Scottish Military History

A Separate Little War: The Banff Coastal... Command Strike Wing Versus the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe 1944-1945. Every day for nine months from September 1944 to the end of the war, young British, Commonwealth and Norwegian airmen flew from Banff aerodrome in northern Scotland in their Mosquitoes and Beaufighters to target the German U-Boats, merchantmen and freighters plying along the coast and in the fjords and leads of southwest Norway, encountering the Luftwaffe and flakships every step of the way. This Scottish strike wing fought in some of the bitterest and bloodiest attacks of the war, all at very low level and at close quarters. Their contribution to winning the war was crucial and while the cost in precious lives and equipment was in the same proportion as Bomber Command, they inflicted far greater damage to the enemy in relation to their losses. With Group Captain The Hon. Max Aitken, DSO DFC as station commander, Banff was eventually to become the base for a total of six Mosquito squadrons (including 235, 248 and 143), together with B Flight of the elite 333 Norwegian Squadron, and would team up on missions with the nearby Dallachy Beaufighter strike wing (404 RCAF, 455 RAAF, 489 RNZAF and 144 Squadrons). Banff was also home at one time to the famous 617 (Dambuster) Squadron after their successful attach on the Tirpitz. Two further aerodromes fall within the scop of Andrew Bird's study - Fraserburgh, with its air-sea rescue role and Peterhead which supplied Mustang fighters as escort from 315 (Deblin) Squadron and 19, 65 and 234 RAF Squadrons. This title is a detailed history of a microcosm of Coastal Command. Supported by photographs, maps and charts, the majority never published before, the author has drawn on the personal accounts of, amongst others, British and Norwegian pilots, ground crew and civilians which augment the official sources, to give an accurate depiction of an aerodrome at war.

Fighter Writer: The Eventful Life of... Sergeant Joe Lee, Scotland's Forgotten War Poet. Artist, poet, journalist, Black Watch soldier, prisoner of war and literary outcast – Joseph Johnston Lee lived a more eventful life than most. As a young man he travelled far and wide on board ocean steamers, always making sketches of the places he visited and always, in the end, returning to his home town of Dundee. During the First World War he fought with the Black Watch in the trenches, sending back poems and sketches that told vividly of the realities of war. His poems struck a chord with the people of Dundee, and indeed with the whole country, being widely published.

Scots Armies of the English Civil War... This volume deals with the arms, equipment and organisation of the little-known Scots armies involved in the English Civil Wars, including the armies of the Marquis of Montrose and the Scots armies that fought against Oliver Cromwell.

The Thin Red Line: War, Empire and... Visions of Scotland. This is a history of the relationship between Scottish society and the growth and decline of British imperial military power. Four substantial, illustrated essays relate to illustrations of key objects from the collections. The essays and selected objects will explore the influence of war and military service in concepts of Scottish cultural identity, and the affects of changing military and strategic imperatives in Scotland and the Scottish people.

Black Watch. The Black Watch Regimental Archives contain many thousands of photographs graphically illustrating the history of this famous Highland regiment since the first images were recorded some 150 years ago. Over two hundred of these pictures have been selected for this volume to represent different aspects of regimental life both home and abroad, in peace and at war. From the days when the infantry still practised forming squares to the hand over of Hong Kong, the last significant remnant of the Empire, in 1997, this collection provides a fascinating insight into the activities of the Regiment. Naturally, many of the Regiment's great heroes and characters appear in these pictures but so do many other famous people, members of the royal family, Presidents of the United States of America and other heads of state. The collection of photographs also covers the Territorial battalions of the Black Watch from their early days as Rifle Volunteers through the two World Wars during which they won such renown for the Regiment.

No Quarter Given: The Muster Roll of... Prince Charles Edward Stuart's Army, 1745-46.

Mutiny: Highland Regiments in Revolt,... 1743-1804.

Highland Soldier: A Social Study of the... Highland Regiments, 1820-1920.

Off at Last: An Illustrated History of... the 7th Battalion the King's Own Scottish Borders 1939-1945.

The Strathspey Mutineers: A History of... the 1st Highland Fencible Regiment 1793-1799.

The Elephant at War: Second Battalion... Seaforth Highlanders 1939-1945.

The Story of the Lovat Scouts: 1900-1980... with Contributions to 2000.

Volunteer Regiments of England,Scotland... Wales 1806.

The Highland Division: The Army at War...

Routes, Roads, Regiments and Rebellions:... A Brief History of the Life and Work of General George Wade (1673-1748) the Father of the Military Roads in Scotland.

Swords and Sword Makers of England and... Scotland. This monumental book, the largest ever published on the topic, is the culmination of the author's research. Among the tremendous amount of material of use to collectors and historians is detailed information, much of it never-before-published, on: English sword makers from the 14th century and Scottish makers from the 16th century all the way through the renowned Wilkinson Sword Company and other major sword manufacturers of today. The important early English sword- and blade-making communities of Hounslow Heath and Shotley Bridge, and the influential Cutlers Company of London. The many types of craftsmen associated with sword production, including hilt, blade and scabbard makers and decorators; and goldsmiths and silversmiths who decorated, mounted, assembled and sold swords. The book concludes with dozens of beautiful illustrations of hilt designs taken directly from famed sword hilt maker Matthew Boulton's 18th-century pattern book and over 450 spectacular photographs of English and Scottish swords of every type and era from some of the world's major collections.

Scottish Regiments 1633-1996 * the:... The men of the Scottish regiments have left a history of battle honors that is unmatched in warfare. Wherever they have fought, the sound of the pipes and the sight of the tartan has struck terror into their enemies. In this comprehensive volume, Patrick Mileham covers all the regiments and every campaign-a stunning tour of military history at the far reaches of the empire in the company of heroes.

The Scottish Regiments This regiment-by-regiment survey traces the origins and history of Scotland's fighting men, from their organization in the 17th and 18th centuries through to their participation in the campaigns in the Falklands and the Gulf. This book looks beyond uniforms and military hardware to reveal the traditions, character and individuality of the regiments of the Scottish Division, past and present. For each regiment, the topics covered include badges and mottoes, tartans and clan affiliations, battle honours, Victoria Cross winners, music, toasts and allied and affiliated regiments.

The Scottish Soldier of Fortune: Their... dventures and Achievements in the Armies of Europe. Details the adventures and achievements during the 16th and 17th centuries of not only Scottish individuals, but in some instances entire Scottish regiments. More than 40,000 Scottish soldiers were in action on the continent during this era. Their stories were omitted from most Scottish histories. Scotsmen trained the armies and founded the fleets of Russia. For generations the old Scots Brigade of immortal memory was the boasted 'Bulwark of Holland'. Second to none in war and glory were the Scottish guard of the French Kings-that guard of which only four were left alive when Francis I gave up his sword on the field of Paris.

Private 12768: Memoir of a Tommy. A newly discovered account of life in the trenches that challenges our perception of how British troops viewed the First World War. There is no shortage of personal accounts from the First World War. So why publish another memoir? The principal reason is the tone of enthusiasm, pride and excitement conveyed by its author, Private John Jackson. Jackson served on the Western Front from 1915 until the war's end; he was present at Loos in 1917, on the Somme in 1916, in Flanders in 1917; he was on the receiving end of the German offensive in April 1918; and he took part in the breaking of the Hindenburg Line at the end of September 1918. Conditioned by Wilfred Owen's poetry and dulled by the notions of waste and futility, British readers have become used to the idea that this was a war without purpose fought by 'lions led by donkeys'. This narrative captures another perspective, written by somebody with no obvious agenda but possessed of deep traditional loyalties - to his country, his regiment and his pals.

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