Overview, Characters, and Chapters 1–2
Difficulty: Beginner to Intermediate | Prerequisites: None. Familiarity with 18th-century Scottish history is helpful but not required.
David Balfour, a 17-year-old orphan from the Scottish Lowlands, is cheated out of his inheritance by his uncle Ebenezer and kidnapped onto a ship bound for slavery in the American colonies. He befriends Alan Breck Stewart, a Jacobite Highland fugitive, and the two survive a shipwreck, witness the murder of a government agent, and flee across the Scottish Highlands together. David eventually returns to claim his rightful estate, while Alan escapes to France.
Jacobite / the Forty-Five
A supporter of the exiled Stuart royal family's claim to the British throne. The "Forty-Five" refers to the 1745 Jacobite rising led by Bonnie Prince Charlie, which ended in defeat at the Battle of Culloden in 1746. In simple terms, Jacobites were Scots (mostly Highlanders) who fought to put the Stuart king back on the throne and lost.
Highlander
A person from the Scottish Highlands, the mountainous northern and western region of Scotland. Highlanders were organised into clans, spoke Gaelic, and were culturally distinct from Lowland Scots. Think of them as the rural, clan-based communities of Scotland, often at odds with the English-backed government.
Lowlander
A person from the Scottish Lowlands, the flatter southern and eastern region including Edinburgh. Lowlanders generally spoke English (or Scots), were more urban and commercially oriented, and were largely loyal to King George. David Balfour is a Lowlander.
Clan
A kinship group in Highland Scotland, led by a chief. Members shared a surname and territory, owed loyalty to the chief, and could be called to fight. Think of it as an extended family with a political and military structure.
House of Shaws
The Balfour family estate near Cramond, outside Edinburgh. It is the inheritance that drives the novel's plot. When David arrives, the house is half-built and decaying, a physical symbol of the family's broken state.
Round-house
The large cabin at the top of the ship where the captain and officers eat and sleep. It serves as a defensive stronghold during the battle between Alan Breck and the crew. In simple terms, it is the ship's main cabin, raised above deck.
Dominie
A Scottish word for a schoolteacher. David's father was the dominie of Essendean.
Plaid
A large piece of tartan cloth worn wrapped around the body, used as both clothing and blanket by Highlanders.
The Appin Murder
The shooting of Colin Campbell ("the Red Fox"), a government agent sent to evict Stewart clansmen from their land in Appin. This event is based on a real historical incident from 1752. In the novel, David witnesses it and is wrongly accused of involvement.
The novel is set in 1751, six years after the failed Jacobite rising of 1745. Understanding this backdrop is essential, because every relationship and conflict in the story grows out of the political fault lines it created.
In 1745, Bonnie Prince Charlie led Highland clans in a rebellion to restore the Stuart monarchy. The rising ended in crushing defeat at Culloden in April 1746.
After Culloden, the British government set about dismantling Highland culture. Clan chiefs lost their legal powers. Tartan and weapons were banned. English soldiers occupied the Highlands and evicted families from their land.
By 1751 (the year of the novel), the Highlands were under military occupation. Jacobite sympathisers who had fled to France sometimes sent money back to their clansmen. Alan Breck is one of these couriers.
The novel draws a clear cultural line between the Highlands and the Lowlands. David is a Lowlander: English-speaking, Protestant, loyal to King George, and unfamiliar with clan politics.
Alan is a Highlander: Gaelic-speaking, fiercely loyal to his clan (the Stewarts), hostile to the Campbells and the English government, and comfortable living as a fugitive.
Much of the novel's tension comes from these two men being thrown together despite their opposite backgrounds and loyalties.
The Campbells were the most powerful clan in the western Highlands and had sided with the government. After Culloden, the Campbells helped the English army evict rival clans, including the Stewarts of Appin.
Colin Campbell ("the Red Fox") was sent to Appin to drive the Stewarts from their land. His murder in 1752 (moved to 1751 in the novel) is a real historical event. James Stewart of the Glens was tried and hanged for it in a Campbell court, though the actual killer was never identified.
Stevenson weaves this real incident into the plot, using it to bind David and Alan together as fugitives.
Kidnapped was published in 1886 by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is a historical adventure novel, written as a first-person narrative by David Balfour.
This Oxford Bookworms edition is a simplified retelling by Clare West at Stage 3 (1000 headwords), condensed into five chapters. The plot follows the original closely, though language and detail are simplified for English-language learners.
17 years old, orphaned, from the village of Essendean in the Scottish Lowlands.
Son of Alexander Balfour, the former dominie (schoolteacher). His mother is also dead.
Brave but naive. He trusts Captain Hoseason too easily and does not initially recognise his uncle's murderous intentions.
A Lowlander and supporter of King George, but he grows to respect and love Alan despite their political differences.
His character arc moves from innocence to experience: by the novel's end he has survived betrayal, shipwreck, murder, and weeks of flight through the Highlands.
A Jacobite Highlander, member of the Stewart clan. His father is Duncan Stewart.
Has been living in exile in France since the Forty-Five, and travels secretly to Scotland to carry money from exiled Jacobites to their clansmen.
Proud, vain (especially about his fighting and his fine French clothes), brave, and fiercely loyal.
Gives David a silver button from his coat as a token of brotherhood after their battle in the round-house.
Suspected of involvement in the Appin Murder. He denies planning it but admits he would protect the killer.
David's uncle, the younger brother of Alexander Balfour.
Lives alone in the decaying, half-built House of Shaws. Miserly, fearful, and dishonest.
Stole the family estate from his older brother Alexander. When David appears as the rightful heir, Ebenezer first tries to kill him (the staircase), then pays Captain Hoseason to kidnap him.
At the novel's end, he is tricked into confessing the kidnapping and agrees to pay David an annual income.
Captain of the brig Covenant. Outwardly polite but ruthless.
Accepts Ebenezer's money to kidnap David and sell him as a slave in the Carolinas.
Plans to murder Alan Breck and steal his gold, but is defeated in the round-house battle.
Keeps his promise to take Alan to Loch Linnhe after losing the fight, but his ship hits rocks near Earraid and sinks.
Mr Riach is the second officer. He shows some kindness to David, insisting the captain move him out of the hold. Described as a decent man with a drinking problem.
Mr Shuan is the first officer. He kills the cabin boy Ransome while drunk. After the murder he loses his grip on reality. He is killed by Alan during the round-house battle.
A young boy who serves the officers in the round-house. Beaten regularly by Mr Shuan.
Murdered by Shuan in a drunken rage. David is forced to take his place.
His death foreshadows the violence aboard the ship and reveals the moral corruption of the officers.
A historical figure. A government agent (a Campbell) sent to Appin to evict the Stewart clan from their land.
Shot dead in David's presence. His murder sets up the fugitive flight that dominates the second half of the novel.
Head of the Stewart clan in Appin. Alan's clansman and friend.
Shelters Alan and David briefly, but warns that he will have to publicly accuse them of Campbell's murder to protect his own family.
Based on a real historical figure who was tried and hanged for the Appin Murder.
A kind, shrewd lawyer in Queensferry who knew David's father.
Confirms that David is the rightful heir to the House of Shaws.
Helps David devise the plan to trick Ebenezer into confessing.
A Highland clan chief who has been hiding from the English army since the Forty-Five.
Lives in a well-hidden cave. He takes in David and Alan, but gambles away their money at cards (returning it when confronted).
In June 1751, David Balfour leaves Essendean after both his parents have died. His father's dying instruction is to deliver a letter to the House of Shaws, near Cramond, and put it into the hands of Ebenezer Balfour.
David walks north for two days, passing Edinburgh and arriving at Cramond. The locals react with fear and hostility when he mentions Ebenezer's name. A woman tells him "Blood built it, blood stopped the building of it, and blood shall bring it down" and says she hopes to see Ebenezer die.
The House of Shaws turns out to be a half-built ruin with no road, no garden, and missing sections of roof. Ebenezer is a small, mean, white-faced old man in a dirty nightshirt who lives in near-darkness, eating porridge and hoarding money in locked chests.
Ebenezer reluctantly acknowledges David as his nephew. He gives David 38 English pounds (painfully), then sends him to climb an unfinished staircase at the far end of the house to fetch a chest. There is no light. The stairs end abruptly 20 metres above the ground, with no railing. A flash of lightning reveals the drop. David realises his uncle has tried to murder him.
David confronts Ebenezer, who collapses. The next morning, Ebenezer suggests they walk to Queensferry to see Mr Rankeillor, a lawyer who can explain everything. At Queensferry, David meets Captain Hoseason and learns from a local innkeeper that his father Alexander was the older brother, meaning the House of Shaws rightfully belongs to David.
The captain tricks David onto his ship. Once aboard, David sees the boat carrying his uncle back to shore. He screams for help. Something hits his head, and he falls unconscious.
David leaves Essendean with his father's letter
Arrives at the ruined House of Shaws
Meets his uncle Ebenezer, who is clearly frightened by David's arrival
Ebenezer gives David money, then tries to kill him on the unfinished staircase
David learns from the Queensferry innkeeper that Alexander was the older brother
Captain Hoseason lures David onto the ship; Ebenezer watches from the departing boat
Inheritance and betrayal are established as the novel's central conflicts. Ebenezer has stolen the estate, and his response to David's arrival is attempted murder followed by kidnapping.
The House of Shaws works as a symbol. It is physically unfinished, just as the Balfour family line is fractured. Its decay mirrors Ebenezer's moral decay.
David's naivety is on full display. He trusts the captain despite warning signs, and he goes aboard the ship willingly. This naivety is what sets the adventure in motion.
First-person narration lets us see David's thought process in real time, including his moments of poor judgement, which makes his growth across the novel more visible.
David wakes in the dark hold of the ship with a head injury, unable to move his hands or feet. He realises he has been kidnapped and that his uncle and Captain Hoseason planned it together. The ship is sailing to the Carolinas, where Hoseason intends to sell David as a slave.
Mr Riach, the second officer, takes pity on David and insists the captain move him out of the hold. David is placed in a cabin with the sailors, who treat him kindly and tell him about their families. He learns the ship is heading to North America.
David also learns about the cabin boy Ransome, who is regularly beaten by Mr Shuan, the violent, drunken first officer. One night, Shuan kills Ransome. The captain tells David to take Ransome's place serving food and drink in the round-house. David sees Ransome's body, white and still, as it is carried out.
In the round-house, David witnesses the officers' guilt over Ransome's death. The captain tells Mr Riach they will say the boy fell into the sea. Shuan seems unable to remember what he did.
About a week later, while sailing through fog off the north Scottish coast, the ship hits and sinks a small boat. One man survives by grabbing the ship's side: Alan Breck Stewart. He is brought into the round-house.
Alan is well-dressed (a hat with feathers, a blue coat with silver buttons, a sword) and carrying a purse full of gold. He tells Hoseason he is a Jacobite, has been in France, and needs passage to Loch Linnhe. He will pay 60 pounds.
Hoseason agrees, but David overhears the captain and officers plotting to kill Alan and steal his gold. David warns Alan, and the two prepare to defend the round-house.
Alan gives David a pistol. The crew attacks. Alan fights with his sword, driving men back through the door. David guards the window and shoots attackers who try to enter. Mr Shuan is killed by Alan's sword. Several sailors fall. The crew retreats.
After the battle, Alan embraces David and declares, "I love ye like a brother." He cuts a silver button from his coat and gives it to David: wherever David shows the button, friends of the Stewarts will help him.
The next morning, Hoseason keeps his promise to take Alan to Loch Linnhe, but warns that without Shuan, navigation will be difficult. As they round the island of Earraid, near Mull, the ship strikes a rock. David is knocked into the sea.
David wakes in the hold, kidnapped and bound for the Carolinas
Mr Riach gets David moved to a cabin; David learns the ship's destination
Mr Shuan kills Ransome; David replaces him in the round-house
Alan Breck Stewart is rescued from a sinking boat
David overhears the murder plot and warns Alan
The battle in the round-house: Alan and David defeat the crew
Alan gives David the silver button
The ship strikes rocks near Earraid; David is thrown into the sea
Alan's introduction is a turning point. Up to this moment, David has been passive, acted upon by others. When he chooses to warn Alan rather than help the crew steal his gold, David makes his first real moral decision.
The round-house battle cements the David-Alan friendship. They fight side by side despite being political opposites (David supports King George; Alan is a Jacobite). Shared danger overrides ideology.
Class and appearance matter. Alan's fine French clothes and confident manner mark him as someone important. Hoseason notices the gold and the clothes before he notices the man. The captain's greed drives the plot.
Ransome's death serves as a moral barometer. The officers' willingness to cover up the murder of a child tells us everything about the ship's moral climate and foreshadows the later plot to murder Alan.
The silver button is a key symbol. It represents loyalty across cultural boundaries. A Lowland boy now carries a Jacobite Highland clan's token of friendship.
"Ebenezer is the older brother." He is not. Alexander (David's father) was the older brother and the rightful owner of the House of Shaws. Ebenezer is the younger brother who took the estate after Alexander left. This is the central injustice of the plot.
"David is kidnapped because he is poor and unimportant." The opposite is true. He is kidnapped precisely because he is the legitimate heir. Ebenezer pays Hoseason to remove David so the inheritance question never reaches a lawyer.
"Alan Breck is a criminal." Alan is a political fugitive, not a common criminal. He fought for the Jacobite cause and now lives in exile in France. His "crime" is loyalty to a defeated political movement. He carries money for clansmen, not stolen goods.
"The round-house battle is just an action scene." It is the moment David chooses sides and demonstrates courage. His decision to warn Alan rather than help the crew is a moral turning point, not simply a fight sequence.
The inheritance dispute (who is the rightful heir) drives every event in the first two chapters. Be able to explain why Ebenezer wants David dead or gone.
The contrast between David (Lowlander, King George supporter, naive) and Alan (Highlander, Jacobite, experienced) is a core exam theme. Expect questions about how their differences create both conflict and friendship.
The silver button is a symbol that crosses cultural lines. If asked about symbolism, this is one of the strongest examples in the text.
Captain Hoseason's dual nature (polite to David's face, willing to kidnap and murder for profit) is a good example to cite when discussing the theme of appearance versus reality.
Ransome's death is important for what it reveals about the crew, not just as a plot event. It shows the reader that violence is normal on the ship and that those in power cover up their crimes.
Tags: Kidnapped, Robert Louis Stevenson, Oxford Bookworms, Level 3, Stage 3, David Balfour, Alan Breck Stewart, Ebenezer Balfour, House of Shaws, Jacobite, Forty-Five, Scottish Highlands, Scottish Lowlands, clan, Campbell, Stewart, round-house battle, kidnapping, inheritance, historical fiction, adventure, first-person narrative, 18th century Scotland