Steel and Tartan - The 4th Cameron Highlanders in the Great War: A Review

There have been many histories written about Scottish battalions in the First World War. Many of these were published in the 1920s and 30s, and remain fascinating time capsules, written by men who had served in the trenches themselves.

Lately there have been newer additions to the list of battalion histories, most notably Jack Alexander’s McCrae’s Battalion about the 16th Battalion Royal Scots and Come On Highlanders!, Alec Weir’s history of the Glasgow Highlanders.

Steel and Tartan, Patrick Watt’s history of the 4th Bn Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders in the Great War, is a worthy addition to the list of titles covering Scottish units.

The 4th Camerons time on the Western Front was brief; spanning just over a year from February 1915 until they were disbanded in March 1916 but their time was not uneventful. They fought hard and suffered heavy casualties at the battles of Neuve Chapelle, Aubers Ridge, Festubert, Givenchy, and of course the Battle of Loos in September 1915. Watt covers all these engagements in remarkable detail.

This is an extremely well-researched book and while it may appear to be slimmer than some battalion histories, it packs in an enormous amount of detail. Each battle is covered well and because the Camerons place in the order of battle is well explained you can understand the context of the actions they fought in.

The book does not restrict itself to the 4th Camerons time on the Western Front; the period leading up to their deployment, as well as a resume of their time after disbandment rounds off a detailed and extensive history. Regular readers of this Blog may remember that we covered the disbandment of the 4th Cameron Highlanders in 1916 in one of our ‘On this day…’ articles.

A large number of appendices are the icing on the cake – they make up a complete list of the officers and men who served, and there are also detailed Rolls of Honour for all the men who gave their lives while serving with the battalion. Another appendix gives detailed biographies of each officer, detailing their time with the battalion and subsequent history, in many cases completing the picture of their lives until their deaths.

This book deserves to sit on bookshelves alongside the best of the regimental histories of the First World War. It paints a complete picture of the life of a fighting unit in the trenches and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Steel and Tartan is published by The History Press, and can be purchased from their website.

You can also purchase it together with Scotland on the Frontline: A Photographic History of Scottish Forces 1939-45 for the price of £25 and free postage simply by using the code HPScot12 at the History Press website. But hurry, as this code is only valid until the 1st of July.

Scottish Regiments in TV Programmes and Films

A few years ago I compiled this list of Scottish regiments I had seen in films and television programmes. It has been a while since I updated it so recent appearances of Scottish troops on large or small screen may not have not been noted. If anyone can add any more, or correct any mistakes please leave a comment here or on our facebook page.

Note that most entries are for highland regiments. As far as I know, no KOSB or HLI soldiers have featured in a film.

Real Regiments

Scots Guards

TV Film ‘Tumbledown’ – Robert Lawrence’s story based on his own book about his time with the Scots Guards before and during the Falklands Conflict.

TV Drama ‘The Camomile Lawn’ – Character Hector is in Scots Gds in WW2. Service Dress tunic on screen is of Grenadiers but his wife refers to the three button spacing of his tunic in another scene.

Film ‘Paratrooper’ – Harry Andrews’s Para RSM is ex-Scots Guards.

Royal Scots Greys

Film ‘Waterloo’ – Charge of the Union Brigade. See also Gordons

Royal Scots Fusiliers

TV Series - Poirot special. Chronologically the first story but not first one made. See also unknowns

Black Watch

Film ‘The Sand Pebbles’ – Extras in scenes in Shanghai Bund

TV Series ‘Strathblair’ – Son is a Black Watch Major

TV Series ‘Monarch of the Glen’ – Flashback special where one character is a Boer War period Black Watch officer.

Film ‘Gunga Din’ – Easy to identify British soldiers for the US movie goers

Film ‘Soldiers Three’ – Easy to identify British soldiers for the US movie goers

Film ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ Black Watch on march behind Allenby in one scene

TV series ‘Northern Exposure’ – The former astronaut’s father or grandfather was an ex- Black Watch piper. His kilt and pipes are found in his loft.

Seaforth Highlanders

TV Series - Evelyn Waugh autobiographical comedy / drama – One of the officers wears a Seaforth glengarry

Film ‘Tobruk’ - Nigel Green’s colonel is a Seaforth.

Film ‘Appointment with Venus’ – David Niven as Seaforth Commando

TV Series - Blood Red Roses – Crippled father is a Seaforth. Fought in N.Africa, Italy N.W. Europe and Norway in the script. No Seaforths in Norway.

74th Highlanders

Film 'The Rare Breed'- James Stewart Western about breeding cattle. Brian Keith is a rival rancher and Scottish ex-soldier who turns up in 74th Full Dress to impress Maureen O'Hara. Keith’s ridiculous accent is more than matched by the fiery thatch of ginger facial hair he sports. (Rip Torn recreates this ridiculous combination of hair and tortured accent as a drunken Scottish sailor in Goldie Hawn / Kurt Russell comedy ‘Swept Away’)

Gordon Highlanders

TV Series ‘The Monoc’led Mutineer’ – Involved in rioting in town.

Film ‘Waterloo’ – Several scenes. See also Scots Greys

Film ‘Zeppelin’ – Michael York as a half-German, half-Scots Gordon

Film ‘The Heroes of the Krait’ Gordons officer leading Operation Rimau against Japs – all captured, tortured and beheaded.

Film ‘The Highest Honour’ Gordons officer leading Operation Rimau against Japs – all captured, tortured and beheaded.

TV Series ‘The Heroes’ Gordons officer leading Operation Rimau against Japs – all captured, tortured and beheaded.

Film ‘The Drum’ – Volunteers from regiment help Political Officer Roger Livesey on North West Frontier during the 1930’s

Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders

TV Film ‘Kim’ – Deserter is a Cameron

Film ‘Whisky Galore’ – Island in Inverness-shire. Home Guard in Camerons uniform

Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders

Film ‘Too Late the Hero’ South-East Asia 1941/42

Film ‘To End All Wars’ – Several key characters are Argylls

Film ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ – 93rd Highlanders

Film ‘The Captive Heart’ – Blind Gordon Jackson is an Argyll. See also unknown regiment section.

Recent TV Film ‘The Thirty Nine Steps’ – Set in 1914. Wrong sporrans.

The Highland Regiment

TV Sitcom ‘Dad’s Army'

Canadian Scots

Film ‘The Devil’s Brigade’ – Canadian contingent led by Pipe Band. Several Canadian Scots regiments represented.

Seaforth Highlanders of Canada

Film ‘Paratrooper’ Alan Ladd joins Paras via Seaforths of Canada. Also Harry Andrews is an ex-Scots Guards RSM

Unknown regiments

Poirot special – In military hospital red tartan kilt. Canadians? See also RSF

Film ‘The Captive Heart’ – Reformed 51st Div personnel used as extras playing captured 51st Div. men using real POW camp in Germany for film set. See also Argylls

Film ‘The Man who Would be King’ Sean Connery and Michael Caine laughing about one of the pipers in their old regiment during their campaign in Afghanistan. Could be 72nd or 92nd Highlanders?

Confused Soldiers

Sean Connery in 'Murder on the Orient Express' is a Royal Scot in one scene and a Scots Guard in another

Richard Todd is referred to as a Cameronian and but dressed as a Cameron Highlander in the ‘Hasty Heart’. Both regiments had battalions in Burma where it is set.

Made-up Regiments

Caledonian Highlanders - Film ‘Bonnie Scotland’ Laurel & Hardy. Uniform based on Black Watch and Camerons

Spofforth Highlanders - Film ‘The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer’. The Colonel of the Regiment, Julian Glover, is bribed to steal the Swiss gold reserves for Britain to avoid amalgamation. Can’t remember uniform details (Camerons?)

Third Foot and Mouth - Film ‘Carry-on Up the Khyber’ – Uniformed as Camerons

Un-named Highland Regiments

Film ‘Tunes of Glory’ - Hunting Scot tartan for the kilts. Lion rampant replaced the St Andrew of the Cameron's badge. The regiment in the book is based on Gordon Highlanders. See also the book George McDonald Fraser’s ‘The General Danced at Dawn’ which has characters very obviously based on the same real life people as Kennoway’s ‘Tunes of Glory’)

TV Series ‘The Avengers’. Episode from 1st series ‘Esprit de Corps’. Duncan MacRae. Roy Kinnear, John Thaw. 1960s Jacobites in Camerons uniform.

Film ‘The Amorous Prawn’ hard up General uses his HQ as a Country house hotel. Camerons? turn up at the end.

Film ‘Bedknobs and Broomsticks’ – Song & Dance scene in Portobello Road. Uniform of government tartan kilt, Black Watch bonnet badge (Not hackle).

TV Pathologist Series from early 1990’s. Officer Presiding at a Court martial. QOHldrs glengarry with a thistle badge. Couldn’t identify kilt.

Film ‘You Must be Joking’ – Several military / secret service folk are set some tasks around London to assess their suitability for a mission. Lionel Jeffries as Sgt. Maj. McGregor turns up in Full Dress including feather bonnet. Argyll uniform?

Others

I have a feeling that Alexander Korda had a Highland regiment in his Sudan shots in ‘The Four Feathers’. This story has been remade several times and pretty much all of them re-used Korda’s footage so there may well be several more films with these Highlanders in them.

I’m not sure that ‘Young Winston’ has some Highlanders in the Battle of Omdurman scenes but it has been many years since I have seen that film so can’t be sure. The Seaforths and Camerons were both involved in this Campaign. In the same film Edward Woodward plays an officer in the Boer War train derailment scene. In real life Churchill was travelling with Royal Dublin Fusiliers but in the film I’m pretty sure the officer had a helmet flash of the Douglas tartan of the Cameronians.

Motivated by family's sacrifice

We've covered the story of the Cranston family on the blog before.

Here is an update from the East Lothian Courier

Motivated by family's sacrifice

Bryan Copland • Published 25 Aug 2011

A DESCENDANT of a Haddington family which was decimated during the First World War will next month travel to the town from Australia in his quest to have the family's loss commemorated.

Stuart Pearson, from Sydney, Australia, is a distant relative of the Cranston family - which lost four of its nine sons at war and another two were horrifically injured. Only one of the seven who went to war returned unscathed.

It is widely believed that this may rank among the most significant sacrifices made by a Scottish family in the Great War.

Mr Pearson has never been to Scotland before but has been in regular contact with local author and historian Bob Mitchell - with whom he is co-writing a book about the Cranstons - as well as the town's community council and East Lothian councillors.

A reunion of all the Scottish descendants of the Cranstons will take place on Saturday, September 17, while another Australian descendant will also attend.

While here, Mr Pearson also wants to discuss the possibility of an appropriate memorial to the family.

Mr Pearson has previously suggested that a stone cairn, or naming a street or local park after the family, would be a suitable tribute - though Haddington Community Council has been reluctant to provide a dedicated memorial without putting the loss into context, as it is concerned it may overshadow other families' losses during the war.

Mr Pearson said: "A previous request [for a memorial] was declined but this Antipodean descendant would like another opportunity to present his case, this time in person.

"It is my opinion that this remarkable Haddington family who made such an extraordinary (perhaps unprecedented) sacrifice, suffered such devastation yet ultimately survived should have their story told. They should be commemorated in writing and in stone.

"As we near the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, I hope that a memorial to the Cranston family could become a metaphor for every Scottish family's loss during that terrible event."

The Childers Reforms - On this day on Scottish military history - 1881

1st July 1881 was the date when the Childers Reforms of the British Army were implemented. On that date the old numbered regiments of the army officially disappeared, and many new paired regiments first appeared on the Army List.

The first twenty five regiments of foot already had two battalions so there was very little change for them. For the 26th Foot and the regiments numbered above that then a new name was needed and old traditions and uniform distinctions had to be agreed on. For Highland regiments there was an added twist to this amalgamation because the uniform for each regiment was so distinctive and in many ways so different.

In some cases the pairing led to one battalion completely taking over the identity of the other. The 92nd Highlanders were the junior partner in the amalgamation with the 75th Stirlingshire Regiment but it was the 75th who took on the uniform and name of the Gordon Highlanders. In fact in all cases where kilted regiment amalgamated with a trewed regiment, the new regiment ended up wearing the kilt.

In 1881 there were ten Highland regiments on the army establishment but only five wore kilts. The rest wore trews. The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th and 91st Highlanders had originally been raised as highland regiments in kilts, but in 1809 they had been clothed as line infantry. They had only been allowed to assume a highland identity after hard battles with Horse Guards in London but it was in kilts not trews in which they were clothed.

The 1st Royal Scots, 21st Royal Scots Fusiliers, 26th Cameronians, and 90th Perthshire Light Infantry were all Scottish regiments too, but until 1881 wore the standard line infantry uniform used by English, Welsh and Irish regiments. In 1881 that all changed. Scottish regiments from Lowland to Highland adopted diced bands, tartan and doublets.

Over the years stories have surfaced of the unhappy unions, and the fights over traditions and uniforms. In the Highland Light Infantry the 1st Battalion continued to call itself the 71st, and the 2nd Bn continued to call itself the 74th and each continued to use traditions and uniform distinctions peculiar to their old regiments.

This is understandable given the forced union between many regiments. However that shouldn't have been the case. Since 1873 the infantry regiments of Scotland had been operating a linked depot scheme introduced by the Cardwell Reforms. Each pair of regiments shared a depot in one location which had counties assigned to it for recruiting. Then while one regiment was abroad on overseas imperial duties its linked regiment at home in the UK (including Ireland) would train the new recruits and send drafts of reinforcements when needed. The system worked well and the pairings seemed to suit both parties.

Here are the links and the depots used Between 1873 and 1881 by the Scottish regiments

1st Royal Scots - (2 battalion regiment) at Glencorse
21st Royal Scots Fusiliers - (2 battalion regiment) at Ayr
26th Cameronians and 74th Highlanders at Hamilton
42nd Black Watch and 79th Cameron Highlanders at Perth
71st Highland Light Infantry and 78th Ross-shire Buffs at Inverness
72nd and 91st Argyllshire Highlanders at Stirling
73rd Highlanders and 90th Perthshire Light Infantry at Hamilton
92nd Gordon Highlanders and 93rd Sutherland Highlanders at Aberdeen

The 25th Foot and 75th Foot were not considered Scottish regiments at this point. The 25th was a two battalion regiment at York, and the 75th was linked with the 39th Foot at Dorchester in Dorset.

When Hugh Childers came to reform the regiments it should just have been a case of forming these already linked and similar regiments together into new regiments. That was a sound plan until the proposals were laid before Queen Victoria for her royal assent.

The problem was the proposed amalgamation between the 42nd Black Watch and the 79th Highlanders. The 79th were actually the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders. They were her own highland regiment and she was certainly not amused at the prospect of them becoming 2nd Battalion Black Watch.

At the eleventh hour the proposed amalgamations were thrown into disarray and hurriedly redrawn to accommodate the wishes of the Queen-Empress.

The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders were not to be amalgamated, and for the next sixteen years were to be the only one battalion regiment in the British Army. That meant a new second battalion was needed for the Black Watch, and a reshuffle akin to musical chairs took place to find suitable pairings.

The first change was that the 73rd Highlanders would now move from Hamilton to Perth to become the 2nd Bn Black Watch. This was a sensible move since the 73rd had originally been formed as a second battalion of the Black Watch way back in 1780, before becoming a regiment in its own right in 1786.

The 90th Perthshire Light Infantry had missed the chance to go back home to Perth and stayed in Hamilton. It would now merge with another Hamilton based regiment, the 26th Foot Cameronians, to form Scotland's only green-jacketed rifle regiment as the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). The 1st Battalion as the Cameronians and the 2nd Battalion as the Scottish Rifles.

The 26th's old partner, the 74th Highlanders was to stay at Hamilton too; and it would now be paired with another trews wearing highland regiment, the 71st Highland Light Infantry. This was probably the most controversial of all the moves. The HLI had been very happy being paired with the 78th at Inverness. They had always considered themselves as a proper highland regiment and had petitioned for the return of the kilt on several occasions over the previous seventy years. The Childers reforms had finally promised that chance as they would have adopted the Mackenzie kilt of the 78th instead of their Mackenzie trews. Their amalgamation at Hamilton with another Lowland regiment robbed them of that chance. As a sop to the senior partner the new regiment adopted the 71st's name and tartan but it was not a happy union on either side.

With the 78th now needing a new pairing the 72nd Highlanders at Stirling was chosen. This suited both parties as both had been raised by Mackenzies, and in this case the 72nd were happy to ditch their garish Royal Stewart tartan trews and adopted the Mackenzie kilt of their junior partner. They happily merged as the Seaforth Highlanders using the 72nd's Stag's head badge.

This left another gap at Stirling, and the 91st now paired with the 93rd Highlanders. In this case too the junior partner was given 'top billing' and it was originally called the Sutherland and Argyll Highlanders. It was another few months before it took on the more familiar name of Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.

Finally the 92nd at Aberdeen needed another regiment. There were no more regiments available in Scottish depots so an old Scottish regiment now depoted outside Scotland was needed. The 94th Scotch Brigade at Armagh, or the 99th Lanarkshire regiment at Devizes could have been chosen; but it was the 75th Foot, the old Stirlingshire regiment which was poached from Dorset and sent north to Aberdeen. The West Countrymen were to become Highlanders overnight. The 75th's place in Dorchester was taken by the 54th regiment, which had been paired with the 95th at Derby, and in turn was replaced by the 45th which had been at Leicester with the 17th Foot. Luckily the 17th Foot was a two battalion regiment so no more reshuffling was needed.

Well not quite. The 25th Foot was at York in 1881, but in 1887 the King's Own Borderers became the King's Own Scottish Borderers. The old Edinburgh Regiment was given the whole of the Scottish Borders from Berwick to Galloway as a recruiting area from the Royal Scots, and Royal Scots Fusiliers; and a depot at Berwick-upon-Tweed from the Northumberland Fusiliers.

By then the process of adapting new names, uniforms and badges had been adopted by the other Scottish Regiments. The KOSB finally came into the fold six years after the others but it was on this day one hundred and thirty years ago that the paired regiments (Cameronians, Black Watch, Highland Light Infantry, Seaforths, Gordons and Argylls) which became famed throughout the world for their service in two world wars, came into being.

Highlanders in Palestine - On this day in Scottish Military History - 1936

We usually do the Scottish military 'On this days' ourselves but I came across this one on the 'New York Times' website. It comes from the files of the 'International Herald Tribute' from seventy five years ago and mentions two Highland regiments.

The recent news of a Palestinian State being discussed between Israel and the United States of America shows that the issue of the West Bank and Jerusalem goes back further than 1967 and even 1947.

1936 Troops Arrive in Jerusalem

The situation here continued critical today, with Arabs firing shots at buses and cars entering the city, although they were accompanied by armed convoys. Motor traffic in the southern half of the country is allowed to proceed only with police permits. Relief was felt today when more British troops arrived, comprising the First Battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders and a field company of the Royal Engineers dispatched from Egypt to reinforce the Cameron Highlanders. The Highlanders received orders to suppress shooting and sniping by Arabs and street fighting. The Royal Engineers will have the duty of ensuring communications and safe guarding transport and will also be responsible for running trains and working telephones. Arab leaders have disclaimed responsibility for the strife which has lasted for five weeks.

74th and 79th Highlanders hold Fuentes de Oñoro - On this day in Scottish Military History - 1811

In one of the finest actions of the Peninsular War two Scottish regiments in the army of Viscount Wellington replused repeated French attacks on the village of
Fuentes de Oñoro on this day two hundred years ago.

After finally retreating from the Lines of Torres Vedras in early 1811 the French 'Army of Portugal' left a strong garrison at the Portuguese town of Almeida.

Wellington followed the French and laid siege to Almeida in the hope it would force Marshal Massena to attack him, but on Wellington's choice of battlefield.

On 3rd May the French attacked the British positions around Fuentes de Oñoro and the battle ebbed and flowed until the 5th of May.

On that day the 74th Highlanders and 79th Highlanders were occupying the village of Fuentes de Oñoro. Wellington's other troops were drawn out to fight the French which left the village and the Scottish troops exposed.

Marshal Messana sent forward columns of infantry from his IX Corps to take the village and fierce hand to hand fighting took place in the streets and houses which saw the Highland regiments suffer great losses.

The fighting almost saw the Scots forced from the village until a last ditch charge led by the 88th Connaught Rangers cleared the French from the village and saved the day.

The defence of the village against overwhelming odds by the two Scottish regiments was probably their finest moment in the Peninsular campaign and both regiments were later awarded the battle honour Fuentes d'Onor

Also present at the battle were the 42nd Highlanders, 71st Highland Light Infantry and 92nd Highlanders; over the three days of battle all the Highland regiments involved in the battle suffered heavy casualties

42nd Highlanders - 1 officer and 32 soldiers killed and wounded
71st Highland Light Infantry - 11 officers and 133 soldiers killed and wounded
74th Highlanders - 4 officers and 66 soldiers killed and wounded
79th Highlanders - 14 officers and 224 soldiers killed and wounded
92nd Highlanders - 3 officers and 50 soldiers killed and wounded

Fuentes de Oñoro was the last battle for Marshal Massena, he had failed to drive the British out of Portugal and he was now replaced by Marshal Marmont.

Portugal was safe but Wellington and the thousands of Scots in his army now faced a long campaign through Spain.

Cameron Highlanders return to site of a Concentration Camp in the Netherlands

Today's Scotsman has a story about a party of Cameron Highlanders returning to the Dutch town of Vught. In 1944 they liberated the town and were the first Allied troops in North-West Europe to come across a concentration camp.

The full story is here.

From the description of the other units involved I think they were serving in the 5th Bn Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders in 152 Brigade, 51st Highland Division.

1/4th Bn Cameron Highlanders broken up - On this day in Scottish Military History - 1916

The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders always had a problem with its recruiting area. Their area was large in size but small in population. The county of Inverness couldn't really support a regiment on its own and traditionally they made up their numbers from places like Glasgow and Ireland.

In 1881 when all British infantry regiments formed two battalion regiments the Camerons only had one battalion. They were nearly turned into the 3rd Bn Scots Guards but Queen Victoria made her displeasure known about her own Highland regiment disappearing and the matter was quickly dropped.

In 1897 it was decided to raise another battalion and the Camerons were given the unusual privilege to recruit throughout Scotland and not just in their Inverness-shire recruiting area. I'm sure there were eyebrows raised by other Scottish regiments when that bombshell hit their Depots.

In 1908 when the Territorial Force was created most Scottish regiments formed several Territorial battalions. The Cameron's neighbours the Seaforths had three, the HLI had five and The Royal Scots had seven. The Camerons formed one: the 4th Battalion.

On the outbreak of war 1914 the Camerons recruitment luck changed. An enthusiastic officer took up the challenge of recruiting men from all over Scotland for the new Kitchener Service battalions being raised. Cameron of Lochiel's hard work delivered thousands of volunteers from Glasgow and Edinburgh into the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Battalions.

Even the Territorial battalion increased in size. In September 1914 a 2/4th Battalion was formed and in April 1915 a 3/4th Bn was raised to provide new recruits for the first two battalions. There had never been so many Cameron Highlanders in uniform.

At the outbreak of the First World War the 1/4th Bn was brigaded along with the three territorial battalions of the Seaforth Highlanders in the Seaforth and Cameron Brigade of the Highland Division.

In late 1914 1/4th Seaforths and 1/4th Camerons were up to strength of over 1000 men and were ready to go to France, but the Camerons had an outbreak of measles which delayed their departure until early 1915. (Measles was a killer to the Highland boys of the Camerons and 28 died).

The Camerons were first attached to 24th Brigade in 8th Division and saw action at The Battle of Neuve Chapelle within three weeks of arriving in France. They took 300 prisoners for the loss of 140 casualties.

Another change of division followed soon after. 1/4th Camerons joined 21st Brigade in 7th Division in April 1915. In May 1915 it was in action at Festubert where it took 250 casualties. It was in action again in June, and at Loos in September 1915 where it suffered another 200 casualties.

It had been hard fighting for the 7th Division throughout the year and in late 1915 there was a reorganisation with new battalions arriving from the UK taking their place. The Camerons (now with fewer than 500 men) stayed with the Division but moved to another Brigade. It was a short stay, and in January 1916 it returned back to its old home, the Highland Division.

154th Brigade in the Highland Division had been rebuilt with Scottish units but it was another short-lived stay in a formation for the 1/4th Camerons because three of the four units which had joined the brigade in January 1916 were replaced with other Scottish units only six weeks later.

On 28th February 1916 the three under-strength battalions were pulled out of the Division and sent back to the rear. Two Black Watch battalions were sent on to 39th Division and amalgamated to form one battalion, but it was announced the 1/4th Camerons would not go to another division and instead would be broken up and its men sent to other units.

Instead of men from 2/4th and 3/4th battalions Cameron Highlanders being sent from Scotland to rebuild it, it would disappear. Why this happened is still not entirely clear. No other Scottish Territorial battalion suffered this fate.

At this time voluntary recruitment had all but dried up and conscription had been introduced. Perhaps it was felt that the Camerons couldn't sustain so many battalions? But why did their only territorial battalion go instead of one of the three Kitchener Camerons battalions in France. Maybe Lochiel's influence meant his battalions were saved at the expense of the Territorials?

Whatever the reason; on this day ninety five years ago the only front line territorial unit of the Cameron Highlanders was broken up.

Major-General Douglas Neil Wimberley - Who's Who in Scottish Military History

There are some moments where a person is appointed to the ideal job for them. A perfect moment in time results in the right man in the right place at the right time. Such a moment was the moment Douglas Wimberley was appointed to command the 51st Highland Division.

Douglas Wimberley had been born in Inverness in 1896, and had been commissioned into the Cameron Highlandes in 1915, winning the Military Cross in 1917. After the war he saw service in a variety of places, including during the Irish War of Independence, where he served under Bernard Montgomery for the first time.

At the outbreak of the Second World War he was commanding the 1st Battalion of the Cameron Highlanders and he went with the battalion to France. He was not to see action with the battalion in France as in December 1939 he was appointed Chief Instructer at the Senior Officers School at Sheerness. After a succession of positions, he was appointed to command the 51st Division in June 1941.

Wimberley was perhaps the ideal man for the job. The 51st Division was not the crack unit of the First World War. It was in fact in reality the untried 9th Division, which had been renamed after the surrender of the 51st Division at St Valery the previous year. In some way the Division was perhaps still suffering from the effects of that surrender.

What Wimberley did was to instill a sense of esprit de corps into the Division. He used the Division concert party to travel round the individual regiments conveying the tone and spirit of the Division as a whole. He encouraged the wearing of kilts and tartan. He would regularly "poach" Scottish troops from other units for his Division, and would, where possible, rejected "sassenach" troops.

In doing so he forged the Division into what it had been before, and was again - a tightly knit, crack Division. Little wonder that the 51st Division played a large part in the Battle of El Alamein. Throughout North Africa, the Highlanders were there - in many cases painting their famous HD logo wherever they could - not for nothing were the nicknamed the Highway Decorators.

By the end of the Sicily campaign Montgomery had decided that Wimberley was tired and needed a rest. He was appointed Commandant of the Staff College at Camberley, and then was Director of Infantry from 1944 until he left the army in 1946.

After the war he became principal of University College, Dundee. There he tried to instill the same kind of esprit de corps which had revitalised the 51st Division, working closely with the staff and pupils. He worked hard to improve conditions and facilities. He had to stand down in 1954 due to the rotation of principal seats. He is remembered by the annual Wimberley Award which is given to the student who has contributed most to university life.


In later life Wimberley wrote his memoirs - a five-volume work entitled Scottish Soldier. It remains unpublished but was deposited at the National Library of Scotland along with other papers and diaries.

Wimberley died in 1983, but the affection and pride that the 51st Division is still held in to this day is testament to the hard work and dedication of the man who was known as "Tartan Tam".

Fort George Museum Cash Pledge

An item from today's Press & Journal. It is another source of funding for the redevelopment of the Highlanders Museum at Fort George near Inverness.

The Highlanders Museum covers the history of the Seaforth Highlanders (1777 - 1961), the Cameron Highlanders (1794-1961), the Queen's Own Highlanders (1961 - 1994) and the Highlanders (1994-1996). It also covers 4th Bn Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 Scots) from 2006 to the present. The Lovat Scouts also have a small display area in the museum.

We have covered the appeal in previous posts here and here. Here is today's article:

Inverness city committee agrees to contribute £130,000 to facelift at the Highlanders centre


By Mel Fairhurst 


Generous councillors opened the civic purse for future projects after allocating £130,000 for a museum scheme being supported by Hollywood heart-throb Hugh Grant.


Inverness city committee agreed yesterday to help fund a project to give the Highlanders’ Museum a £3 million facelift. Half the money has been raised already for the redevelopment project and members agreed to the extra boost from the Inverness Common Good Fund over two years from 2011-12 and 2012-13.


The move comes after Four Weddings and A Funeral star Hugh Grant lent his support to the museum at Fort George in December last year. The actor’s father served in the Seaforth Highlanders regiment and his grandfather was depot commander at Fort George after World War II.


Museum chairman Major General Seymour Monro gave a presentation and told members that although the project was not in Inverness, from 2012 it would help boost the city’s economy by £320,000 every year. The money will be used to update facilities and it is envisaged the project will be completed by summer 2012. The money from the fund will be put towards £217,000 which will be earmarked for education space at the centre.


Aird and Loch Ness councillor Drew Hendry described the plans as “exciting”, while Inverness Central councillor Bet McAllister said it was an “ambitious project”. She added: “It ticks all the right boxes and I wish you well in your endeavours.

Marking family's sacrifice

The following article appeared in the East Lothian Courier (text by Bryan Copland):

The Cranston family in 1908: (back row, from left) William, Mary, James, Agnes, Adam. Middle: John, Alexander (father), Angus, Elizabeth (mother), Alexander.Center: Robert. Front: Andrew and George

Haddington’s Cranston family was decimated by the First World War: four sons were killed and two others badly injured.

As reported in the Courier in 2009, seven of Alexander and Elizabeth Cranston’s nine sons fought in the Great War yet only one of the soldiers avoided death or terrible injury during the conflict.

The Imperial War Museum in London believes no other Scottish family suffered such unimaginable loss.

Now a campaign to commemorate the sacrifice of the Cranston family – who lived in various cottages in and arround Haddington, including at St Martin’s Gate – is due to step up a gear when a family descendant visits the county from Australia next year.

Sydney’s Stuart Pearson, who is the great-grandson of Alexander and Elizabeth Cranston, wants East Lothian Council to mark his forefathers’ loss and has enlisted the help of local groups and residents to push for a tribute to the family.

He said: “No-one knows for sure if the Cranston family made the ‘greatest sacrifice’ of any Scottish family. Nevertheless, I believe that the losses by the family for God, king and country in the First World War was not exceeded by any other family in Scotland.

“The loss and suffering of soldiers during war doesn’t just affect the individual – it affects the entire family. In the case of the Cranstons the losses were so devastating the family itself was almost destroyed.”

Haddington Community Council member John Hamilton, who has been researching the Cranstons, says the group is “willing to do something along the lines of commemorating” the loss – if it can be put into context with the sacrifices made by other families around that time.

Stuart has suggested that a stone cairn, or naming a street or local park after the family, would be a suitable tribute.

In 1916, Company Sergeant Major John Cranston, 34, of The Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, was killed by shellfire at the first Battle of the Somme; Royal Engineers Sapper James Cranston, 28, died from tuberculosis while in Army service; and Private Adam Cranston, 30, of the Royal Scots Fusiliers, died in action in France.

In 1918, Sergeant Alexander Cranston Jnr, 39, of the Royal Engineers was posted missing, presumed dead, in the second Battle of the Somme; William Cranston, a private in the 7th Seaforth Highlanders, lost an eye and three fingers in battle; while Lance Corporal George Cranston, of the 8th Royal Scots, was left incapacitated due to shellshock and severe gassing, living until 1963.

Father Alexander Cranston died aged 57 in 1911, and is buried in Haddington, while mother Elizabeth later emigrated to Australia.

The couple also had three other sons: Robert – who escaped the Great War intact but was later killed in the Korean War – Andrew and Angus, and two daughters in Agnes and Mary.

Anyone who can help in HCC’s research can contact Mr Hamilton on 01620 825946.

A further comment after the article states:

"This is Stuart Pearson. I need to correct one small error - Robert didn't die in the Korean War. It was his son, Ian. As well as contacting John Hamilton, please feel free to contact me also if you have any information to share. My email address is stuart@bigpond.com"

On this day in Scottish military history #11: 1960 - The farewell parade of the Seaforth Highlanders

The Seaforth Highlanders (Duke of Albany’s, Ross-shire Buffs) held their final parade fifty years ago today. General Sir James Cassels, the Colonel of the regiment, took the salute in Munster, Germany. On the same day the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders paraded at Redford Barracks in Edinburgh for the last time. Both regiments would merge in early 1961 to become the Queen’s Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons). The Queen’s Own would disappear only 33 years later when they merged with the Gordons to become The Highlanders in 1994. Only 12 years later in 2006 they became 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland. At every stage the regimental tradition has been that little bit diluted.

On a happier note on the other side of the world the Seaforth name and uniform still survives in Vancouver, Canada. In fact this Saturday sees the Seaforths of Canada celebrate the 100th anniversary of their raising as the 72nd Militia Regiment on the Canadian establishment.

The 72nd Militia was formed in November 1910 from the Scottish community in Vancouver and in 1912 took the uniform and name of the British 1st Bn Seaforth Highlanders which prior to 1881 had been the 72nd Highlanders.

The Seaforths of Canada provided a large contingent to the 16th Canadian Scottish battalion when it was raised in 1914, including the Scots-born Piper Richardson V.C.
Later the 72nd Bn CEF was composed of Canadian Seaforths and a large number of them were Scots born too.

In the Second World War the Seaforths of Canada served in Sicily, Italy and North-West Europe.

Recently they have proudly worn their stag’s head badges in Afghanistan whilst serving with Canadian Forces on ISAF duties.

In two days time the regiment will receive new colours and have invited former members and fellow Vancouverites to help celebrate their birthday with a party.

Whilst the regiment they took their name and uniform from has long gone at least they are still going strong across the Atlantic. I’ll end with an old Mackenzie motto which was used by the original Seaforths:

Cabar fèidh gu bràth – The stag’s horns for ever.

(Text by Adam Brown)

On This Day in Scottish Military History #2: The Camerons occupy the Lines of Torres Vedras

On 27th September 1810 the French were given a bloody nose at the battle of Busaco. Three Scottish regiments were involved in the battle. 2nd Bn 42nd, 74th and 1st Bn 79th Highlanders. Many of the senior officers in other units and the Portuguese army were also Scottish. The most senior of these, ‘Black Bob’ Crauford, was in command of the famous Light Division and came from Ayrshire.

The French commander Marshal Massena underestimated the resilience of the British and Portuguese troops. He had been forcing them back to Lisbon and egged on by Marshal Ney attacked them at the Busaco Ridge.

Of the Scottish regiments the Cameron Highlanders suffered worst in the battle with 55 casualties; the 74th had 29 casualties and the Black Watch only 7.

After beating the French Wellington slowly took his army back behind one of the wonders of the day. A series of breastworks and redoubts protecting Lisbon which had been built by Wellington in secret. On this day 200 years ago the 79th Cameron Highlanders took their places in these famous fortifications.

Three days later the French first discovered the Lines of Torres Vedras. They were unable to break through them and for six months they starved in front of them; not strong enough to break through and too scared to retreat and face Napoleon’s wrath.

To borrow a Churchill phrase - It was the end of the beginning for the French in Spain.

Nairnshire Roll of Honour 1914-1921

Received the following information from SMRG friend Ken Nisbet:

"The Nairnshire Roll of Honour has now been published by the SGS at a cost of £12.00 plus postage. It contains details of the men and women from Nairnshire who are known who have served from 1914 - 1921 in the Navy Army and Airforce, including all those listed on the Auldearn Ardclach Cawdor Croy and Nairn war memorials and those who should be on the memorials but are not. As well as those who survived the war. Extracts of the war diaries for the 4th Battalion Cameron Highlanders for Neuve Chapelle, Festubert, Givenchy, Loos have been included."

The Scottish Genealogy Society should have it available on their website soon but in the meantime you can contact them by sending an e-mail to sales@scotsgenealogy.com - alternatively you can contact them at is 15 Victoria Terrace Edinburgh EH1 2JL