CliffsNotes on Stevenson's Treasure Island & Kidnapped

Ending my little R. L. Stevenson adventure, i pulled out the Cliffs Notes for Kidnapped to see if it helped me better like the book, and it did a little, but not much......I learned what a Jacobite is (was) sort of......but the intricate relationships leading to war still completely elude me. And i have to wonder who his audience was when the book was initially written that understood it any better....after all, it was written as a children's adventure book and maybe they were really up on these Scottish tribal battles, but it would be surprising.....onward and upward....