Outbreak of War  Alliance Systems  Arms Race  Colonialism  The Balkans  The Treaty of London

The British Army in 1914  Voluntary  Regiments identified with local areas  Volunteers mainly working class

Scottish Military Legacy  Scots were good soldiers. The British Government recognised Highlanders’ abilities as fighters with endurance and fierce loyalty to their commanders.  Highland Clan structure lent itself to military structure – Highlanders easily recognised and feared.  Soldiering was a respectable way of bettering yourself in 19 th Century.  Soldiering a way of escaping poverty.

British Expeditionary Force  Britain had a small professional army compared to the other great powers  The BEF was the name of the first army sent to France in 1914  They fought extremely well but were almost entirely wiped out  This meant that a replacements were needed quickly

BEF in September 1914  Many soldiers were dead, wounded or exhausted  In fact there was a real dangers that the British would not be able to keep fighting the war

Territorial Army  The Territorial Army of part- time ‘weekend warriors’ were the first volunteer army of the war  It was attractive to many Scots as they could protect the country but also stay at home  The Glasgow Signallers were the first territorial battalion to see Battle in October 1914

Scots at War  By end ,466,719 men had volunteered: 320,589 or 13% were Scottish, forming what become known as the new army.  Formation of distinctly Scottish divisions such as the 15 th (Scottish) Division.  Scottish leaders – Douglas Haig.  Many Scots joined the Territorials. 4 of 14 Territorial Divisions formed were Scottish.  By end of war 584,098 Scots had served in the army.

Military Reality in 1914  10 infantry regiments, each with 2 regular line battalions and a reserve battalion.  Two battalions of Scots Guards in the Household Regiment.  British units associated with geographical areas, for example the Gordon Highlanders recruited from North-East Scotland.

Reality in 1914 cont.  One cavalry regiment – The Scots Greys.  Of the 247,000 officers and men of the BEF, it is likely that at least 20,000 were Scottish.