History of the Scottish Regiments in the British Army

History of the Scottish Regiments in the British Army

Nature has been aptly represented as a fickle goddess, scattering her bounties here and there with a partial hand. Some spots, like very Edens, are blessed with the lavish profusion of her favoursrich fertility, luxuriant vegetation, warm and delightful climates. Some, on the other hand, which have not so shared the distribution of her gifts, represent the barren wilderness, the sterile desert, the desolate places of our earthentombed in a perpetual wintera ceaseless winding-sheet of snow and ice seems for ever to rest upon these cold, chilly, Polar regions: or parched, fainting, dying, dead, where no friendly cloud intervenes, like the kindly hand of love and sympathy, to screen the thirsty earth from the consuming rays of a tropical sun. But, as if by the wayside, we gather from the analogy, that as in the world of man there is a Scripture proclaiming comfort and blessing to the poor and needywhilst it tells the rich how hardly they shall enter into lifeso in the world of nature there is an over-ruling, all-wise, all-just Providence, Who moves in a mysterious way, making ample amends in the result upon the peoples of these climes, so as yet shall cause the wilderness to rejoice. Thus we find that lands enriched by nature ofttimes produce a people who, rich in this worlds good things, acquired without much 6effort, allow their minds to become so intoxicated with present delights and indolence, as to fail in cultivating the virtues of the man. Too frequently the fruits are theseignorance, lust, passion, infidelity, and general debility. Whilst the barren, dreary wilderness, the bleak and desolate mountain-landlike the poor and needy upon whom Nature has frownedenjoy the smile of Providence in a better portion; for there, amid a comparatively poor people, are nurtured all the sterner, the nobler, the truer, the God-like qualities of the man, the soldier, and the hero. There, too, hath been the birth-place and the abiding shrine of freedomthe bulwark and the bastion of patriotism and loyalty. Ascending higher, thesethe peoples of the rejected and despised places of the earthhave ofttimes begotten and been honoured to wear the crowning attribute of piety. Turning to the history of Scotland or of Switzerland, for illustration, and taking merely a military retrospect, there it will be found. All centuries, all ages, all circumstances, are witness to the bravery and the fidelity of their mountain-soldiers. Scotland, the unendowed by Nature, has been thus largely blessed by Natures God, in yielding a long line of valiant and illustrious men. Perhaps no nation engrosses so large and prominent a place in the temple of military famenone can boast so bright a page in the history of the brave. Her stern and rugged mountains, like a vast citadel, where scarce a foeman ever dared to penetrate, have been defended through centuries of war against the advancing and all but overwhelming tide of aggression; besieged, too, by the countless hosts of 7Tyranny, they have still remained impregnable. Her wild and desolate glens, like great arteries down which hath flowed the life-blood of the nation, in the living streamthe native and resistless valour of her clans. Her bleak and dreary heaths have written on them one dark history of bloodthe martyred children of the Covenant. Faithful unto death; of whom the world was not worthy. Her crown oft crushed beneath a tyrants heelher freedom trampled onher people betrayedall lost but honour. Unscathed, unsullied, she has triumphed, and still lives to write upon her banner, the mighty, envied, and thrice-glorious word, Unconquered. Armies have a very ancient history. Their origin might be traced to the very gates of Paradise. When the unbridled lust and wrathful passions of man were let loose like Furies, to wander forth upon the earth, then it was that lawless adventurers, gathering themselves together into armed bands for hostile purposes, to live and prey upon their weaker brethren, constituted themselves armies. Passing down the stream of time, through the Feudal Age, we find one among the many greater, mightier, wealthiera giant towering above his fellowsexercised lordship, levied tribute, military and civil, over others as over slaves. These were the days of chivalry,the Crusadeswhen cavalry constituted the grand strength of an army. Here we might begin the history of cavalry as an important constituent in armies, were such our purpose. The comparative poverty of our ancient Scottish nobility prevented them contributing largely to the chivalry of the age. Almost the sole representative we have of our Scottish Cavalry, 8is the Second Regiment of Royal North British Dragoons, or Scots Greysa most worthy representative. The wars of the Interregnum in Scotlandthe times of Wallace and Brucewhen the feudal lords had nearly all either deserted or betrayed her, introduce us to a new force, more suited to the independent character and patriotism of the Scottish peoplethe formation of corps of infantry, or armed bands of free burghers. These were the fruit, to a large extent, of the Magna Charter in England, and of the struggle for liberty in Scotland. Hence the wars of Edward the Black Prince with France, distinguished by the victories of Poitiers, Agincourt, and Cressy, may be viewed not merely as the epitome of the triumphs of England over France, but more especially as illustrating the success of this new forcerepresented in the English yeomen, burghers, citizens, and freemenover the old force, sustained in the chivalry, the cavalry of France. The result of these successive defeats, we find, was most disastrous to France. The jealousy and fear of the nobles and feudal lords had denied the people the use and the knowledge of arms; so that when themselves were defeated, France was ruinedsince they could expect no support, as in Scotland, from an unarmed and unskilled people. They had done what they could to quench rather than foster the spirit of free patriotism, which in the nations extremity should have been the nations refugethe soul burning to deliver their land from the yoke of the stranger. In not a few cases, the French rather sympathised with, as they sighed for the same blessings of our free-born English yeomen. Here we would mark, respectively in the 9English and Scottish armies, the first formation of that branch of the service for which the British army has ever been specially distinguishedthe Infantry. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 51087
Author: Murray, Archibald K.
Release Date: Jan 30, 2016
Format: eBook
Language: English