While doing some research on Hamilton Barracks for a forthcoming talk (watch this space!) I came across a couple of photographs in the collection that I hadn’t seen before. They show the Permanent Staff of the Militia Battalions that were stationed at Hamilton Barracks.
Warrant Officers and Non Commissioned Officers of the 3rd and 4th (Militia) Battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and Highland Light Infantry.
The photographs appear to date from the 1890s, and were taken outside the Officers Mess building at the north end of Hamilton Barracks.
Warrant Officers and Non Commissioned Officers of the 3rd and 4th (Militia) Battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles).
Whenever I come across a ‘new’ photograph I always examine the faces of the men shown in the hopes that I might recognise someone. This can help establish the identity of the unit (if not recorded on the photograph or its catalogue record) and possibly help date the image. Uniform details, such as what medals are worn, or what kind of tartan the Cameronian soldiers are wearing (they didn’t start wearing Douglas tartan until April 1892), can prove useful in narrowing down a time period.
In the first photograph, showing a mix of men from the Cameronians and HLI, I immediately spotted; Pipe Major James Nesbit, (standing on the left, wearing a kilt), Quartermaster Sergeant Tommy Finn (seated fifth from left), Sergeant Major Frederick Brightman (seated centre), and Sergeant Major William Taylor (seated seventh from the right). All of these men had lengthy service with the regular battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) before transferring to the Permanent Staff of the militia battalions. In the case of Tommy Finn, he had started his military career as a boy soldier with the 90th (Perthshire) Light Infantry, serving as a bugler to General (later Field Marshal) Evelyn Wood VC during the Zulu War.
Close-up of Tommy Finn, wearing his medal for service in South Africa 1877-79 and the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. Tommy died in 1921, by which point he was Quartermaster of the 3rd Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) holding the rank of Major.
Pipe Major Nesbit and Sergeant Major Taylor are both present in the second image, but QMS Finn and Sergeant Major Brightman are missing – suggesting perhaps the photographs weren’t taken at the same time.
While scrutinising the other faces, my heart almost skipped a beat when I saw the medals proudly worn by one Cameronian soldier…
This soldier is wearing the Victoria Cross – Britain’s highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy.
This reclining sergeant is wearing the Victoria Cross, the highest gallantry award awarded to British service personnel for bravery in the face of the enemy. The sergeant, who is also present in the other photograph, is none other than Edmund Fowler VC.
Sergeant Edmund Fowler VC.
Fowler was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions in South Africa in 1879, while serving as a private soldier in the 90th (Perthshire) Light Infantry, later the 2nd Battalion Scottish Rifles. His citation reads:
On the 28th March, 1879, during the assault of the Inhlobane Mountain, Sir Evelyn Wood ordered the dislodgment of certain Zulus (who were causing the Troops much loss) from strong natural caves commanding the position in which some of the wounded were lying. Some delay occurring in the execution of the orders issued, Captain the Honourable Ronald Campbell, Coldstream Guards, followed by Lieutenant Lysons, Aide-de-Camp, and Private Fowler, ran forward in the most determined manner, and advanced over a mass of fallen boulders, and between walls of rock, which led to a cave in which the enemy lay hidden. It being impossible for two men to walk abreast, the assailants were consequently obliged to keep in single file, and as Captain Campbell was leading, he arrived first at the mouth of the cave, from which the Zulus were firing, and there met his death. Lieutenant Lysons and Private Fowler, who were following close behind him, immediately dashed at the cave, from which led several subterranean passages, and firing into the chasm below, succeeded in forcing the occupants to forsake their stronghold. Lieutenant Lysons remained at the cave’s mouth for some minutes after the attack, during which time Captain Campbell’s body was carried down the slopes.
London Gazette, 7th April 1882
The lieutenant mentioned in the citation was Henry Lysons, also of the 90th (Perthshire) Infantry, and who was also awarded the Victoria Cross for the same action.
Both Fowler’s and Lysons’ medals are in the regimental museum collection, and are on display in Low Parks Museum. I knew from Fowler’s medals that he had later joined the Royal Irish Regiment and had served with them in Egypt, thus qualifying for the 1882 Egypt Medal and Khedive’s Star, but I had no idea that he had returned to the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) once more, serving on the Permanent Staff of the 3rd (Militia) Battalion. A check of Fowler’s service records (via FindMyPast) gives the following outline of his service:
Joins 90th (Perthshire) Light Infantry on 17th March 1877, with regimental number 1317.
Pays for discharge from 90th at Netley on 29th January 1880, after almost three years of good service.
Re-enlists Royal Irish Regiment on 15th February 1882, with regimental number 373.
Awarded Victoria Cross by Queen Victoria, 13th May 1882.
Transfers to Permanent Staff, 3rd Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) on 16th March 1896, with regimental number 5484.
Promoted Colour Sergeant 14th May 1898
Discharged 13th February 1900, having been found no longer physically fit for active service due to chronic ulcers of the leg.
The information from Fowler’s record can help us narrow down the dates of the photographs even further. As he doesn’t appear to be wearing the rank insignia of a Colour Sergeant in either photograph, they were likely taken between March 1896, when he transfers to the 3rd Battalion, and May 1898, when he is promoted to Colour Sergeant.
I’m always amazed at the stories that are often hidden away in these old photographs, just waiting to be rediscovered.
This officers mess jacket and waistcoat belonged to Colonel Thomas Alexander Irvine DSO TD. The uniform was only recently donated to the Museum after it was discovered for sale in an army surplus store in Lanark. Robert Paton, husband of our Collections Manager, Sharon, had been in the surplus store looking for an army greatcoat for a Halloween costume. Robert noticed the uniform (along with matching trews) in the store and on speaking with the owner they discovered Colonel Irvine’s name on the label. Following the discovery, the store owners very kindly offered to donate the uniform to the museum collection.
Colonel Irvine, then a Captain, from a group photograph of regimental officers, 1939.
Colonel Irvine, originally from Motherwell, had been living in Symington at the time of his death in 1963. He had attended Hamilton Academy, after which he entered his family’s iron and steel business. Irvine joined the 6th Cameronians as a second lieutenant in 1932. In the early years of the Second World War he was second-in-command of 10th Cameronians, and ultimately commanded the 7th Worcestershire Regiment in Burma. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for gallantry in action against the Japanese at the Irrawaddy River in late February 1945. After the War, Colonel Irvine commanded the 6th Cameronians, and was later Commandant of the Lanarkshire County Cadet Force and Chairman of the Territorial Army and Air Force Association in Lanarkshire. Colonel Irvine had been heavily involved in all aspects of regimental life for most of his adult life.
Colonel T. A. Irvine’s medals: left to right – Distinguished Service Order (DSO), 1939-45 Star, Burma Star, Defence Medal, 1939-45 Star, Territorial Efficiency Decoration (TD) with second award clasp.
Colonel Irvine’s uniform has been temporarily displayed in Low Parks Museum, along with his medal group which was already in the museum collection.
The citation for Colonel Irvine’s Distinguished Service Order is worth repeating in full. Originally recommended for the Military Cross (MC), this was upgraded to the DSO by the General Officer Commanding 33rd Indian Corps, Lieutenant-General Montagu Stopford GCB, KBE, DSO, MC.
“This officer commanded 7th Battalion Worcestershire Regiment during the successful establishment of a bridgehead across the Irrawaddy River in the Myittha area on 24/25 Feb ‘45 and during the capture of Ngazun on 26 Feb ‘45.
7th Worcestershire Regiment were ordered to cross West of Myittha during the night 24/25 Feb ‘45, Lt. Col. Irvine led the first flight of his Battalion which met a withering fire, resulting in the majority of boats being sunk. Lt. Col. Irvine’s boat was sunk and he had to swim 400 yards back to the shore. Although practically exhausted, he immediately rallied his whole Battalion and reported to the Brigade Commander for further orders.
On the morning of 26 Feb ‘45, 7th Worcestershire Regiment crossed into the bridgehead previously established by 1st Camerons and were ordered to attack Ngazun in conjunction with 2nd Dorset Regiment.
Lt. Col. Irvine had little time to organise this attack, but he managed to do so in a masterly way. The attack was brilliantly successful. The Battalion, in spite of the set back of the previous night, went into the attack with superb determination, swept through the town, killed many enemy and finally consolidated for the night.
This fine achievement was due almost entirely to Lt. Col. Irvine’s inspired leadership and power of command.”
We are very pleased to have been able to add this fine uniform to a local officer to the museum collection, and would like to thank the owners of Fishing and Survival in Lanark for their generosity in gifting it to us.
In early 2019, we were delighted to be put in touch with Mr Donnie MacKenzie of Ullapool, Scotland, a Second World War veteran who had served with the 1st Battalion Cameronians and the Chindits in Burma in 1944. A most remarkable man, at the age of 95 Donnie, along with his son, had raised £3,500 for charity by walking the length of the Forth Road Bridge.
Donnie during his visit to Low Parks Museum, August 2019.
In 2019, at the age of 96, Donnie traveled across Scotland in order to rekindle connections with his old Regiment, visiting Low Parks Museum (home of The Cameronians regimental collections) and attending a Regimental service at Dunkeld. On all occasions, Donnie was generous with his time and spoke freely and with great humility about his wartime service. Donnie’s humour and humanity were apparent to all who were fortunate enough to meet him.
Donnie with Mrs Terry Patterson, widow of Fred Patterson, another Cameronian Chindit, at Dunkeld.
Donnie very kindly agreed to take part in an interview in which his wartime recollections would be recorded for posterity. This is Donnie’s story.
Donnie sadly passed away on 6th June 2021, at the age of 97. We hope that this recording will stand as a lasting tribute to and legacy of a truly remarkable man.
Donnie in his wartime uniform.
We are very grateful to Mr Cailean Maclean and Mr Andrew McMorrine for conducting and recording the interview with Donnie, and for their permission to reproduce it here. Additional thanks go to Andrew McMorrine for giving his permission for us to reproduce his wonderful drawing of Donnie. We would also like to thank Mr James Ingham for his continued help and support. Finally, we would like to extend our thanks and sympathy to the MacKenzie family.
In line with government restrictions, Low Parks Museum was unfortunately closed to the public for much of 2020 and the first few months of 2021. During that time, museum staff were still engaged behind the scenes (and much of the time, from home); carrying on with important day-to-day tasks involved in the management and care of a museum collection, progressing new and existing projects where possible, and conducting collections-based research to better understand and interpret the objects in our care.
One such project, an audit of regimental badges, buttons, helmet and belt plates relating to The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) revealed some fascinating objects. This badge, simple as it may be, is one such item.
This badge is labelled as a shoulder patch worn by the 10th Battalion Scottish Rifles in the First World War. The wool backing is of Douglas tartan, a pattern that has been formally associated with The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) since 1892.[i] The metal letters “SR” (Scottish Rifles) are of a similar size to the shoulder titles worn by the regiment in the late 19th and early 20th century; however, this example appears to be of white metal (possibly silver) rather than brass and lacks the stylized full stops (.) between the letters.
While tartan badges are well known to have been worn on soldiers’ sleeves as a form of unit identification, this author has yet to find reference (written or photographic) that show this particular badge being worn in the First World War. As the only example within the regimental museum collection, it is certainly unusual.
As part of the project to audit regimental badges, an active study of regimental photographs has also been undertaken to identify contemporary images of the badges in use. This study has revealed an alternative identification of the badge shown above, however this was not from First World War period photographs, but from a photograph taken during the Second Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902.
This photograph is from an album thought to have belonged to Lieutenant Colonel Crofton Bury Vandeleur DSO. The image was taken in South Africa, c.1901-1902, when Vandeleur, then a Captain, was seconded for service as an intelligence officer. In the photograph, Vandeleur and several staff officers are shown wearing a mixture of officers’ service dress uniform, including a khaki-coloured, peaked forage cap. This headdress was never adopted as regimental uniform by The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and so no regimental badge was ever produced for wear with this cap. Vandeleur appears to have overcome this by fashioning his own regimental badge, consisting of a diamond patch of Douglas tartan, with a badge of metal “SR” initials affixed to the front.
The finished ‘cap badge’ as worn by Vandeleur in this photograph appears identical to that described as a 10th Battalion shoulder patch from the First World War.
Given the simplicity of the design, it is of course possible that this configuration of patch and SR lettering was re-imagined or recycled for use in the First World War. If that were the case, hopefully other examples, or wartime photographs showing the badge worn as a shoulder patch, might present themselves in the future. If any reader is aware of such a badge in use in the First World War, we would be very pleased to hear from you.
[i] Permission for the regiment to wear Douglas tartan was granted by Queen Victoria in May 1891, but not officially adopted for use until 1 April 1892.
If VE Day on 8 May 1945 was hugely symbolic to all battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), then VJ Day – Victory over Japan – on 15 August, was even more important for the 1st Battalion. They were serving in India at the outbreak of the war in 1939 and were to remain in that theatre for the whole of the war, seeing some of the heaviest fighting, bearing some of the heaviest casualties, and earning an enduring name for fortitude in the most desperate conditions. Writing to the Commanding Officer the legendary General Sir William (Bill) Slim (later Field Marshal the Viscount Slim of Burma KG) their commander, said:
‘The retreat from Burma in 1942 was as severe an ordeal as any army could be called upon to endure but the British and Indian units of the Burma Corps, fighting, falling back, and turning to fight again and again, lived up to the great traditions of their services. Unsurpassed among them in stubborn courage and in that unquenchable spirit, which lifts men above fatigue and disaster and is the essence of a Regiment, was the 1st Battalion The Cameronians.
‘Battered, exhausted, hungry, reduced by casualties to a fraction of their strength, they never lost their fighting spirit or their indomitable cheerfulness. Whether they were six hundred or one hundred, they were always the 1st Battalion The Cameronians’.
The 1st Battalion had been sent to India in 1933, first to Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, then to Landi Kotal on the Kyber Pass, and then (from 1936) to Barrackpore in Bengal, near Calcutta, and lastly to Secunderabad (in the south). They were there in December 1941 when the war with Japan began following unprovoked attacks on Malaya, Singapore and Hong Kong. Towards the end of 1942, after intensive training, the Cameronians were ordered to return to the Northwest Frontier, this time to Quetta, but this was soon rescinded and they embarked instead from Madras bound for Rangoon, the capital of Burma.
1st Cameronians ‘Warrant Officers and Sergeants Mess’ Secunderabad, 1941. Lt-Col W. B. Thomas seated centre, front row.
The Japanese were rampant and the retreat back into India by the British and Indian troops was hard-fought in terrible conditions. Having arrived at full strength, by the time 1st Cameronians marched out of Burma in May 1942 they were reduced to fourteen officer and 120 Other Ranks.
In 1943 it was decided that, with their limited resources, rather than wage full-frontal conflict, the Burma Army would carry out operations behind the Japanese lines. Their object was, by disruptive action, to dislocate the Japanese communications, destroy material, kill as many Japanese as possible and adversely affect his morale. The tactics were to be those of highly organised guerrillas. If the object was to adversely affect the morale of the Japanese it had the opposite effect on the British and Indian troops. Founded by their legendary commander, Major General Orde Wingate, they were officially known as the Long Range Penetration Groups but soon took the name of Chindits, the anglicised name of their symbol: the mythical beasts which stood guard on Buddhist temples.
The Cameronians (like other battalions) were formed into two columns, the 26th commanded by the battalion second in command and the 90th led by the commanding officer. (The numbering was taken from the original numbers of the old Cameronians, the 26th of Foot, and the Perthshire Light Infantry, the old 90th, who were joined in 1881 to form the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)). The assumption must be that the Commanding Officer had spent much of his previous service in the 2nd Battalion and hence chose to number his column the 90th.
The very nature of this operation has made it extremely difficult to write a connected story and impossible to give details of every action. It was not a campaign of big battles, but one of many isolated skirmishes and ambushes in thick jungle country. Companies and even platoons were often split up into small widely separated groups for considerable periods. The War Diary could only be imperfectly kept and no written record was maintained of events other than moves by the Battalion as a whole. Such detailed records as have been written were compiled from memory after the event.
… The many acts of bravery and initiative performed by individuals and small groups of men remain unrecorded and are lost to history.
This, in itself, speaks volumes about the nature of the fighting. War Diaries are usually the first draft of history. The Regimental History goes on:
Only the very toughest and best trained troops were to be employed and all units were to be rigidly combed to eliminate the unfit. Supply was to be from the air, either landed on strips or dropped [by parachute]. It was proposed to seize and to develop air strips on which men, horses and mules and a few light guns could be flown in. The troops were to be as lightly equipped as possible although it was found impracticable to reduce the average load to below about 65 pounds [about 30 kilos].
In addition, of course, a man would have his own personal weapon.
The force comprised three brigades. 1st Cameronians were in 111 Brigade with another British battalion and two Ghurkha battalions. Each column comprised 400 men split into eight platoons. Each column had its own medical officer, chaplain and an RAF officer to coordinate the air supply. Heavy supplies – mortars, ammunition etc – were carried on mules, as were the wounded.
The Brigade was warned that it would be required to cross the River Chindwin and advance back into Burma in early February 1944. On arrival at Silchar it marched the 100 miles across the Naga Hills to its camping area on the Imphal-Tiddim road. They landed in Burma on the night of 10/11 March on a hastily prepared strip sixty miles east of Mawlu. Its orders were to concentrate at Dayu, a march of another 100 miles.
The monsoon broke earlier than usual at the beginning of May and from then on the usual daily rainfall was about four inches a day. The effect was that the ground was thoroughly sodden, streams were in spate, and leeches, mosquitoes and other tormenting insects were abundant everywhere, day and night.
The general hardships of the campaign, combined with the monsoon weather, resulted in a sharp rise in the sick rate, jaundice, malaria and dysentery being the main causes. The average platoon was [eventually] reduced to twenty-five instead of forty-five, and this made it very difficult to find sufficient men for patrols, ambushes, picking up supplies and defensive duties.
…The mud on the hills was indescribable, many of the slopes very steep and the jungle in places almost impenetrable. Moreover the privations of the first three months had left the survivors of the battalion in poor physical condition. Most had lost weight, many were extremely emaciated, and the rough going proved so hard on the feet [which were never dry] that there were very few who were not lame in a few days. Several of the pack animals became unfit for work and had to be destroyed.
… On 1 July [1944] the brigade was warned to advance, with the Cameronians to carry out the initial attack on some high ground held by the enemy in strength.
On receipt of this news the Commanding Officer found himself faced with a very difficult situation. There is a limit to the endurance of even the best troops and in a campaign of this type, in monsoon weather, the pace of physical deterioration is accelerated. Although the spirit may be willing, and troops fit for a defensive role, they may be incapable of further mobile offensive operations. When this time comes it is the duty of their Commander to represent the state of affairs to his superior and, in the judgement of Lieutenant Colonel Henning, the Cameronians had reached that stage. Casualties and sickness had reduced the battalion strength to that of a cadre: there were insufficient trained men to man the supporting weapons [mortars and machine guns] and all ranks were suffering from exhaustion and debility.
It was with great reluctance that the CO reported on 2 July that, in his view, the battalion was unfit for offensive operations. This opinion was accepted by the Brigade Commander.
… On 15 December 1945 members of the 1st Cameronians participated in a unique ceremony when Lieutenant General Senechi Tazachi, commander of the Singapore defences, and other Japanese Generals, Staff Officers and Administrators formally handed over their swords to Lieutenant Colonel Thomas CBE DSO [who had commanded the battalion during the first Burma campaign in 1942 and who returned to command it again]. The Japanese officer values his sword more than his life and many of these weapons had been in the possession of the same military families for generations. To have had to surrender them to their enemies must have been a humiliation, which in the days of their victories in 1942 no Japanese officer could have thought possible.
It was a singular mark of respect for the Battalion that they were chosen for this honour.
Composite image showing Lt-Col W. B. Thomas CBE DSO taking the surrender of a senior Japanese officer, Kluang, December 1945
The sword of Lieutenant General Senechi Tazachi features in the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) displays at Low Parks Museum, Hamilton.
The Fourteenth Army, led by Slim, became known as The Forgotten Army. We must never forget them, especially on the 75th anniversary of their war. The Commonwealth war memorial at Kohima, the turning point of the Japanese offensive into India in 1944, bears the famous epitaph:
When you go home, tell them of us and say,
For your tomorrow, we gave our today.
[i] The History of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), Volume III (1933-1946) by Brigadier CN Barclay CBE DSO, Sifton Praed, London 1947.
