The Lovat Scouts was a

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 Gurk ...

unit first formed 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 South ...

as a Scottish Highland

yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

of the British Army. They were the first known military unit to wear a ghillie suit and in 1916 formally became the British Army's first sniper unit, then known as "

sharpshooter A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with " marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" ...

s". It served in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and then

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

History

Formation and early history

The regiment was formed in January 1900 for service in the

by Simon Fraser, 14th Lord Lovat as the Lovat Scouts.Frederick, pp. 42–3. Recruited initially from gamekeepers on Highland estates, the unit was commanded by the Hon. Andrew David Murray from his appointment by Lord Lovat in February 1900 until killed in action September 1901. After his death Lord Lovat, who had hitherto served as second-in-command of the regiment, took command himself (now aged 29), and remained in command till the end of the war. Well practiced in the arts of

marksman A marksman is a person who is skilled in precision shooting using projectile weapons (in modern days most commonly an accurized scoped long gun such as designated marksman rifle or a sniper rifle) to shoot at high-value targets at longer-than- ...

ship, fieldcraft and military tactics, they were also phenomenal woodsmen always ready to tempt fate, but also practitioners of discretion: "He who shoots and runs away, lives to shoot another day." Lovat Scouts have the distinction of being the first military unit to wear a Ghillie suit. Lovat Scouts were attached to the

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...

, but were disbanded in July 1901 while two companies (the 113th and 114th) were formed for the second contingent of the

Imperial Yeomanry The Imperial Yeomanry was a volunteer mounted force of the British Army that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War. Created on 2 January 1900, the force was initially recruited from the middle classes and traditional yeomanry sources, but s ...

(IY) and another (178th) for the third contingent. After the end of the Second Boer War in June 1902, the companies returned to the United Kingdom on SS ''Tintagel Castle'' two months later, and were disbanded. The unit was reformed the following year, consisting of two regiments, titled the 1st and 2nd Lovat Scouts. From these Scouts a sharpshooter unit was formed and formally become the British Army's first sniper unit. The regiment was disbanded in August 1902 but reformed as Lovat's Scouts Imperial Yeomanry in March 1903. It reverted to the Lovat's Scouts Yeomanry when the yeomanry regiments transferred to 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 ...

in April 1908. The regiment was based at Croyard Road near

Beauly Beauly ( ; ; gd, A' Mhanachainn) is a village in the Highland area, on the River Beauly, west of Inverness by the Far North railway line. The town is historically within Kilmorack Parish of the Scottish County of Inverness. The land around B ...

at this time (since demolished).

First World War

In accordance with the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 ('' 7 Edw. 7, c.9'') which brought the

into being, the TF was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split in August and September 1914 into 1st Line (liable for overseas service) and 2nd Line (home service for those unable or unwilling to serve overseas) units. Later, a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments.

1/1st and 1/2nd Lovat Scouts

The 1/1st Lovat's Scouts Yeomanry landed in Gallipoli in September 1915. It was evacuated to Egypt in December 1915 and then converted into 10th (Lovat's Scouts) Battalion, the

Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Al ...

in September 1916. It landed at Salonika and under the command of 82nd Brigade in the 27th Division in October 1916 and then became Line of Communication troops in France in June 1918.

2/1st and 2/2nd Lovat Scouts

The 2nd Line regiments were formed in 1914 and in January 1915 joined the

2/1st Highland Mounted Brigade H21 or H-21 may refer to : * British NVC community H21, a type of heath community in the British National Vegetation Classification * Highway H21 (Ukraine) * , a Royal Navy H-class submarine * , a Royal Navy S-class destroyer * Mata Hari (1876–1 ...

. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence; the brigade became the 1st Mounted Brigade and joined

1st Mounted Division The 1st Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed in August 1914 for the home defence of the United Kingdom from four existing mounted brigades of the Territorial Force, each of three ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. In July 1916, the 1st Mounted Division was reorganised as the 1st Cyclist Division and the regiments were converted to

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

units in the 1st Cyclist Brigade of the division at Somerleyton near Lowestoft. In November 1916, the 1st Cyclist Division was broken up and the regiments were merged to form 1st (Lovat's Scouts) Yeomanry Cyclist Regiment, still in the 1st Cyclist Brigade. In March 1917, they resumed their identities as 2/1st Lovat's Scouts and 2/2nd Lovat's Scouts at

Gorleston Gorleston-on-Sea (), known colloquially as Gorleston, is a town in the Borough of Great Yarmouth, in Norfolk, England, to the south of Great Yarmouth. Situated at the mouth of the River Yare it was a port town at the time of the Domesday Bo ...

. By July 1917, the regiments had moved to

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 and A12 roads, north-east of London as the crow fl ...

, where they remained until the end of the war, still in 1st Cyclist Brigade.

3/1st and 3/2nd Lovat Scouts

The 3rd Line regiments were raised in July 1915 at Beauly and affiliated to a Reserve Cavalry Regiment at Aldershot. They provided drafts to 1st and 2nd Line regiments. In June 1916, they moved to

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. The regiments were disbanded in January 1917 with personnel transferring to the 2nd Line units or to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion of the

at Invergordon.

"Sharpshooters"

In 1916 the regiment formed detachments known as "sharpshooters" which used for observation and sniping work in France.

Between the wars

Postwar, a commission was set up to consider the shape of the Territorial Force ( Territorial Army from 1 October 1921). The experience of the First World War made it clear that there was a surplus of cavalry. The commission decided that only the 14 most senior regiments were to be retained as cavalry, the others being variously converted to armoured cars or artillery. However, two Scottish Yeomanry regiments remained mounted as 'Scouts': the

Scottish Horse The Scottish Horse was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army's Territorial Army raised in 1900 for service in the Second Boer War. It saw heavy fighting in both the First World War, as the 13th Battalion, Black Watch, and in the Second World Wa ...

and the Lovat Scouts (reduced to a single regiment).

Second World War

From May 1940 to June 1942, the Lovat Scouts provided the garrison in the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

, protecting against the feared German invasion. After a period based in northern Scotland and Wales, the regiment was sent to

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 tot ...

in December 1943 for specialist ski and mountain training. They sailed on the '' Mauretania'' for 11 days. They pulled into

Grand Central Station Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus ...

, New York and then travelled on the Canadian Pacific Railway eventually arriving in

Jasper National Park Jasper National Park is a national park in Alberta, Canada. It is the largest national park within Alberta's Rocky Mountains spanning . It was established as a national park in 1930 and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. Its locatio ...

after five days. The training started with basic ski training, with the emphasis on cross country work with the type of load that would have to be carried in action e.g. sleeping bag, rations for two or more days, and a rifle. This was followed by survival instruction—what to do and what not to do to exist and function in very cold conditions e.g. by digging snow holes in which to sleep, or erecting simple shelters from the virgin pine and spruce forests. After this stage, there was instruction and practice in ascents on snow and ice, use of ice axe, crampons etc.Personal testimony of Sergeant Frank Henderson Typically, men would spend three or four weeks at a mountain base, in the vicinity of

Mount Edith Cavell Mount Edith Cavell is a mountain located in the Athabasca River and Astoria River valleys of Jasper National Park, and the most prominent peak entirely within Alberta. The mountain was named in 1916 for Edith Cavell, a British nurse executed ...

, or in the

Tonquin Valley The Tonquin Valley is located in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada, next to the border of the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, an area which is also the continental divide, running along the peaks of the South Jasper Range (includi ...

—all within the 4200 square miles of Jasper National Park. In that time, squadrons would practice their survival work in expeditions usually lasting about two or three days at a time, with the men sleeping in snow holes. For the remainder of the time, they were billeted in canvas marquees, each accommodating about 25 men, with a large wood-burning stove in the middle that was kept on night and day with logs sawn from the fallen or naturally dead trees in the area. At the end of the three or four weeks on Mount Edith Cavell or in the Tonquin Valley, the men would come down for a few days' rest and recreation in the chalets in

Jasper, Alberta Jasper is a specialized municipality and townsite in western Alberta within the Canadian Rockies. The townsite is in the Athabasca River valley and is the commercial centre of Jasper National Park. History Established in 1813, Jasper ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

was then a "dry" province, so there was no alcohol. When a few days' leave was given, most made the 500-mile journey to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the southe ...

, where they were entertained by the many Scottish expatriates, or their descendants, who were able to get limitless supplies of liquor from over the U.S. border. By late April, spring was well on the way, and the regiment embarked by train for a journey to Halifax. Their intended embarkation there was delayed when some fell ill with scarlet fever, but training continued with work on river crossing, whether or not the individual soldiers could swim, and route marches. Eventually, all embarked on the converted liner ''Andes'' on convoy, which had an uneventful crossing, being in mid-Atlantic on 6 June, the day of the Normandy landings. On landing at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

, the regiment entrained for

Aberdeen Kittybrewster railway station Aberdeen Kittybrewster station opened on 20 September 1854 to serve the Great North of Scotland Railway main line to Keith. It closed to passengers in 1856 once opened and (on the link to the Aberdeen Railway The Aberdeen Railway was ...

, where it spent about three weeks, including spells of home leave. As a consequence of its training in Jasper, the Scouts was sent to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, arriving in Naples in July 1944, to take their part in the relatively fluid situation following the fall of

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...

. As part of, successively, the 10th Indian Infantry Division,

II Corps (Poland) The Polish II Corps ( pl, Drugi Korpus Wojska Polskiego), 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and fought wi ...

, and latterly the recently arrived

Jewish Brigade The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group, more commonly known as the Jewish Brigade Group or Jewish Brigade, was a military formation of the British Army in the World War II, Second World War. It was formed in late 1944 and was recruited among Yishuv, Y ...

, the regiment took part in the remainder of the Italian campaign, and the German surrender in early May 1945.

Post-War

At the end of the war in Europe, the regiment drove north, through the Brenner Pass, into Austria, where they sought out senior members of the Nazi party. In early 1946, the regiment moved to Greece by plane, landing in Salonika in support of the Greek Civil Power during the communist insurgency. Upon the reconstitution of the Territorial Army on 1 January 1947, the regiment was reduced to a squadron (C (Lovat Scouts) Squadron) of The

, part of the Royal Armoured Corps. However, on 1 January 1949 it was transferred to the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

as 677 (Lovat Scouts) Mountain Regiment, RA , with headquarters at Inverness. On 22 May the following year one battery became independent as 850 (Lovat Scouts) Mountain Battery then on 30 September the rest of the regiment amalgamated with 532 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment at Falkirk and 540 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment at Inverness, the combined unit taking the title 532 (Lovat Scouts) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA. 850 Mountain Bty was disbanded on 5 April 1954 and the personnel absorbed back into 532 LAA Regiment, which was redesignated 540 (Lovat Scouts) LAA Regiment on 4 November that year. On 31 October 1956 it absorbed 412 (Highland) (Mixed) Coast Regiment with no change of title.Frederick, pp. 1011, 1021, 1030–1. The regiment underwent further changes when the TA was reorganised on 1 May 1961: * B

Troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Tr ...

Alness Alness (, ; gd, Alanais) is a town and civil parish in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland. It lies near the mouth of the River Averon, near the Cromarty Firth, with the town of Invergordon 3 miles (5 km) to the east, and the village of Evanton ...

and Tain, and the detachment at

Gare Loch The Gare Loch or Gareloch ( gd, An Gearr Loch) is an open sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland and bears a similar name to the village of Gairloch in the north west Highlands. The loch is well used for recreational boating, water sports and f ...

, were absorbed into 11th Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders * A Troop at

Benbecula Benbecula (; gd, Beinn nam Fadhla or ) is an island of the Outer Hebrides in the Atlantic Ocean off the west coast of Scotland. In the 2011 census, it had a resident population of 1,283 with a sizable percentage of Roman Catholics. It is in a ...

, C Troop at

Newtonmore Newtonmore ( gd, Baile Ùr an t-Sléibh ) is a village in the Highland council area of Scotland. The village is only a few miles from a location that is claimed to be the exact geographical centre of Scotland. Activities *Shinty - The town is ...

, and the detachment at Fort William, were absorbed into 4th Battalion,

* The rest of 540 LAA Regiment absorbed 861 (Orkney and Zetland) Independent LAA Battery, which became Q (Orkney & Zetland) Bty at Lerwick, Shetland; it dropped 'LAA' from the regimental title on 4 October that year, and was designated 'Light Air Defence' from 18 March 1964. When the TA was reduced into the Territorial and Army Volunteer Reserve (TAVR) after the defence cuts of 1967, the unit became A (The Lovat Scouts) Company, in 3rd (Territorial) Battalion,

Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons) The Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons), officially abbreviated "QO HLDRS," was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. It was in existence from 1961 to 1994. History 1961–1970 The regiment was f ...

, which became part of 2nd Battalion 51st Highland Volunteers in March 1969. The unit was re-organised as two separate platoons in two different companies of 51st Highland Volunteers in 1981 and as two separate platoons of 3rd (Volunteer) Battalion, The

Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Prior to 28 March 2006, the Highlanders was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordon ...

in 1995. The lineage was maintained by the Orkney Independent Cadet Battery (RA) Lovat Scouts from 2012 until 1 January 2018 when the unit amalgamated with Shetland Independent Cadet Battery (RA) forming Orkney and Shetland Battery of 1 Highlanders Battalion Army Cadet Force where they are still allowed to wear the head dress and tartan but now are a battery within 1 Highlanders ACF.

Music

''The Lovat Scouts'' is a lively Scottish quickstep and strathspey, written in the

bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...

idiom by

James Scott Skinner James Scott Skinner (5 August 1843 – 17 March 1927) was a Scottish dancing master, violinist, fiddler and composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential fiddlers in Scottish traditional music, and was known as "the Strathspey Kin ...

Memorials

There is a memorial to the Lovat Scouts in the town square of

References

Bibliography

* * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, . * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol II, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, . * * Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * * * *

External links

Chris Baker, ''The Long, Long Trail''

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070621175054/http://www.btinternet.com/~james.mckay/yeoman06.htm Scottish Military History Website - Lovat Scouts
A History of the Lovat Scouts, with Pictures
{{British Cavalry Regiments World War I Yeomanry regiments of the British Army Imperial Yeomanry Military units and formations of the Second Boer War Regiments of the British Army in World War II Military units and formations established in 1900 Clan Fraser Scottish regiments Highland regiments Military units and formations in Inverness-shire Army reconnaissance units and formations