THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS
The Highland Light Infantry--a title shortened in the Army to a
colloquial "H.L.I.," were originally known as "Macleod's Highlanders,"
and were raised as the 73rd Foot in 1777, being embodied at Elgin in
April of 1778. Lord Macleod, after whom the regiment was named, was its
first commanding officer, and under his command the original members of
the 73rd went to Madras in 1780, their voyage lasting no less than
twelve months. The valour of the regiment in those early days of its
history may be judged from the fact that between the time of landing in
India and 1806, a matter of only twenty-six years, there were
emblazoned on the regimental colours no less than six names--those of
Carnatic, Sholingur, Mysore, Hindustan, Seringapatam, and Cape of Good
Hope. To these might well be added that of Perambaukum, for in that
first action in which the H.L.I. took part the flank companies were cut
to pieces in a truly heroic stand against irresistible odds. After the
formation of new flank companies came the principal battles of the
Carnatic, and in the attack on Cuddalore the H.L.I. lost half their
strength of officers and men, and won the grateful thanks of their
commander-in-chief.
In 1786 the regiment became the "71st," and their next spell of active
service was in the Mysore campaign, where they took part in all the
principal engagements, including the storming of Bangalore and
Seringapatam. They went from India to the Cape, and thence formed part
of General Whitelock's expedition to Buenos Ayres, in which, through no
fault of the Highlanders, who captured the city, Britain definitely lost
a footing in South America--the result of the expedition led to
Whitelocke being court-martialled and dismissed from the service. For
their gallantry in the capture of Buenos Ayres the H.L.I. were specially
commended by Lieutenant-General Floyd on the occasion of the
presentation of new colours to the regiment.
Their next exploits were in the first Peninsular campaign, through which
they came to Corunna. They were at Torres Vedras, at the fierce
encounter of Fuentes d'Onor, and they took a prominent part in the
battle of Vittoria, where they routed the enemy and lost their
commanding officer, who fell dying while leading his men in the attack.
Like Wolfe, the commanding officer of the H.L.I. had a last thought for
the defeat of the enemy, and died happy in the knowledge that the battle
was practically won. Near on four hundred of his men fell with him on
this field.
No less than sixteen special medals were presented to men of the
Highland Light Infantry in the Peninsular campaigns for special personal
bravery, and then at Waterloo they shared in the last attack on
Napoleon's Imperial Guard, with which the day ended. Earlier in the day
the Highland Light Infantry formed the square in which the Duke of
Wellington had his place at the time the French cavalry charged.
The regiment took part in the Crimean campaign, serving in the trenches
before Sevastopol, and in the expedition to Yenikale. In the Central
Indian Campaign of 1858 the H.L.I. were heavily engaged, and at the
Morar Cantonments engagement the first Victoria Cross of the regiment
was won.
The history of the 2nd battalion of the regiment--the old 74th, is very
similar to that of the 1st battalion, including as it does the storming
of Seringapatam, the principal engagements of the Peninsular campaign,
and--here the history diverges--the sinking of the _Birkenhead_ off the
Cape. The two battalions were first definitely named "Highland Light
Infantry" in place of their old-time numbers in 1881, when the
Territorial system came into being as regards the Regular Army.
The 2nd battalion of the regiment took part in the Egyptian campaign of
1882, and won a Victoria Cross at Tel-el-Kebir. In the Malakand Campaign
of 1897 and again in Crete in 1898, the regiment saw active service, and
in the South African War the 1st battalion went through the action of
Modder River and on to Magersfontein, where another Victoria Cross was
won by Corporal Shaul of the regiment. Together with the rest of the
Highland Brigade, the H.L.I. were "in" at the capture of Cronje at
Paardeberg, and at the capture of Prinsloo they played an important
part. No less than eighty-one officers and men were left behind by the
regiment at the close of the South African campaign.
Four Victoria Crosses are reckoned to the credit of the regiment, but to
these must be added the sixteen special medals for gallantry won by the
H.L.I. in the Peninsular War, before ever such a thing as a Victoria
Cross was instituted. Of medals for distinguished conduct, there are
many in the H.L.I.
Personal accounts of the fighting in which the regiment has been engaged
in France are few, up to the present time. A definite account has been
received of the death of Lieutenant Sir Archibald Gibson Craig. It is
stated that the lieutenant had told his servant some time previously
that, in case of his death on the field, the servant was to take charge
of all his personal belongings; and at a place not named--or a place of
which the name has been excised--he was in charge of a party of sixteen
men, who were proceeding to a rather steep hill, when they came in
contact with a large number of the enemy, estimated by the Highlanders
at between 300 and 400. The men had not been aware that they were so
near the Germans, but when the lieutenant saw the position in which they
were placed he drew his sword and shouted, "Charge, men! At them!" His
men fired at the German force, and then charged with fixed bayonets, at
which the enemy thought the British party was far stronger than it was
in reality, for they began to retreat. The Highlanders, however, had to
retire, since two of their number were killed and three wounded, which
left a dangerously small force of effectives. They retired in good
order, carrying their dead and wounded, but Sir Archibald Craig was shot
through the mouth, and killed instantaneously.
This is the most circumstantial account that has come to hand regarding
the work of the regiment, so far. Another story of a wounded man states
that during the fighting on the Aisne, in the village of Vera Neuil, he
received two pieces of shrapnel in the chest. "We were not safe
anywhere, not even in the hospital, as the Germans shelled that too. I
was wounded on Tuesday, September 15, when I was eating a biscuit at the
time I was shot."
An officer of the H.L.I. gives an account of the way in which the
Germans are conducting their fighting.
"An officer dressed as a French officer went up to some Coldstream
Guards and asked if Bulkley, the machine-gun officer, was in that
battalion. He then shot the officer he was talking to. Others dress up
as British staff officers, and drive about in motor cars, and when they
meet transports of convoys shout at them--'The Germans are advancing on
you from just ahead,' which causes a stampede. That happened to us, for
a long column of transport was ahead of us as we were retiring, and all
of a sudden a supposed French officer came galloping down the road the
reverse way, shouting 'Les Allemands, les Uhlans!' All the transport was
thrown into confusion, and some of the waggons came back at a gallop. We
were just behind, but mercifully the road was broad. There was a little
confusion at first, but they rallied splendidly when I shouted to them,
and we all advanced up the road with fixed bayonets, to find absolutely
nothing.
"The Germans actually dress themselves up in our men's great-coats to
disguise themselves, get close, and then shoot."
These accounts demonstrate the presence of the Highland Light Infantry
on the great retreat, and also at the battle of the Aisne. From the
latter position they may have gone on to Flanders--the more likely
alternative--or they may have remained as part of the thin defensive
line left along the Aisne positions.
* * * * *
The present "Cameronians" were formed from the old-time "26th
Cameronians," from whom the regiment takes its title, and from the "90th
Perthshire Light Infantry," the first of which regiments fought for
religious liberty against the King's troops at Bothwell Bridge in old
days. Until the revolution which placed William of Orange on the throne
they stuck to their principles, and then in one day there was enrolled
from among them a regiment to support the cause of "Dutch William," a
regiment which, under the Earl of Angus, held Dunkeld against a force
four times their own strength. They fought at Landen, and lost their
colonel, the Earl of Angus, at Steinkerk; they shared in the capture of
Namur, and then in Marlborough's battles they so fought as to be able to
emblazon the names of Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet on
the regimental colours. They shared in the defence of Gibraltar in 1727,
fought and endured through the American War of Independence, and served
under Sir John Moore at Corunna. Meanwhile the 2nd battalion, formed by
Thomas Graham (subsequently Lord Lynedoch), served under Sir Ralph
Abercrombie in driving out Napoleon's "Invincible Army" from Egypt, and
captured a French eagle at Guadeloupe.
In the Chinese campaign of 1840 the Cameronians 1st battalion took a
share, being first to scale the walls of Amoy. The 2nd battalion saw
service against the Kaffirs of South Africa in 1846 and the following
year, and went on to the Crimean campaign, having among its officers a
certain Lieutenant Wolseley, who was destined for great things.
In the Mutiny the 2nd battalion formed a part of Havelock's force at
Lucknow, and subsequently assisted in stamping out the last traces of
the great rebellion. The 1st battalion took the field in Abyssinia in
1868, and went on with Napier to Magdala. Another famous British officer
shared in the exploits of the 1st battalion in the person of Sir Evelyn
Wood, during the strenuous work of the Zulu campaign of 1878, when the
battalion fought from Inhlobane to Ulundi, where Cetewayo was
overthrown.
The Cameronians shared in Buller's advance through Natal in the South
African War of 1899-1902, forming part of General Lyttleton's brigade at
Colenso, reinforcing the Lancashire Brigade in the action of Spion Kop,
sweeping the Boers off Vaalkrantz, and sharing in the furious charges at
Pieter's Hill--until the way to Ladysmith lay open. Through the fighting
for Laing's Nek, and in the guerilla warfare that lasted out the rest of
the campaign, the Cameronians played their part nobly. No less than
three South African campaigns are commemorated on the colours of the
regiment.
Of their work in France, less personal accounts are to hand than
concerning the work of any other Scottish regiment. There is one
statement by a wounded man with regard to a German ruse of driving on
sheep in night attacks on the trenches. The sheep were heard moving in
the darkness in front of the trenches, and while the Cameronians opened
fire on them, the Germans tried to get round their flank--but two Maxim
guns drove them back with a loss of over 200 dead. The incident is
related with no reference to place or date.
A non-commissioned officer of the regiment speaks of the secrecy of
movement that has to be maintained. None are made aware of probable
movements, destinations, or reasons for any plans, and commanding
officers are not informed of what is about to be done until it is
absolutely imperative that they should know. The reason for this lies in
the great number of German spies who are arrested in all kinds of
disguises, British and French uniforms, civilian clothes, chauffeurs'
uniforms, and all possible forms of dress. "The leakage of information
is astounding," says the writer, "and we quite appreciate the necessity
for secrecy in all our doings, and fully understand its wisdom, as we
have been saved from complete destruction more than once through this
secrecy."
Even of things that took place months ago, however, there is no record
yet. Of how the Gordons were cut off, and of what the Cameronians have
done and where they did it, we know little or nothing--concerning all
things that individual units have accomplished there is scarcely more
record than the stories collected here, which make no pretence at giving
a full history of the doings of the Scottish regiments at the front, but
simply stand as detached records of the deeds of brave men.
And as for the London Scottish and their bravery, that story belongs to
the record of Territorial regiments at the front, in which it will in
due course be told.
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