Scottish Regiments in the First World War

During the First World War, the British Army contained ten Scottish infantry regiments, each with its own history, traditions and battalions. These were the Royal Scots, Royal Scots Fusiliers, King's Own Scottish Borderers, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment), Highland Light Infantry, Gordon Highlanders, Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, Seaforth Highlanders and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders. Together they expanded dramatically between 1914 and 1918, raising Regular, Territorial Force and Service battalions that served on the Western Front, at Gallipoli, in Mesopotamia, Palestine, Salonika and other theatres of war. Today, these historic regiments remain among the most researched formations of the Great War.

The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment) is recognised as the oldest infantry regiment in the British Army, tracing its origins to 1633 when it was raised for service in France during the Thirty Years' War. Over the following centuries it served in many of Britain's major conflicts before expanding significantly during the First World War. Although several Scottish regiments possessed equally distinguished histories, the Royal Scots' remarkable longevity earned it a unique place within both Scottish military history and the wider British Army. Following later army reorganisations, its traditions are now carried forward within The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

No. Although kilts are closely associated with Scotland's military history, not every Scottish regiment wore them. The Highland regiments, including the Black Watch, Gordon Highlanders, Seaforth Highlanders, Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, were famous for wearing tartan kilts as part of their traditional dress. In contrast, the Lowland regiments, such as the Royal Scots, King's Own Scottish Borderers and Royal Scots Fusiliers, generally wore standard infantry uniforms or tartan trews rather than kilts. These differences reflected the separate Highland and Lowland traditions that shaped Scotland's infantry regiments long before the outbreak of the First World War.

Scottish infantry regiments played an important role during the Gallipoli Campaign of 1915, although not every battalion served there. Battalions from regiments including the Royal Scots, King's Own Scottish Borderers, Royal Scots Fusiliers, Black Watch, Highland Light Infantry and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders took part in the campaign alongside other British, Australian, New Zealand, French and Indian forces. The fighting on the Gallipoli peninsula proved exceptionally difficult, with rugged terrain, extreme conditions and heavy casualties. Many Scottish battalions later went on to serve on the Western Front after the campaign ended.

The Battle of the Somme involved battalions from every Scottish infantry regiment. By 1916, Scotland's regiments had expanded enormously, meaning dozens of Scottish battalions took part in different phases of the offensive between July and November. Soldiers from the Royal Scots, Black Watch, Gordon Highlanders, Seaforth Highlanders, Highland Light Infantry, Royal Scots Fusiliers, King's Own Scottish Borderers, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders all fought during the campaign. Their experiences varied considerably depending on the battalion, division and date of engagement, making it important to identify a soldier's battalion when researching an individual's wartime service.

Although the names and structures of Scotland's infantry regiments have changed over time, their traditions continue today. In 2006, Scotland's historic line infantry regiments were brought together to form The Royal Regiment of Scotland, while preserving the history, battle honours and identities of their predecessor regiments. As a result, famous names such as the Black Watch, Royal Scots, Gordon Highlanders and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders remain an important part of Scotland's military heritage, even though they now exist within a modern regimental structure. Their history continues to attract military historians, family researchers and descendants seeking to understand the service of Scottish soldiers during the First World War.