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PREFACE
THE aim of this volume is
to present an outline of the services rendered to the Empire by
Perthshire men and Perthshire regiments since the inauguration of the
Standing Army in the year 1660. As explained in the Preface to “A
Military History of Perthshire, 1899-1902,” I undertook, some four years
ago, at the request of Miss Jane C. C. Macdonald, to edit and complete a
book already begun by her, in which, under the title of "The Muster-Roll
of Perthshire,” were to be set forth individual records of service of
Perthshire men in the late South African War. Two articles dealing with
events prior to 1899 had already been contributed, but since then the
scope of the book has been considerably extended, and the idea of
illustrating the records of the present day by the story of Perthshire’s
military achievements in the past has taken definite shape. It has
consequently been thought advisable to change the title, and so much
historical material has been amassed that a division of the book into
two volumes has become a necessity. Except therefore in the case of
three articles—those on the Militia, the Volunteers, and the 1st
Battalion The Black Watch—in which the narrative is continued to the
years 1901 or 1902—this volume deals only with events prior to 1899;
while the companion volume is chiefly concerned with the work done by
Perthshire men and Perthshire regiments in the South African War of
1899-1902.
From a glance at the Table of Contents the reader will see that the
narrative in this volume is not continuous, but that it consists of a
series of articles from different pens, grouped in sections according to
subject. This arrangement at first sight may appear disjointed, but I
regard it as inevitable. Perthshire is but a stone in the national
structure, and her military history cannot by itself form a complete
whole. Individual threads with an interest and continuity of their own
are woven into the great web of the nation’s history, but there is no
complete pattern to represent the county. If the complete pattern,
however, be wanting, the threads are many and varied. Perthshire’s
military history may be read in the story of the regiments contributed
by her to the Regular Army; in the roll of her Militia, Fencibles, and
Volunteers; in the campaigns which have taken place within her borders ;
and last but not least, in the lives of her soldier sons. And as for two
generations a lost cause absorbed in the main the martial ardour of the
county, any record of her military history would be incomplete which did
not include a mention of the part played by Perthshire men in the
'Fifteen, the Affair of Glenshiel, and the 'Forty-five.
Under these heads then the various articles in this book are grouped,
and in each group the articles are arranged in chronological order. Each
article forms a separate whole ; the treatment of the subject varies
with the author ; but the book will gain in interest if the articles in
each section are read in the order in which they are here presented, if
sections I. and II., and III. and IV., are read together, and if the
biographies are read last. Taken as a whole the five sections form a
fairly complete record of Perthshire's military history since the
Restoration.
In three respects the limits fixed in the title of the book have been
overstepped. Following the precedent established in the companion
volume, which records the services of Perthshire sailors, as well as
soldiers, of the present day, a mention of some distinguished seamen has
been included in the biographical section. That section opens with a
short biography of James, first Marquess of Montrose, whose brilliant
career ended ten years before the date at which the narrative proper
commences; and the account of the battles fought in Perthshire since
1660 is preceded by a note on the principal conflicts which have taken
place in the county since the days of Agricola onwards. Situated as it
is in the centre of Scotland, astride of both Highlands and Lowlands,
guardian of a great waterway and of the principal pass to the North,
Perthshire, owing to her strategical position, has been the scene of
many a conflict of great national issue, and he who would win Scotland
by the sword must woo alike the rugged mountains and fair straths of
this county. I hope therefore that the brief narrative of the principal
battles fought in Perthshire prior to 1660 will not be considered out of
place; and surely no apology is required for including a biography of
Perthshire's greatest soldier.
The quantity of material available for the different articles has varied
considerably, and in cases in which the writer has had access to sources
hitherto unpublished or little known, a larger amount of space has been
allotted than in those in which the subject could without difficulty be
studied elsewhere in more detail. Again, when it has been necessary
either to elucidate some hitherto obscure historical point, as in the
article entitled " The Historic Succession of the Black Watch,” or to
discriminate between the conflicting accounts of previous writers, as in
the account of the battle of Killiecrankie, the subject has been treated
at length ; and throughout the volume all points bearing on the history
of the Black Watch, the Perthshire regiment of to-day, have been brought
into prominent relief. Occasional overlapping has been inevitable, but
it will be found that when biographies have been included of several
officers who served in the same campaign, the references to the campaign
in question are usually fuller in the earliest article of the series.
The first two sections of the book contain a record, however brief, of
all the regiments raised in Perthshire or by Perthshire men for the
Regular and Reserve Forces since the year 1660, but to select the
officers whose biographies should fill the last section in this volume
has not been an easy task. With the exception of two officers who won
the Victoria Cross, and three men—Colonel the Marquess of Tullibardine,
Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Erskine, and Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Robert
Macara—all of whom were killed in action at the head of their respective
regiments—the list includes only men who, having been on active service
in a capacity not lower than that of field officer or naval captain,
afterwards rose to the rank of general or admiral. Within these limits I
hope that none of the more distinguished of Perthshire’s soldiers and
seamen have been overlooked; but there are many others whose biographies
I would gladly have included had not space forbidden an extension of the
list. Biographical notes supply some of the deficiencies, but I would
ask the indulgence of my readers for the many cases in which no mention
at all has been possible. As mentioned in the text, I have included
biographies of famous men such as Lord Duncan and Lord Keith, on whom
counties other than Perthshire have a personal claim, but whose
connection with this county could not be ignored.
Considerations of space suggested that the biographies of several of the
best-known men should aim at being character sketches rather than
detailed narratives, but in many other instances, owing to lack of
material, the personal note is wanting. None the less it may not be
without interest to Perthshire people of to-day to follow their
predecessors through the chief military events of the past two hundred
and fifty years.
Lists of officers, which may, I hope, prove useful to the genealogist or
the student of regimental or county history, accompany the articles
dealing with the Perthshire regiments proper. In most of these lists,
owing to want of space, it has been possible to include only the
officers originally appointed; and, except in the case of the first
Volunteer regiment raised in the county, the large number of Volunteers
raised during the Napoleonic era has prevented my mentioning more than
the field and company officers who served in that Force.
The list of those to whom I am indebted for help in the production of
this volume is a long one. In the first place my warm thanks are due to
those who have generously assisted me by contributing articles—more
especially to Mr. Andrew Ross, Ross Herald, Mr. W. B. Blaikie, Mr. Allan
McAulay, and Miss Eleanor C. Sellar, each of whom is responsible for
several chapters in the book. My obligation to the first two named is
particularly heavy. From Mr. Ross I have received not only the
interesting papers entered under his name, embodying the results of much
valuable research among original documents in the General Register
House, Edinburgh, but I am also indebted to him for untold advice and
encouragement, and for information on many points connected with
articles contributed by me. To Mr. Blaikie I owe not only articles,
covering, as will be seen, a wide range of subjects, but also much kind
advice and general help; and students of the ’Forty-five will understand
how much this book has gained from having nearly the whole of the
section entitled “Jacobite Perthshire” contributed by one who is
admittedly such an authority on that period.
The list of manuscripts consulted gives the names of most of those who
kindly supplied me with information or family papers, but I must here
record my special thanks to the Duke of Atholl for giving me access to
his charter-room; to Lord Breadalbane for his kindness in placing at my
disposal the regimental books of the Breadalbane Fencibles; to Lord
Kinnoull for lending me papers relating to the Yeomanry and Volunteers;
to Lieutenant-Colonel R. M. Holden for allowing me to make use of the
interesting notes he has compiled from various War Office papers at the
Record Office; and to Miss Murray MacGregor for her kindness in
furnishing me with information with regard to her clansmen. Others who
should be mentioned are Mrs. Campbell of Dunstaffnage, Colonel Campbell
of Achalader, Mr. Charles Dalton, editor of “English Army Lists and
Commission Registers,” Major Peter Chalmers, and Miss J. L. Small. But
many are the correspondents both within and without the county who have
kindly replied to my inquiries, and to all I would tender my thanks.
To Mr. W. Skeoch Cumming I am indebted for helpful advice with regard to
the illustrations generally, and for the note on page 53 with regard to
some rare old prints reproduced here. And my debt of gratitude to Mr.
Ross is not yet fully recorded, for to him I owe the descriptions of the
flags, the List of Authorities, and, last but not least, the very
careful Indexes to Persons and Military Units which he has compiled with
the aid of his son, Mr. Alastair Ross.
In the matter of illustrations my thanks are due to Lord Lovat, who has
kindly allowed me to reproduce a fine portrait of Prince Charles Edward,
hitherto, I believe, unpublished; to Lord Rollo for permission to
include not only the portrait of one of his ancestors, but photographs
of two interesting old flags at Duncrub; and to Mrs. Campbell of
Dunstaffnage, who has kindly supplied me with reproductions of two
portraits and a colour at In verawe. Lady Strathallan, Mrs. Small of
Dimanean, the Misses Macdonald (late of Dalchosnie), Miss E. C. Grant,
the Duke of Atholl, Lord Lansdowne, Lord Breadalbane, Lord Kinnoull,
Lord Elgin, the late Lord Mansfield, Lord Effingham, Sir Archibald
Campbell of Ava, Lieutenant-Colonel Home Drummond of Blair Drummond,
Captain Grant of Kilgraston, Captain Graham Stirling of Strowan, Mr.
Erskine of Cardross, Mr. Macduff of Bonhard, Mr. W. H. G. Bagshawe of
Ford, Mr. S. M. Milne, and the Senatus of Edinburgh University, are
others to whom I am under an obligation for leave to reproduce
portraits, flags, medals, or trophies, in their possession.
I am indebted to my husband for the originals of the maps of
Killiecrankie and Sheriffmuir, and the papers on those two battles have
benefited much from his military knowledge. The stamp of the county arms
on the cover of this volume is from a drawing by Captain Drummond Moray
of Abercairny.
I am under a deep obligation to Mrs. William J. Watson (Miss E. C.
Carmichael), editor of The Celtic Review, who has been kind enough to
read over the proofs and to give me much valuable advice with regard to
the book in general. I have also derived much help from the researches
made on my behalf at the Record Office and British Museum by Miss E. M.
Thompson, and in Edinburgh by Miss C. G. Barclay and Mr. John MacLeod.
My thanks are due to Mr. J. T. Clark and Mr. W. K. Dickson, past and
present curators of the Advocates’ Library, for their kindness in
allowing me access to that Library ; also to their staff for
facilitating my work there. Mr. A. D. Cary has kindly allowed me to make
some researches in the War Office Library, and Mr. B. E. Sargeaunt,
assistant curator of the Royal United Service Institution, with
never-failing courtesy has procured me information from the excellent
military library in Whitehall. I am also indebted to Mr. Ross, Mr.
Blaikie, and Sir Duncan Campbell of Barcaldine, for the loan of several
books which have been of invaluable service.
With the exception of the collotype reproduction of the Culloden Orders,
which has been kindly presented by Mr. Blaikie, the illustrations are
the work of Messrs. Carl Hentschel, Limited. The printing has been
entrusted to the Ballantyne Press, and I must here record my
appreciation of the clearness and accuracy with which that firm have
executed their work.
Lastly, I must tender my apologies for the delay in the publication of
this and the accompanying volume, and express my gratitude for the
forbearance shown by the subscribers to both. To record Perthshire’s
military history under so many different headings has been no light
matter, and I can only hope that they may find something in the history
of county men and county regiments, as here set forth, to make amends
for the long period during which the book has been in course of
preparation.
K. M. TULLIBARDINE.
Blair Castle,
1907.
Volume 1
| Volume 2 |
