AUGUST 2016 WWW.LONDONSCOTTISHREGT.ORG THE LONDON SCOTTISH REGIMENTAL FAMILY Contents AUGUST 2016 Honorary Regimental Colonel Lord Robertson of Port Ellen KT GCMG FRSE PC 48 Colonel’s Notes 49 OC’s Notes Regimental Colonel 50 CSM’s Notes Brigadier Alastair Bruce The Toronto Scottish The London of Crionaich OBE ADC DL Regiment 51 ATP Report G Company 1/51 Highland The Gordons merge Volunteers becomes 53 2 Platoon update with the Queens Own A Company, in 1992 Highlanders to form as part of the newly The Highlanders under formed London the SDR of 1994. Regiment. 55 Household Div Regatta Officer Commanding The Highlanders “A” (London Scottish) Coy 56 Pipes and Drums Major N Storey The Highlanders become the 4th Bn Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 Scots) and 63 In the News wear the new cap badge worn by all the Scottish The Highlanders Regiments. 66 London Scottish Rifles Lodge (4 Scots) Company Sergeant Major AFFILIATIONS 67 Regimental Association Notes “A” (London Scottish) Coy CSM Ian Dawson 72 Cadets Scots Guards 77 Regimental Noticeboard The opinions expressed in the articles of the London Scottish Regimental Gazette are those of the authors and 80 Glasgow Lunch Editor/Production of the Gazette do not necessarily reflect the policy and views, official or Rob Blackledge other wise, of the Regiment or MOD. 83 Letters The Gazette contains official information which should be Submissions to the Gazette via email: treated with discretion by the reader. [email protected] Published at Headquarters 84 Obituaries 95 Horseferry Road London SW1P 2DX Member of the Association Tel: 020 7630 1639 Front Cover: The Colonel (an Archer) and the Hon Colonel (a Knight Of the Thistle) of Service Newspapers. Fax: 020 7233 7909 © Crown copyright. after the Service of the Order of the Thistle, in Edinburgh 46 London Scottish Regimental Gazette London Scottish Regimental Gazette 47 veterans who landed on the Normandy beaches, tried out a massive bike belonging REGIMENTAL COLONEL’s NOTES to the Royal British Legion Riders’ Branch and met young people interested in a future serving in the Armed Forces. In the One of the best opportunities for immediate shock of political change, the any regiment is getting a period of Armed Forces Day Chaplain chose as his uninterrupted training rhythm and, it Biblical text, “The Nations are in uproar & would seem, that this is what A Company the Kingdoms are shaken” from Psalm 46. and the London Regiment is benefitting It was an appropriate choice. from at the moment. But the point this Chaplain wanted to Watching as a white truck careered along make, while deliberately chiming at the the waterfront, in France’s Mediterranean political mood, was this: in a situation of city of Nice, something in us all must have great change, it is reassurance we all crave pondered on the horrific possibilities that and nothing delivers this to society more conflict in civil society can exploit as we eloquently than the young men and women look to the future. from among us who make the decision to I know that when I see this sort of horror train to protect the nation, come what may. The Queen is escorted by two Archers (the Colonel and the Regimental Lieutenant and think of the United Kingdom, I am It is an honour for our regiment that Colonel, Scots Guards, Brig Harry Nickerson) to the Order of the Thistle service - . reassured to know that the Army exists, one of us, in fact the former Officer The Page is the Marquess of Lorne, (the future Duke of Argyll) descendant of one of that soldiers are training and that we have Commanding, Major Geoffrey Strickland, the first Colonels of the London Scottish Regiment the London Scottish. has been selected to command the London Of course, the important matter now is Commentating 100th anniversary events on The Somme with Colin Brazier, at Regiment with promotion to Lieutenant responsibility but they need the wisdom ready for when the Nations really are “in to recruit. Without recruits, we have no Sky News Colonel. He takes over soon. Until then, and dexterity of all ranks to get it right. uproar and the Kingdoms are shaken”. future and, without a future, we let go of we continue to give our unbridled support And I am certain that our younger soldiers our duty of respecting the traditions we to the Commanding Officer, Lieutenant hold the key to how to recruit their peers Alastair Bruce have inherited, the burden of responsibility Colonel Tim Smart and our Officer best because they are closer to the market to our dead and, most importantly, the Commanding, Major Nic Storey, who has and friends make good comrades at arms. Regimental Colonel high hopes that exist in the people who we in turn secured himself a great new job. Together we must all help to ensure that we The London Scottish love, to make sure that this nation is always Recruitment and training may be their can recruit and train London Scots to be protected, that our Realm is safe and that the values we live by are enshrined. The privilege of commentating on Sky News often gives me access to the lessons OC’s NOTES from history that have a strong message for today. For instance, the recent one hundredth anniversary events to mark the The period I write upon covers April them in the future! Guards as the Company I commanded start of the horrific Battle of the Somme to July 2016 inclusively – a period that Sandwiched between the two battalion over the exercise included several Lance on 1st July 1916 and I am glad that the included our Annual Training Period shooting weekends was the 11 (Inf) Sergeants and Guardsmen from the Scots Association screened the famous Somme (ATP) in Spain. Bde Operation Shooting Competition. Guards. For the duration of the exercise, film to mark it too. In that battle our Having carried out a vast array of LONDONS entered an eight-man team other London Jocks also held key roles, soldiers faced the dawn of new horrors, With RBL Riders Association at Armed Forces Day in Wiltshire diverse training at the start of 2016, we that contained four London Jocks – Capt including WO2 Dawson as Company with the mechanisation of death through kicked the new training year off in April Gilmore and Ptes Ackrill, Lam and Lister. Sergeant Major, Capt Barklem as Company machine guns, gas and the invention of with a real focus on shooting. There were They performed very well, particularly A Second in Command, 2Lt Williams as one tank warfare. With Gommecourt as a two battalion run shooting weekends that Company’s Pte Lam who came away with of the Platoon Commanders and Sgt Miller Battle Honour we know that London Scots aimed to get all soldiers to fire the Annual the cup for overall ‘best shot’. as the respective Platoon Sergeant. from among the capital city’s commercial Combat Marksmanship Test (ACMT), Moving into May was all about returning The first week involved a period of community had to adapt. It is a vibrant and also some interesting Close Quarter focus on the preparation for the ATP in acclimatisation to the intense Spanish heat, reminder of how important recruitment of Marksmanship (CQM) shoots. This was June – Ex IBERIAN STAR in Spain. The followed by progressive build-up training the best and training by the best always is, a great opportunity bring soldiers back May weekend was the last opportunity to cover all the basic SOPs and then a if we are to be constantly ready and capable up to speed with shooting basics and the to get into the field before deploying to series of Advance to Contacts. The work to defeat enemies. attendance was strong from the company. Spain and served a good opportunity to was hard but rewarding and the platoons When I asked if Sky News needed their On the first of the two shooting weekends go through some last minute lessons and integrated well. As reservists we often Constitutional Commentator after the EU we also managed to host the Master of drills. have to adapt quickly to re-orbatting and it Referendum, the view was almost definitely the Worshipful Company of Distillers, And so, moving onto ATP. This was always impresses me how quickly we make not as the United Kingdom would probably Douglas Morton, who met the soldiers the third Overseas Exercise (OTX) for new teams gel together. After a day off in Remain. Well, it has been a busy time, and even managed to very competently LONDONS since 2012, following on from Barcelona, we moved up to La Molina, a fire a few rounds down the range too. Ex LION STAR in Cyprus in 2012 and Ex ski resort embedded well into the Pyrenees. including the transfer of power from one In years gone by the Distillers have had ROMAN STAR in Italy in 2014 and served Here we were operating at even greater of The Queen’s Prime Ministers to another. a strong connection with the London as a great reminder of the extra investment altitudes of up to 2,400m, so whilst the Very soon after the nation voted for ‘Brexit’, Scottish and both Douglas and I are keen being made to support the training offering temperatures were refreshingly cooler, the I represented 3 Division at Armed Forces to rekindle a closer relationship between for the Reserves. It also served as a good thin air more than compensated to make Day in Trowbridge. There I met two Meeting two Normandy Veterans that landed in France on DDay our organisations.