(in 17th- and 18th-century Britain) a supporter of King James II of England (James VII of Scotland) after he lost power to William III in 1688, or, after James’s death, a supporter of his son James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender ) or grandson Charles Edward Stuart ( Bonny Prince Charlie ). James II and his son and grandson were members of a Scottish family, the House of Stuart, and most Jacobites were Scottish.
See also Jacobite rebellions .