Royal Scots (Jacobite)
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The Jacobite Royal Scots, sometimes called the Royal-Ecossais, Lord John Drummond's Regiment or French Royal Scots, was a French military regiment made up mostly of
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
Jacobite exiles. Formed in 1744 under a 1743 order, they are perhaps best known for serving in Scotland during the
Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of t ...
. The regiment was disbanded in December 1762;McCorry, H. "Rats, Lice and Scotchmen: Scottish infantry regiments in the service of France, 1742-62" in ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'', 297 (Spring 1996), 21 its men were mostly incorporated into Bulkeley's regiment of the Irish Brigade.


Formation

The regiment was formed in August 1744 by John Drummond, a younger son of the 2nd Duke of Perth; Perth was a Catholic and
Stuart Stuart may refer to: People *Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) * Clan Stuart of Bute, a Scottish clan *House of Stuart, a royal house of Scotland and England Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, ...
loyalist who was
attainted In English criminal law, attainder was the metaphorical "stain" or "corruption of blood" which arose from being condemned for a serious capital crime (felony or treason). It entailed losing not only one's life, property and hereditary titles, but ...
for his role in the
1715 Jacobite rising The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts. At Braemar, Aberdeenshire, local landowner the Earl ...
. In May 1745
Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...
wrote of Drummond that it was "impossible that he can escape having his throat cut, for he is dayly affronting people," but during the 1745 Rising he proved to be a reliable and experienced officer.McCorry (1996), 18 A number of Scottish exiles were already in French service in the Irish Brigade, including Drummond, who held the rank of captain. However, further recruitment in Scotland proved difficult as many Scots disliked serving under Irish officers, joining Dutch regiments for preference.Wemyss, A. (2003) ''Elcho of the '45'', Saltire Society, p.46 The French government accordingly made formation of a Scots regiment a key element of its plan for a possible campaign in Scotland, with an intention to "confer captaincies on those Highland chiefs known to be loyal to the House of Stuart". A narrative written by "A.M." or " Pickle the Spy", a British intelligence agent now thought to have been Alastair Ruadh MacDonnell of Glengarry, claims that he was responsible for the regiment's formation when he was presented to
Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...
after Dettingen.Maclean-Bristol, Nicholas. "JACOBITE OFFICERS IN THE SCOTS BRIGADE IN DUTCH SERVICE" ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'' vol 82, no. 330 (2004), 101 "A.M." also suggested that Sir Hector Maclean was intended to be Lieutenant-Colonel, but Drummond "got a stop to isobtaining the Commission".Maclean-Bristol (2004), 102 An ordnance to raise the regiment was dated 3 December 1743; France declared war on Britain in March 1744, and the regiment's first commissions were issued on 1 August. In addition to those Scots already in the Irish Brigade, Jacobite recruiting parties were active in Scotland in late 1744 and into 1745.Wood, S. (1989) ''The Auld Alliance: Scotland and France, the Military Connection'', Mainstream, p.80 Recruits were embarked at east coast ports like Montrose, where there were a number of Jacobite shipmasters. A further source of recruits was among deserters from the British Army on the Continent and the regiment eventually included men from England and Ireland in addition to those of Scottish or French origin. Later in its career its composition became even more varied; in 1749 one company included 41 Scots, 18 English, 16 Irish, 23 Germans, 15 Flemish and 33 French, as well as 24 'other'.McCorry (1996), 15


Organisation and equipment

The establishment of the ''Regiment Royal-Ecossais'' was set at 12 companies, each of 55 men; one
grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word ''grenade'') was historically an assault-specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in siege operation battles. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when ...
company and 11
fusilier ''Fusilier'' is a name given to various kinds of soldiers; its meaning depends on the historical context. While ''fusilier'' is derived from the 17th-century French word – meaning a type of flintlock musket – the term has been used in cont ...
companies. While officers in the period were still reluctant to adopt standard uniforms, the men were issued with dark blue coats of French cut and facings of orange-red "''rouge a l'Ecossoise''", waistcoats of the facing colour, white breeches and a laced hat. Uniforms were kept for special occasions, like battles; rough grey was usually worn for everyday use. During the 1745 rising, Jacobite service was indicated by white
cockade A cockade is a knot of ribbons, or other circular- or oval-shaped symbol of distinctive colours which is usually worn on a hat or cap. The word cockade derives from the French ''cocarde'', from Old French ''coquarde'', feminine of ''coquard'' (va ...
s worn in the hat: while they are sometimes said to have worn the distinctive woollen
blue bonnet The blue bonnet was a type of soft woollen hat that for several hundred years was the customary working wear of Scottish labourers and farmers. Although a particularly broad and flat form was associated with the Scottish Lowlands, where it was so ...
while in Scotland,Reid (1996), ''1745: A Military History of the Last Jacobite Rising'', p.90 this probably applied only to officers or to those recruits raised later in Perth. Their
colours Color (or colour in Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though color is not an inherent property of matter, color perception is related to an object's light absorpt ...
, recorded in a French document of 1748, featured a St Andrew's Cross and thistles with a
fleur-de-lis The ''fleur-de-lis'', also spelled ''fleur-de-lys'' (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, and mean and respectively). Most notably, the ''fleur-de-lis'' ...
and the motto ''Nemo me impune lacessit''.McCorry (1996), 16


Service

The ''Royal-Ecossais'' initially served under Saxe and are widely said to have been present at Fontenoy in May 1745, though this may refer only to elements of the unit. In late November 1745 they were embarked for Scotland. Not all units sent by the French were able to pass through the British blockade; one company (including MacDonnell of Glengarry) was captured with ''L'Esperance'' off the
Dogger Bank Dogger Bank ( Dutch: ''Doggersbank'', German: ''Doggerbank'', Danish: ''Doggerbanke'') is a large sandbank in a shallow area of the North Sea about off the east coast of England. During the last ice age, the bank was part of a large landmass ...
, but Drummond and the remainder, under cover of a gale, were able to reach Montrose on 7 December. Most of the regiment was employed at
Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...
in late January; constructing gun emplacements under fire caused regular casualties. In February recruitment began in Perth to raise a second battalion; this was not especially successful but the regiment was around 350 strong by the time of Culloden. At Culloden the ''Royal-Ecossais'' appear to have been positioned flanking the right of the second line, though one source places them in the centre.Pittock, M (2016) ''Culloden'', Oxford University Press, p.27 After the failure of the Jacobite first line's attack, Lt-Col Lewis Drummond's battalion formed square before surrendering; other elements of the regiment under Maj. Matthew Hale covered the retreat of some of the Jacobite units towards Ruthven, surrendering two days later. The government was initially unsure whether to regard British subjects in the ''Royal-Ecossais'' as rebels or prisoners of war. France responded by demanding the passports of all British people in France and threatening to arrest any found without one; the British government backed down and most from the French regiments were eventually discharged. Although many of them were found to be Scots or English Protestants, the authorities decided not to risk making further difficulties from the situation apart from 16 found to be deserters, who were hanged after courts martial.McCorry (1996), 22 During 1747 the regiment rebuilt to make up for losses sustained at Culloden and as prisoners of war returned from Britain. Back on the Continent, John Drummond served at the Siege of Bergen op Zoom in July–September 1747, where he was Brigadier in command of the piquets in the trenches; his regiment however does not seem to have joined him, being first recorded in October as part of the ''Armee de Saxe'' at
Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...
.Maclean-Bristol, 104-105 Drummond died at Bergen op Zoom towards the end of the siege and Lewis Drummond took over as Colonel, with Lancelot Cuthbert of Castlehill as Lieutenant-Colonel. The ''Royal-Ecossais colonel from 1757 onwards was
David Wemyss, Lord Elcho David Wemyss, Lord Elcho and ''de jure'' 6th Earl of Wemyss (12 August 172129 April 1787), was a Scottish peer and Jacobite, attainted for his part in the 1745 Rising was deprived of titles and estates. One of the few Jacobites excluded from ...
, an exiled veteran of the 1745 Rising; Elcho was left embittered by the regiment's disbandment, as well as with his experience of Jacobite and French service in general. Several other prominent Jacobite exiles also continued to serve as officers, amongst them Ewen MacPherson of Cluny, Donald MacDonnell of Lochgarry and
Archibald Cameron of Lochiel Archibald Cameron of Lochiel (1707 – 7 June 1753) was a Scottish physician, known for his involvement in the Jacobite rising of 1745, where he served as ADC to its leader, Charles Edward Stuart. Dr Cameron was the younger brother of landowne ...
, who was captain of the regiment's grenadier company. It continued service during the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
, often on garrison duties, until disbandment as the war was ending. The ''Royal-Ecossais'' regimental traditions were preserved by the French Army's 87th Infantry Regiment until the latter was disbanded in 1940.


References

{{reflist Military units and formations established in 1744 Jacobite rising of 1745