The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

, the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish regiments of infantry. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Regiment and the 90th Perthshire Light Infantry. In 1968, when reductions were required, the regiment chose to be disbanded rather than amalgamated with another regiment, one of only two infantry regiments in the British Army to do so, with the other being the York and Lancaster Regiment. It can trace its roots to that of the Cameronians, later the 26th of Foot, who were raised in 1689. The 1881 amalgamation coincided with the Cameronian's selection to become the new Scottish Rifles. Spioenkop-British Memorial-Face5

1st Battalion Cameronians (scottish Rifles) on the Western Front, 1914 - 1915 Q51587

Glasgow, Scottish Rifles memorial - geograph

History

Formation

The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Regiment and the 90th Perthshire Light Infantry. After the amalgamation, the 1st Battalion preferred to be known as "The Cameronians" while the 2nd preferred to be known as "The Scottish Rifles". The 2nd Battalion saw action at the

Battle of Spion Kop The Battle of Spioen Kop ( nl, Slag bij Spionkop; af, Slag van Spioenkop) was a military engagement between British forces and two Boer Republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, during the campaign by the British to ...

in January 1900 during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...

. Two

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

battalions were formed from the former 2nd Royal Lanark Militia. The 3rd battalion was embodied in May 1900 for service during the Second Boer War. More than 600 men embarked for

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

in April 1901, and returned in June 1902, following the end of hostilities. The 4th battalion had been embodied already in December 1899, also for service in the same war, and 600 officers and men embarked for South Africa in late February 1900. In 1908, the Volunteers and Militia were reorganised nationally, with the former becoming the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry ...

and the latter the

Special Reserve The Special Reserve was established on 1 April 1908 with the function of maintaining a reservoir of manpower for the British Army and training replacement drafts in times of war. Its formation was part of the military reforms implemented by Rich ...

; the regiment now had two Reserve and four Territorial battalions.

First World War

Regular Army

The 1st Battalion landed at

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

as part of the 19th Brigade, which was an independent command at that time, in August 1914 for service on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

. The battalion famously refused to play football or otherwise fraternise with the enemy on

Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

1914. The 2nd Battalion landed in France as part of the 23rd Brigade in the 8th Division in November 1914 for service on the Western Front.

Territorial Force

The 1/5th Battalion was one of the first

units selected to reinforce the Regulars of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France. It landed at

on 5 November 1914, joining 19th Brigade on 19 November. At this time 19th Bde also included 1st Bn Cameronians 19th Brigade was attached to the 6th Division; later it moved to 33rd Division, a '

Kitchener's Army The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the Fi ...

' formation. The 1/6th Battalion landed at Le Havre as part of the 23rd Brigade in the 8th Division in March 1915 for service on the Western Front. It later joined 33rd Division and in 1916 it merged with the 1/5th to form 5th/6th Bn. The 1/7th Battalion and the 1/8th Battalion landed in Gallipoli as part of the 156th Brigade in the

52nd (Lowland) Division The 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was originally formed as the Lowland Division, in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force. It later became the 52nd (Lowland) Division in 1915. The 52nd (Lowl ...

in June 1915; after evacuation from Gallipoli in January 1916 the battalions moved to Egypt and served in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. They sailed to

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

in April 1918 and served on the Western Front until the end of the war.

New Armies

The 9th (Service) Battalion landed at

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Department ...

as part of the 27th Brigade in the 9th (Scottish) Division in May 1915 for service on the Western Front. The 10th (Service) Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 46th Brigade in the 15th (Scottish) Division in July 1915 for service on the Western Front. The 11th (Service) Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 77th Brigade in the 26th Division in September 1915 for service on the Western Front but sailed for

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

in November 1915.

Inter-war

The 1st Battalion was deployed to Ireland in 1919 during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

and then went to India in 1931 while the 2nd Battalion was deployed to

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

in 1919 and then went to India in 1922.

Second World War

The 1st Battalion, which had been in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

at the start of the war and was initially commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Galloway, was deployed to

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

as part of the 1st Burma Brigade in the 39th Indian Division in 1942 and saw action in the Burma Campaign. The British Army in Italy 1943 NA8979

The 2nd Battalion, initially commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Douglas Graham, was deployed to France as part of the 13th Infantry Brigade in the

5th Division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions *5th Division (Australia) * 5th Division (People's Republic of China) * 5th Division (Colombia) * Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) *5th Light Cavalry Division (France) * 5th M ...

within the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in September 1939 and, after taking part in the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allies of World War II, Allied soldiers during the World War II, Second World War from the bea ...

in June 1940, saw action in the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943 and the Allied invasion of Italy in September 1943 and, after fighting in the Italian Campaign, serving in both the Moro River and Anzio campaigns until July 1944, took part in the North West Europe Campaign in early 1945, ending in May. The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 B13767

The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 B13767

The 6th and 7th Battalions, both Territorial Army battalions, were deployed to France as part of the 156th Infantry Brigade in the

52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division The 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was originally formed as the Lowland Division, in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force. It later became the 52nd (Lowland) Division in 1915. The 52nd (Lowl ...

to provide cover for the withdrawal of troops of the British Expeditionary Force; after the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

in June 1944, the battalion took part in the North West Europe Campaign in late 1944 and in 1945. The 9th Battalion took part in the Normandy landings as part of the 46th (Highland) Infantry Brigade in the

15th (Scottish) Infantry Division The 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that served during the Second World War. It was raised on 2 September 1939, the day before war was declared, as part of the Territorial Army (TA) and served i ...

in June 1944 and saw action in the North West Europe Campaign in late 1944 (including action at the Battle of Broekhuizen) and in 1945.

Post-war

In 1948, along with every other infantry regiment of the British Army, the Cameronians regiment was reduced to a single regular battalion. The 1st Battalion which had been repeatedly decimated in the Burma campaign was placed in suspended animation and the 2nd Battalion was renamed the 1st Battalion while at Gibraltar. It was deployed to Malaya in 1950 during the Malayan Emergency. Under the reforms of the army in the 1967 Defence White Paper, which saw several regiments amalgamated, the Cameronians chose to disband rather than amalgamate with another in the Lowland Brigade. In the 1960s the unruly behaviour of some of the Cameronians who were stationed in Minden as part of the BAOR caused a local to describe the smaller Scottish soldiers as "poison dwarfs". The 1st Battalion, The Cameronians was disbanded on 14 May 1968 at

Douglas Castle Douglas Castle was a stronghold of the Douglas (later Douglas-Home) family from medieval times to the 20th century. The first castle, erected in the 13th century, was destroyed and replaced several times until the 18th century when a large man ...

, near

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals *Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

, South Lanarkshire in the presence of the Duke of Hamilton, the Earl of Angus. Its recruiting area in

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotl ...

and Dumfries and Galloway was taken over by the King's Own Scottish Borderers and the Regimental Headquarters finally closed down in 1987.

Regimental museum

The Cameronians Museum is located within the Low Parks Museum,

Hamilton, South Lanarkshire Hamilton ( sco, Hamiltoun; gd, Baile Hamaltan ) is a large town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area. It sits south-east of Glasgow, south-west of Edinburgh and no ...

Traditions

Every new member of the regiment was issued a

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

, as a nod to Richard Cameron, after whom the original 26th Foot was named and the regiment mounted an armed guard at the doors of the Kirk during religious services. Soldiers wore a rifle green doublet with

tartan trews as part of their full dress and No.1 dress uniforms. The regiment was one of only two in Britain to retain the shako as its full-dress headwear after 1878.

Battle honours

The regiment's battle honours included: *''Early wars'': Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, Malplaquet, South Africa 1846-72, South Africa 1877-8-92, Relief of Ladysmith, South Africa 1899-1902 *''The Great War'': Mons, Le Cateau, Retreat from Mons, Marne 1914 '18, Aisne 1914, La Bassée 1914, Messines 1914, Armentières 1914, Neuve Chapelle, Aubers, Loos, Somme 1916 '18, Albert 1916, Bazentin, Pozières, Flers-Courcelette, Le Transloy, Ancre Heights, Arras 1917 '18, Scarpe 1917 '18, Arleux, Ypres 1917 '18, Pilckem, Langemarck 1917, Menin Road, Polygon Wood, Passchendaele, St Quentin, Rosières, Avre, Lys, Hazebrouck, Bailleul, Kemmel, Scherpenberg, Soissonnais-Ourcq, Drocourt-Quéant, Hindenberg Line, Épéhy, Canal du Nord, St Quentin Canal, Cambrai 1918, Courtrai, Selle, Sambre, France and Flanders 1914-18, Doiran 1917 '18, Macedonia 1915-18, Gallipoli 1915-16, Rumani, Egypt 1916-17, Gaza, El Mughar, Nebi Samwil, Jaffa, Palestine 1917-18 *''Second World War'': Ypres-Comines Canal, Odon, Cheux, Caen, Mont Pincon, Estry, Nederrijn, Best, Scheldt, South Beveland, Walcheren Causeway, Asten, Roer, Rhineland, Reichswald, Moyland, Rhine, Dreierwalde, Bremen, Artlenberg, North-West Europe 1940, '44-45, Landing in Sicily, Simeto Bridgehead, Sicily 1943, Garigliano Crossing, Anzio, Advance to Tiber, Italy 1943-44, Pegu 1942, Paungde, Yenagyaung 1942, Chindits 1944, Burma 1942 '44

Colonel-in-Chief

The colonel-in-chief from 1956 was HM King Gustaf VI Adolf.

Regimental Colonels

Regimental colonels were: *1881–1899 (1st Battalion): Gen. George Henry Mackinnon, CB ''(ex

26th Foot The 26th (Cameronian) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the Scots Army and subsequently a Scottish infantry regiment of the British Army, active from 1689 to 1881. Although the regiment took the name of its first colonel as The Earl of ...

)'' *1881–1882 (2nd Battalion): Gen. William Hassall Eden ''(ex

90th Foot The 90th Perthshire Light Infantry was a Scottish light infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1794. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 26th (Cameronian) Regiment of Foot to form the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in 18 ...

)'' *1882–1889 (2nd Battalion): Gen.

John Alfred Street General John Alfred Street, CB (1822 – 5 December 1889) was a British Army officer who was the 25th General Officer Commanding, Ceylon. Early life Street was the second child and eldest of three sons of Captain John Street (1791-1829), of th ...

*1899–1910: Lt-Gen. Sir James Clerk Rattray, KCB *1910–1918: Maj-Gen. Joseph Henry Laye, CB, CVO *1918–1927: Maj-Gen. Sir Philip Rynd Robertson, KCB, CMG *1927–1946: Maj-Gen. Sir Eric Stanley Girdwood, KBE, CB, CMG *1946–1951: Gen. Sir Thomas Sheridan Riddell-Webster, GCB, DSO *1951–1954: Gen. Sir Richard Nugent O'Connor, GCB, DSO, MC *1954–1958: Maj-Gen. Douglas Alexander Henry Graham, CB, CBE, DSO, MC *1958–1964: Gen. Sir Horatius Murray, GCB, KBE, DSO *1964–1969: Lt-Gen. Sir Richard George Collingwood, KBE, CB, DSO *''1968: Regular unit disbanded'' *1969–1970: Maj-Gen.

Henry Templer Alexander Major General Henry Templer Alexander, CB, CBE, DSO (17 May 1911 – 16 March 1977) was a British Army officer who served as Chief of Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces between 1960 and 1961. Early life Alexander was born on 17 May 191 ...

, CB, CBE, DSO *1970–1974: Maj-Gen.

, CB, CBE, DSO (''Representative Colonel'') *1974–1987: Brig. David Balfour Riddell-Webster, OBE (''Representative Colonel'')

Affiliations

Affiliations included: *

The Perth Regiment The Perth Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is currently on the Supplementary Order of Battle. Lineage Lineage of The Perth Regiment: The Perth Regiment (Overseas Battalion) *Originated 22 Dec as 110th (Overseas) Battal ...

– 1965:

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

* 26th Battalion (The Logan and Albert Regiment) 1928 – 1951:

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

* The Otago and Southland Regiment 1948 – 1968:

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

* The Witwatersrand Rifles 1937 – 1961:

* 2nd Battalion, Ghana Regiment:

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

* 7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles 1951– 1968: United Kingdom

Notable former members of the regiment

* See also :Cameronians officers and :Cameronians soldiers * Brigadier Cyril Nelson Barclay * General Sir Roy Bucher * General Sir Horatius Murray * General Richard O'Connor * General Sir Thomas Riddell-Webster * Lieutenant-General Sir George Collingwood * Lieutenant-General Sir John Fullerton Evetts * Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Galloway * Major-General

* Major-General

George Carter-Campbell Major General George Tupper Campbell Carter-Campbell, (2 April 1869 – 19 December 1921) was a senior British Army officer who served in the Second Boer War and the First World War. Early life A member of the Carter-Campbell of Possil family, ...

* Major-General

John Dutton Frost Major-General John Dutton Frost, (31 December 1912 – 21 May 1993) was an airborne officer of the British Army best known for being the leader of the small group of British airborne troops that actually arrived at Arnhem bridge during the Ba ...

* Major-General Douglas Graham * Major-General James Haugh * Major-General Robin Money * Major-General Sir Philip Rynd Robertson * Major-General Eric Sixsmith * Brigadier-General Graham Chaplin *

Rifleman Khan Rifleman Khan was a German Shepherd Dog who was lent to the War Office to become a military dog during World War II, and was a Dickin Medal recipient. He was assigned to the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and took part in the Battle of the Scheldt ...

, awarded the Dickin Medal. Also His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, the former ruler of the Sultantate of

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...

, served with the Cameronians as a junior officer.

Memorials

Face 5 of the British memorial on Spion Kop lists the names of the soldiers from the Cameronians who died at the

during the

. The Cameronians War Memorial in Kelvingrove Park,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

Philip Lindsey Clark Philip Lindsey Clark (1889–1977) was an English sculptor. Background Philip Lindsey Clark was born in London. His father was the sculptor Robert Lindsey Clark. He worked with his father at the Cheltenham School of Art from 1905 to 1910 an ...

, unveiled on 9 August 1924, depicts men of the regiment manning a Lewis gun. A monument commemorating both the founding of the regiment by the Earl of Angus in 1689 and its disbanding in 1968 can be found at Douglas, South Lanarkshire. Also within the village is a statue of the Earl of Angus to commemorate the bicentenary of the raising of the regiment.

Footnotes

References

Sources

* Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 1: The Regular British Divisions'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1934/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2a: The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1935/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 3b: New Army Divisions (30–41) and 63rd (R.N.) Division'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1939/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Brig-Gen Sir James E. Edmonds, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium, 1914'', Vol II, London: Macmillan, 1925/Imperial War Museum & Battery Press, 1995, . * * Lt-Col Graham Seton-Hutchinson, ''The Thirty-Third Division in France and Flanders, 1915–1919'', London: Waterlow & Sons 1921/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2004, . * Lt-Col R.R. Thompson, ''The Fifty-Second (Lowland) Division 1914–1918'', Glasgow: Maclehose, Jackson 1923/Uckfield: Naval & Military, 2004, .

External links

The Cameronians
* {{British Infantry Regiments World War I Cameronians Scottish regiments Rifle regiments Rifle regiments of the British Army Military units and formations established in 1881 * Regiments of the British Army in World War II Regiments of the British Army in World War I Military units and formations disestablished in 1968 1881 establishments in the United Kingdom Military units and formations in Lanarkshire R