The London Scottish Regiment

Andrew Waterston, of High Wycombe writes: The young man in the coveralls sitting on the bucket at the front of your picture is my Great Uncle, 1847 Pte George Alexander Waterston.  He joined the London Scottish in 1913 and was posted to G Company.  He had grown up around army horses as his father had been awarded the DCM serving in the Royal Horse Guards and had gone on to run the canteen above Horse Guards in Whitehall, so the coveralls suggest he may have been employed looking after the officers' chargers - or he may have just been a messy eater!

Yours is the last photograph we have of him. He transferred to D Company and was killed less than 3 months later on the night of 31st October 1914 in the attack on the burning Windmill at Messines.  He was 20 years old.  His elder brother, Will was killed at Festubert in May 1915, unaware that his younger brother was already dead.

Infantry Battalions to the Front.

In September it was decided to send the London Scottish Battalion to reinforce the Expeditionary Force. Lieutenant Colonel Collen recorded their departure:

15th September: Accompanied GOC and staff to see the London Scottish entrained at Watford. They went in 2˝ Battalion trains and were seen off by Sir Ian Hamilton. It was rather depressing seeing them go. It is, I think too, much too premature to send them even though they are all wanted perhaps to reinforce the Guards or take their place. They have practically all trained men and nearly all have done their musketry but still they are not ready yet and it is rather bad luck on the Battalion to send them too early. One can only hope that they will be given some chance on the lines of communication to shake down before they are really wanted.

London Gunners, Chapter 17.

The First Battle involving the London Scottish

When the London Scottish Battalion sailed for France Lieutenant Colonel Collen had recorded in his diary his doubts about their battle readiness. For six weeks they carried out duties behind the lines, such as escorting prisoners to the coast, unloading supplies from ships, putting up huts, and such like. On the 31st October, 1915, they had the opportunity to fight on the ridge at Wytschaete, near Ypres. They rushed forward with vigour. “Then someone discovered that the Germans were coming up in a solid mass behind us, so we doubled back to hold the trench. ... The people we had fired on turned on us and started to advance, and a third lot was bearing down to enfilade us. The sergeant’s rifle jammed permanently then. He took mine, but that jammed too! So had most of the rest - and we were almost surrounded. There was a ring of fire round the trench and just one solid sound of bullets.”

The British Press, including The Gazette, praised the courage of the London Scottish while carefully drawing a veil over their casualties and foolhardiness. Inexperienced as they were, and determined to show the Regulars that the Territorial could fight, they had misread the situation, forgot about their flanks, and found themselves under heavy fire from three sides. Of the 750 men who had attacked, 345 were killed, wounded or missing by the following day.

London Gunners, Chapter 19.

(No publisher - description printed on reverse)

After being in position but 48 hours the London Scottish were ordered to attack a village. Under darkness they advanced and when within a few hundred yards charged with their bayonets. After a few sharp thrusts in the narrow streets the Germans fled and the London Scottish won their first success.

[I have not seen this book but include details for information.