London Scottish (regiment)
Encyclopedia
The London Scottish is a unit of the British Army
. Formerly a regiment
, the unit is now a company
of The London Regiment
.
sponsored by The Highland Society of London
and The Caledonian Society of London, a group of individual Scots raised The London Scottish Rifle Volunteers under the command of Lt Col Lord Elcho
, later The Earl of Wemyss
and March. Over many years the London Scottish have changed titles and lineage, today they are A (London Scottish) Company of The London Regiment
.
The regimental tartan
is Elcho tartan and Hodden Grey
in colour.
Lt Col Lord Elcho clothed the regiment in Hodden Grey, the homespun cloth known throughout Scotland. This avoided all interclan feeling on the subject of tartan and, as Lord Elcho said "A soldier is a man hunter. As a deer stalker chooses the least visible of colours, so ought a soldier to be clad."
The earliest record of The London Scottish Cadet Corps ("LSCC") was in 1902. It existed alongside their sponsors The London Scottish Regiment now A (London Scottish) Coy The London Regiment. The London Scottish Cadets originally formed as a battalion with three companies and a pipe band. It was one of a very few cadet battalions to be presented its own Colours.
The LSCC is now 235 London Scottish Detachment, a member of 23 Group Middlesex and NW London ACF. Formally based at the RHQ 95 Horseferry road until 2005 and now at the former RMP barracks on Rochester row. 235 lives on to share its traditions with two other cadet detachments now in the Greater London & South East Sector ACF.
95(London Scottish)Cadet Coy - Eltham was formed in the 1940s with a nucleus of boys from Eltham College. It is based on the site of a former Royal Artillery TA Centre in Footscray Road SE9. Ocs included Major (later Lt Col) Stewart Allward, Capt "Bunny" Bancroft, Capt Eric Botell and Capt Nigel Betts.
The third London Scottish Cadet unit is 102 (Bromley) Pltn, 10 (Kent) Cadet Regiment, formed originally in 1913 as part of the 1st Cadet Btn Royal North West Kent Regt, over the years the unit was re-badged a number of times, firstly as a Royal Artillery unit and in the 1970s as a Royal Signals unit. In 1989 the unit was located at Hill House TA Centre in Bromley, formely the home of Sir Harold MacMillan, Lord Stockton, which they shared with the Recce Platoon and 6 Platoon of G (The London Scottish) Coy 1/51 Highland Vols. The relationship between the London Scottish and cadets was so good that the then unit commander Major John Smith MBE requested that the cadets be re-badged to London Scottish, the unit they proudly represent today.
es were awarded to the following members of the London Scottish: Robert Edward Cruickshank
, Charles William Train
, and George Allan Mitchell
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
. Formerly a regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
, the unit is now a company
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
of The London Regiment
London Regiment
The London Regiment is a Territorial Army regiment in the British Army. It was first formed in 1908 in order to regiment the various Volunteer Force battalions in the newly formed County of London, each battalion having a distinctive uniform. The Volunteer Force was merged with the Yeomanry in 1908...
.
Founding of the regiment
Founded in 1859 as part of the Volunteer ForceVolunteer Force (Great Britain)
The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated with the British Army after the Childers Reforms in 1881, before forming part of the...
sponsored by The Highland Society of London
Highland Society of London
The Highland Society of London is a charity registered in England, with "the view of establishing and supporting schools in the Highlands and in the Northern parts of Great Britain, for relieving distressed Highlanders at a distance from their native homes, for preserving the antiquities and...
and The Caledonian Society of London, a group of individual Scots raised The London Scottish Rifle Volunteers under the command of Lt Col Lord Elcho
Francis Charteris, 10th Earl of Wemyss
Francis Richard Charteris, 10th Earl of Wemyss GCVO , styled as Lord Elcho between 1853 and 1883, was a British Whig politician...
, later The Earl of Wemyss
Earl of Wemyss
Earl of Wemyss and Earl of March are two titles in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1633 and 1697 respectively, that have been held by a joint holder since 1826. The Scottish Wemyss family had possessed the lands of Wemyss in Fife since the 12th century. In 1625 John Wemyss was created a...
and March. Over many years the London Scottish have changed titles and lineage, today they are A (London Scottish) Company of The London Regiment
London Regiment
The London Regiment is a Territorial Army regiment in the British Army. It was first formed in 1908 in order to regiment the various Volunteer Force battalions in the newly formed County of London, each battalion having a distinctive uniform. The Volunteer Force was merged with the Yeomanry in 1908...
.
The regimental tartan
Tartan
Tartan is a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in many other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Scotland. Scottish kilts almost always have tartan patterns...
is Elcho tartan and Hodden Grey
Hodden
Hodden or wadmel is a coarse kind of cloth made of undyed wool, formerly much worn by the peasantry of Scotland. It was usually made on small hand-looms by the peasants themselves. Grey hodden was made by mixing black and white fleeces together in the proportion of one to twelve when weaving...
in colour.
Lt Col Lord Elcho clothed the regiment in Hodden Grey, the homespun cloth known throughout Scotland. This avoided all interclan feeling on the subject of tartan and, as Lord Elcho said "A soldier is a man hunter. As a deer stalker chooses the least visible of colours, so ought a soldier to be clad."
Titles and lineage
- The London Scottish Rifle Volunteer Corps - raised in 1859
- 15th Middlesex (London Scottish) Rifle Volunteer Corps - official designation under county titles later in 1859
- 7th Middlesex (London Scottish) Rifle Volunteers - renamed in 1880
- 7th Middlesex (London Scottish) Volunteer Rifle Corps - renamed in 1891
- 14th (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment (London Scottish) - renamed 1908 with the creation of the Territorial Force
- 14th London Regiment (London Scottish) - renamed 1922
- The London Scottish, The Gordon Highlanders - 1937
- in 1967 the regiment was reconstituted as two companies: G Company (London Scottish), 51st Highland Volunteers51st Highland VolunteersThe 51st Highland Volunteers was a regiment and is now a battalion in the British Army's Territorial Army or reserve force in the Scottish Highlands, forming the 7th Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, also known as 7 SCOTS...
(AVR2); and C Company (London Scottish), The London Yeomanry and Territorials (AVR3) - AVR 3 disbanded (?date)
- G Company, 1st Battalion (51st Highland Volunteers)(1/51 HLD)- 1971 (the Argyll & Sutherland Highlander companies of 51st Highland formed 3rd Battalion, whilst the Gordons and Queen's Own Highlanders companies formed 2nd Battalion. 1/51 was essentially Black Watch with London Scottish and Liverpool Scottish add-ons.
- A (London Scottish) Company, The London Regiment - 1993
- A (London Scottish) Company, The London Regiment (Guards DivisionGuards DivisionThe Guards Division is an administrative unit of the British Army responsible for the administration of the regiments of Foot Guards and the London Regiment.-Introduction:...
) - 2006 (Each company links to a Foot Guards Regiment for operational support and from which permanent staff instructors are drawn. The London Scottish is paired with the Scots GuardsScots GuardsThe Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
.)
London Scottish Cadet Corps
A detailed history of the London Scottish Cadets can be found in the Regimental Gazette, written month to month over the years, but there follows some useful facts about all three Army Cadet Units that are badged London Scottish.The earliest record of The London Scottish Cadet Corps ("LSCC") was in 1902. It existed alongside their sponsors The London Scottish Regiment now A (London Scottish) Coy The London Regiment. The London Scottish Cadets originally formed as a battalion with three companies and a pipe band. It was one of a very few cadet battalions to be presented its own Colours.
The LSCC is now 235 London Scottish Detachment, a member of 23 Group Middlesex and NW London ACF. Formally based at the RHQ 95 Horseferry road until 2005 and now at the former RMP barracks on Rochester row. 235 lives on to share its traditions with two other cadet detachments now in the Greater London & South East Sector ACF.
95(London Scottish)Cadet Coy - Eltham was formed in the 1940s with a nucleus of boys from Eltham College. It is based on the site of a former Royal Artillery TA Centre in Footscray Road SE9. Ocs included Major (later Lt Col) Stewart Allward, Capt "Bunny" Bancroft, Capt Eric Botell and Capt Nigel Betts.
The third London Scottish Cadet unit is 102 (Bromley) Pltn, 10 (Kent) Cadet Regiment, formed originally in 1913 as part of the 1st Cadet Btn Royal North West Kent Regt, over the years the unit was re-badged a number of times, firstly as a Royal Artillery unit and in the 1970s as a Royal Signals unit. In 1989 the unit was located at Hill House TA Centre in Bromley, formely the home of Sir Harold MacMillan, Lord Stockton, which they shared with the Recce Platoon and 6 Platoon of G (The London Scottish) Coy 1/51 Highland Vols. The relationship between the London Scottish and cadets was so good that the then unit commander Major John Smith MBE requested that the cadets be re-badged to London Scottish, the unit they proudly represent today.
Victoria Crosses
Victoria CrossVictoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
es were awarded to the following members of the London Scottish: Robert Edward Cruickshank
Robert Edward Cruickshank
Robert Edward Cruickshank VC was an Anglo-Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
, Charles William Train
Charles William Train
Charles William Train VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
, and George Allan Mitchell
George Allan Mitchell
George Allan Mitchell VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...