# List of battalions of the Black Watch

The Black Watch existed as an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 2006.

## Original composition

When the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot amalgamated with the 73rd (Perthshire) Regiment of Foot, to become the Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) in 1881 under the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the British Armed Forces, seven pre-existent militia and volunteer battalions of Fife, Forfarshire, and Perthshire were integrated into the structure of the regiment. Volunteer battalions had been created in reaction to a perceived threat of invasion by France in the late 1850s. Organised as "rifle volunteer corps", they were independent of the British Army and composed primarily of the middle class.
| Battalion | Formed | Formerly |
| Regular |||
| 1st | 1739 | 1st Battalion, 42nd Highlanders |
| 2nd | 1780 | 1st Battalion, 73rd Regiment of Foot |
| Militia |||
| 3rd (Militia) | 1798 | The 86th Royal Perthshire Rifles |
| Volunteers |||
| 1st (Dundee) Volunteer | 1859 | 1st Forfar (Dundee) Rifle Volunteer Corps |
| 2nd (Angus) Volunteer | 1859 | 2nd Forfar (Forfarshire, or Angus) Rifle Volunteer Corps |
| 3rd (Dundee Highland) Volunteer | 1860 | 3rd Forfar (Dundee Highland) Rifle Volunteer Corps |
| 4th (Perthshire) Volunteer | 1859 | 1st Perthshire Rifle Volunteer Corps |
| 5th (Perthshire Highland) Volunteer | 1860 | 2nd Perthshire (The Perthshire Highland) Rifle Volunteer Corps |
| 6th (Fifeshire) Volunteer | 1860 | 1st Fifeshire Rifle Volunteer Corps |

## Reorganisation

The Territorial Force (later Territorial Army) was formed in 1908, which the volunteer battalions joined, while the militia battalions transferred to the "Special Reserve".
| Battalion | Formerly |
| 4th (City of Dundee) | 1st (City of Dundee) Volunteer Battalion |
| 5th (Angus and Dundee) | Amalgamation of 2nd (Angus), and 3rd (Dundee Highland) Volunteer Battalions |
| 6th (Perthshire) | 4th (Perthshire) Volunteer Battalion |
| 7th (Fife) | 6th (Fifeshire) Volunteer Battalion |
| 8th (Cyclist) | 5th (Perthshire Highland) Volunteer Battalion |

## First World War

The Black Watch fielded 25 battalions and lost 8,390 officers and other ranks during the course of the war. The regiment's territorial components formed duplicate second and third line battalions. As an example, the three-line battalions of the 5th Black Watch were numbered as the 1/5th, 2/5th, and 3/5th respectively. Many battalions of the regiment were formed as part of Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener's appeal for an initial 100,000 men volunteers in 1914. They were referred to as the New Army or Kitchener's Army. The Volunteer Training Corps were raised with overage or reserved occupation men early in the war, and were initially self-organised into many small corps, with a wide variety of names. Recognition of the corps by the authorities brought regulation and as the war continued the small corps were formed into battalion sized units of the county Volunteer Regiment. In 1918 these were linked to county regiments.
| Battalion | Formed | Served | Fate |
| Regular ||||
| 1st | 1739 | Western Front | |
| 2nd | 1780 | Western Front, Mesopotamian, Palestine | |
| Special Reserve ||||
| 3rd (Reserve) | 1798 | Britain, Ireland | |
| Territorial Force ||||
| 1/4th (City of Dundee) | 1859 | Western Front | See Inter-War |
| 1/5th (Angus and Dundee) | 1908 | Western Front | Amalgamated with the 1/4th Battalion, to become the 4/5th Battalion on 15 March 1916 |
| 1/6th (Perthshire) | 1859 | Western Front | See Inter-War |
| 1/7th (Fife) | 1860 | Western Front | See Inter-War |
| 2/4th (City of Dundee) | Dundee, September 1914 | Britain | Disbanded on 19 December 1917 |
| 2/5th (Angus and Dundee) | Forfar, September 1914 | Britain | Absorbed into the 2/4th (City of Dundee) Battalion in November 1915 |
| 2/6th (Perthshire) | Perth, September 1914 | Britain | Disbanded in September 1917 |
| 2/7th (Fife) | St. Andrews, September 1914 | Britain | Disbanded in April 1918 |
| 3/4th (City of Dundee), 4th (City of Dundee) (Reserve) from 8 April 1916 | Dundee, March 1915 | Britain | Disbanded 1919 |
| 3/5th (Angus and Dundee), 5th (Angus and Dundee) (Reserve) upon amalgamation | Forfar, March 1915 | Britain | Amalgamated into the 4th (City of Dundee) (Reserve) on the 8 April 1916 |
| 3/6th (Perthshire), 6th (Perthshire) (Reserve) upon amalgamation | Perth, April 1915 | Britain | Amalgamated into the 4th (City of Dundee) (Reserve) on the 8 April 1916 |
| 3/7th (Fife), 7th (Fife) (Reserve) upon amalgamation | St. Andrews, April 1915 | Britain | Amalgamated into the 4th (City of Dundee) (Reserve) on the 8 April 1916 |
| 13th (Scottish Horse Yeomanry) | Abbassia, 1 October 1916, from the 1st and 2nd Scottish Horse Regiments | Salonika, Western Front | Returned to the Scottish Horse in 1919 |
| 14th (Fife and Forfar) Yeomanry | Ismalia, 21 December 1916, from the 1st Fife and Forfar Yeomanry | Palestine, Western Front | Returned to the Fife and Forfar Yeomanry in 1919 |
| New Army ||||
| 8th (Service) | Perth, 21 August 1914 | Western Front | Disbanded in 1919 |
| 9th (Service) | Perth, 13 September 1914 | Western Front, Britain | Disbanded in 1919 |
| 10th (Service) | Perth, 13 September 1914 | Western Front, Salonika | Disbanded on 15 October 1918 |
| 11th (Service) | Nigg, October 1914 | Britain | Became the 38th Training Reserve Battalion, in the 9th Reserve Brigade |
| 15th (Service) | Deal, 1 June 1918 | Britain | Absorbed into the 9th (Service) Battalion on 19 June 1918 |
| Others ||||
| 12th (Labour) | Blairgowrie, May 1916 | Western Front | Became the 5th and 6th Labour Companies of the Labour Corps |
| Volunteer Training Corps ||||
| 1/1st Battalion City of Dundee Volunteer Regiment later the 1st Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Dundee | Disbanded post war |
| 2/1st Battalion City of Dundee Volunteer Regiment later the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Dundee | Disbanded post war |
| 1/1st Battalion Forfarshire Volunteer Regiment later the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Forfar | Disbanded post war |
| 2/1st Battalion Forfarshire Volunteer Regiment later the 4th Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Arbroath | Disbanded post war |
| 1st Battalion Perthshire Volunteer Regiment later the 5th Volunteer Battalion | | Perth | Disbanded post war |
| 2nd Battalion Perthshire Volunteer Regiment later the 6th Volunteer Battalion | | Crieff | Disbanded post war |
| 1/1st Battalion Fifeshire Volunteer Regiment later the 7th Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Kirkcaldy | Disbanded post war |
| 2/1st Battalion Fifeshire Volunteer Regiment later the 8th Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | Dunfermline | Disbanded post war |
| 2nd Battalion Fifeshire Volunteer Regiment later the 9th Volunteer Battalion, Black Watch | | St. Andrew's | Disbanded post war |

## Inter-War

By 1920, all of the regiment's war-raised battalions had disbanded. The Black Watch did not, however, return to its original peacetime size; half of its territorial battalions were lost to amalgamation shortly after the war ended. The Special Reserve reverted to its militia designation in 1921, then to the Supplementary Reserve in 1924; however, its battalions were effectively placed in 'suspended animation'. As World War II approached, the Territorial Army was reorganised in the mid-1930s, many of its infantry battalions were converted to other roles, especially anti-aircraft.
| Battalion | Fate |
| 4th (City of Dundee) | Amalgamated with the 5th (Angus and Dundee) Battalion, to form the 4th/5th (Dundee and Angus) Battalion on 31 December 1921 |
| 5th (Angus and Dundee) | Amalgamated with the 4th (City of Dundee) Battalion, to form the 4th/5th (Dundee and Angus) Battalion on 31 December 1921 |
| 6th (Perthshire) | Amalgamated with the 7th (Fife) Battalion, to form the 6th/7th (Perth and Fife) Battalion on 31 December 1921 |
| 7th (Fife) | Amalgamated with the 6th (Perthshire) Battalion, to form the 6th/7th (Perth and Fife) Battalion on 31 December 1921 |

## Second World War

The Black Watch's expansion during the Second World War was modest compared to 1914–1918. National Defence Companies were combined to create a new "Home Defence" battalion. In addition to this, 22 battalions of the Home Guard across Perthshire, Fife, Angus, Dundee and Kinross-shire were affiliated to the regiment, wearing its cap badge, and also by 1944 one rocket battery (Z Battery). Due to the daytime (or shift working) occupations of these men, the batteries required eight times the manpower of an equivalent regular battery. A number of Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) troops were formed from the local battalions to defend specific points, such as factories.
| Battalion | Formed | Served | Fate |
| Regular ||||
| 1st | 1739 | France, North Africa, Sicily, France, Western front | |
| 2nd | 1780 | Somaliland, Crete, North Africa, India, Burma (Chindits) | See Post-World War II |
| Supplementary Reserve ||||
| 3rd | 1798 | | See Post-World War II |
| Territorial Army ||||
| 4th (City of Dundee), (redesignation of 4th/5th (Dundee and Angus) Battalion) | 1921 | France, Gibraltar, Britain | See Post-World War II |
| 5th (Angus and Dundee) | 1939, as a duplicate of 4th (City of Dundee) Battalion | France, North Africa, Sicily, Western Front | See Post-World War II |
| 6th (Perthshire), (redesignation of 6th/7th (Perth and Fife) Battalion) | 1921 | France, Britain, North Africa, Italy, Greece | See Post-World War II |
| 7th (Fife), (redesignation of 6th/7th (Perth and Fife) Battalion) | 1939, as a duplicate of 6th (Perthshire) Battalion | France, North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Western Front | See Post-World War II |
| 8th (Training) | 1939 | Britain | Amalgamated with the 9th (Home Defence) Battalion in August 1941 |
| 9th (Home Defence) | November 1939 | Britain | Sent as reinforcements, to the 6th (Perthshire) Battalion in North Africa, upon amalgamation |
| 10th | 1940 (transferred to the Black Watch from the Orkney and Shetland Islands Defence Forces in 1943) | Britain | Disbanded in 1946 |
| 30th | 1941 | Britain | Disbanded in 1943 |
| Others ||||
| 50th (Holding) | 1940 | Britain | Disbanded 1943 |
| 70th (Young Soldier) | 1940 | Britain | Disbanded 1942 |
Home Guard :
| Battalion | Headquarters | Formation Sign (dark blue on khaki) | Battalion | Headquarters | Formation Sign (dark blue on khaki) |
| Angus |
| 1st | Brechin | ANG 1 | 2nd | Forfar | ANG 2 |
| 3rd | Arbroath | ANG 3 |
| Dundee |
| 1st | City of Dundee | DDE 1 | 2nd | City of Dundee | DDE 2 |
| 3rd | City of Dundee (13 G.P.O.) | DDE 3 |
| Fife |
| 1st | Cupar | F 1 | 2nd | St. Andrews | F 2 |
| 3rd | Anstruther | F 3 | 4th | Leven | F 4 |
| 5th | Kirkcaldy | F 5 | 6th | Lochgelly | F 6 |
| 7th | Dunfermline | F 7 | 8th | Kirkaldy | F 8 |
| 9th | Rosyth Dockyard | F 9 | 10th | Donibristle | F 10 |
| Kinross-shire Independent Company | Kinross | -- |
| Perthshire |
| 1st | North Perthshire | TAY 1 | 2nd | Blairgowrie | TAY 2 |
| 3rd | Strathern | TAY 3 | 4th | Perth | TAY 4 |
| 5th | Dunblane | TAY 5 | 6th | Perth City | TAY 6 |
| Home Guard Anti-Aircraft units ||||||
| Formation Sign (dark blue on khaki) | Headquarters or Location | AA Formation and Designation | Formation Sign (dark blue on khaki) | Headquarters or Location | AA Formation and Designation |
| DDE 101 | City of Dundee | 218th Battery, 20th Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard) (Z battery) | F 5 | Burntisland, (British Aluminium Co. Ltd) | A Troop LAA |
| F 9 | Lathalmond, (Royal Navy Stores Depot) | A Troop LAA |

## Post-World War II

In the immediate post-war period, the army was significantly reduced: nearly all infantry regiments had their first and second battalions amalgamated and the Supplementary Reserve disbanded.
| Battalion | Fate |
| 1st | Amalgamated with 2nd Battalion on the 13 July 1948, without a change in title |
| 2nd | Amalgamated with 1st Battalion on the 13 July 1948 |
| 4th (City of Dundee) | Amalgamated with 5th (Angus and Dundee) Battalion on the 1 January 1947, to form the 4th/5th (Dundee and Angus) Battalion |
| 5th (Angus and Dundee) | Amalgamated with 4th (City of Dundee) Battalion on the 1 January 1947, to form the 4th/5th (Dundee and Angus) Battalion |
| 6th (Perthshire) | Amalgamated with 7th (Fife) Battalion on the 1 January 1947, to form the 6th/7th (Perthshire and Fife) Battalion |
| 7th (Fife) | Amalgamated with 6th (Perthshire) Battalion on the 1 January 1947, to form the 6th/7th (Perthshire and Fife) Battalion |

## Amalgamation

The 2003 Defence White Paper, titled Delivering Security in a Changing World, set out the future structure of the British military, one of the points being that the single-battalion regiments would be amalgamated into large, multi-battalion regiments. All of the Scottish regiments were amalgamated to form the 7 battalion strong Royal Regiment of Scotland.
| Battalion | Fate |
| 1st | Became the 3rd Battalion (Black Watch), Royal Regiment of Scotland |
| 3rd (V), a battalion formed through the amalgamation of the 4th/5th and 6th/7th Battalions, in 1967 | Became A (Black Watch) Company of the 7th Battalion (51st Highland), Royal Regiment of Scotland |