The piper in peacetime

My re-enactment   my Glengarry-badge is shown above and my tartan is below

There's a picture of me in Cameron Highlander Piper uniform here.  More uniform here.


There's a page on current regiments here and duty tunes of a previous decade here.  The rest of the present section gives the broader picture.



 


The 1938 recruitment poster depicts a Cameron Highlander piper in ceremonial uniform.



Cameron Highlanders and my re-enactment uniform

 

The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1793. In 1961 

it was merged with the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) to form the Queen's Own

 Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons). The regiment's lineage is now continued by The Highlanders, 4th Battalion

of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.

 

The regiment was raised as the 79th Regiment of Foot (Cameronian Volunteers) on August 17, 1793 at Fort William from among the members of the Clan Cameron by Sir Allan Cameron of Erracht. Originally on the Irish establishment, it became part of the British Army in 1804, and in 1806 it was renamed as the 79th Regiment of Foot (Cameron Highlanders).

On raising, it was decided that the red-based Cameron tartan would not be used, and instead a new design was devised. The Cameron of Erracht tartan was based on the Macdonald sett with the addition of a yellow line from the Cameron tartan, and the omission of three red lines found in that of Macdonald.   

 

The uniform I wear at re-enactment events comprises the closest-available components to those worn by a WW2 Cameron Highlander.  

The last time the kilt was worn was at DunkirkThe 1st Special Service Brigade's landing is famous for having been led by Piper Bill Millin on landing on Sword Beach on June 6th 1944. Pipers had traditionally led Scottish troops into battle however the death toll among pipers in World War I was so high that the practice was banned by the British High command. 

Lord Lovat, however, ignored these orders and Millin, aged 21, played "Hielan' Laddie" and "The Road to the Isles" as his comrades fell around him on Sword Beach. As captured German soldiers later attested, they did not target Millin because they believed him to be mad.