considered traitors and rebels.
During the 18th century, an ambitious Irish Catholic man had no choice but to go abroad, because of the Penal Code enforced by the British colonizers at that time in Ireland, which condemned more than 95% of the population to the role of illiterate peasants. Many Irishmen served in the armies of Austria, Spain and France in these years.