Lovat Scouts

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The Lovat Scouts is now a platoon of the British Army's 51st Highland Regiment. The unit was first formed during the Second Boer War as a Scottish Highland yeomanry regiment of the Territorial Army and is the first known military unit to wear a ghillie suit. In 1916, these scouts formally became the British Army's first sniper unit, then known as sharpshooters. Their motto is: Je suis prest (I am ready)

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Formation

This Scottish Highland regiment was formed in January 1900 for service in the Second Boer War by Simon Joseph Fraser, 16th Lord Lovat, father of the World War II commando, Simon Fraser, 17th Lord Lovat. The unit reported to an American, Major Frederick Russell Burnham, the British Army Chief of Scouts under Lord Roberts, who fittingly described Lovat Scouts as "half wolf and half jackrabbit."[1] Well practiced in the arts of marksmanship, field craft, 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."[1] Lovats scouts have the distinction of being the first military unit to wear a Ghillie suit[2]

Lovat scouts were attached to the Black Watch, but were disbanded in July 1901 while two companies (the 113th and 114th) were formed for the Imperial Yeomanry. When the Second Boer War ended in 1902, the two companies of the Imperial Yeomanry 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.[1]

[edit] First World War

The two Lovat Scouts regiments saw extensive involvement in the First World War. Each regiment raised two further duplicate battalions during the war. The Lovat Scouts saw service on the Western Front, at Gallipoli, and in Egypt and Macedonia.

In Macedonia in December 1916 the 1/1st and 1/2nd Regiments were merged, dismounted and along with a company from the 1/3rd Regiment The Scottish Horse formed 10th (Lovat Scouts) Battalion, Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders. It still retained the uniform of the Lovat Scouts until disbanded in 1919.

The 2/1st and 2/2nd Regiments were based at home in the United Kingdom and provided drafts for the 1/1st, 1/2nd and 10th Bn Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders. From 1916 when they merged to form the 1st (Lovat Scouts) Yeomanry Cyclist Regiment, they also provide men for the Lovat Scouts (Sharpshooters)

The Sharpshooters were formed from gamekeepers or gillie of the highland estates and were used in an observation and sniping role on the Western Front until the end of the War.

The 3/1st and 3/2nd Regiments were raised in 1915 and provided drafts to 1st and 2nd Line regiments. They were disbanded in 1917 and the personnel were distributed between the 1st (Lovat Scouts) Yeomanry Cyclist Regiment and 3rd (Special Reserve) Bn, Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders.

With the defence cuts implemented after WWI, one regiment of the Lovat Scouts was disbanded in 1922.

[edit] Second World War

See also: The British occupation of the Faroe Islands 1940-1945

During the Second World War it garrisoned the Faroe Islands against feared German invasion. It also saw active service in Italy from 1944 to the end of the war.

[edit] Post-War

Upon the reconstitution of the Territorial Army in 1947 the regiment was reduced to a squadron (C (Lovat Scouts) Squadron) of The Scottish Horse, part of the Royal Armoured Corps. It was converted to artillery in 1949, becoming the 677th Mountain Artillery, RA (Lovat Scouts). It remained in the Royal Artillery, under numerous different titles it, until, with further defence cuts in the 1960s, was disbanded with two squadrons, one becoming a battery of The Highland Regiment, RA and the other joining the 3rd (Territorial) Battalion, Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons). The Lovat Scouts were reorganised with No. 1 (Lovat Scouts) Company being formed as part of the 51st Highland Volunteers.

The company became two separate platoons in 1981 but was reduced to one platoon (Lovat Scouts Platoon) of B (Highlanders) Company, 51st Highland Regiment, after the Options for Change defence white paper.

[edit] Music

The Lovat Scouts is a lively Scottish quickstep and strathspey, written in the bagpipe idiom by James Scott Skinner.[3]

[edit] Other information

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

[edit] Battle honours

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c John Plaster (2006). The Ultimate Sniper: An Advanced Training Manual For Military And Police Snipers. Paladin Press, 5. ISBN 0-87364-704-1. 
  2. ^ Martin Pegler (2004). Out of Nowhere: A History of the Military Sniper. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 0-87364-704-1. 
  3. ^ The Lovat Scouts, The Kirrie Kebbuck. (html). sheet music and description. Retrieved on 2007-09-15.