Medals of the Regiments:
The Scots Guards

 
 
Scots Guards Cap Badge.

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The cap badge of the Regiment, the Star of the Order of the Thistle.  
Kipling and King 907 

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The  Scots Guards

1642 - date
 
 
 
 
Earliest recognised formation: 1642 when raised as the Marquis of Argyll's Royal Regiment. Disbanded 1651, but reformed as independent companies 1660. Scots Regiment of Foot Guards, 1661. 3rd Regiment of Foot Guards, 1713.  Titled 'Scots Fusilier Guards' in 1831, Scots Guards 1877.
 
Motto: Nemo me impune lacessit = No-one provokes me with impunity
 
Regimental Journal:  The Household Brigade Magazine. The Scots Guards' Magazine.
 
WWI: Battle Honours; 30 Victoria Crosses; 5 Died; 2840
WWII:    Battle Honours;  41 Victoria Crosses; 1 Died;  ????
 
 
 
A  2nd Battalion was operational 1689-1993, and a 3rd: 1899-1906, 1914-1919, 1940-1946.
 

Egypt Campaign 1801 (1st Battalion) and the Peninsula War 1808 - 1814  

Military General Service Medal 1793 - 1814

 
clasp:

Egypt

Talavera

Busaco

Barrosa

Fuentes d' Onor

Ciudad Rodrigo

Salamanca

number: 63164 11973 139169 109
 
clasp:

Vittoria

St Sebastian

Nivelle

Nive

  Total Medals Max clasps
number: 23942 105155  425 9
 

 3 officers on the Staff officer list also received Badajos (1), Orthes (1), Toulouse (2).

 

Battle Honours: Talavera, Barrosa, Fuentes d'Onor, Salamanca, Nive, Peninsula;  and a Sphinx superscribed Egypt was permitted to be borne on the colours

 
 
 

Battle of Waterloo 1815 2nd Battalion

Waterloo Medal 1815 (names on roll, includes died, missing etc)

 
Number : 1047
 
 

Casualties 16th, 17th & 18th June 1815 (extracted London Gazette 8/7/1815 & "Medals of the British Army and  how they were won" T. Carter 1861*)

Officers: 3 Lieutenants killed.  3 Captains and 3 Lieutenants and 3 Ensigns  wounded.

*Sergeants, Trumpeters, Drummers, Farriers and Rank and File:

Wounded Missing
Died of wounds Suffered amputation Discharged Transferred to Veteran or Garrison Battalions Rejoined the Regiment Remaining in hospitals in April 1816 Total Rejoined the RegimentNot since heard of, supposed dead.
39 47 12 21 - 96 19 195 17 2
 
 
 
 

*Carter's figures are in turn extracted from the return prepared by the Adjutant-Generals office, 13th April 1816.

Battle Honour;  Waterloo.

 
 
 

Crimean War  1854 - 1856  1st Battalion ( "Scots Fusilier Guards" at this time)

Crimea Medal 1854 -56

 
Clasp: →..none...

Alma

Balaklava

Inkermann

Sebastopol

Total Medals 
Number: ?806 664662 ?>1233* 
 

* 1233= main roll figure only, there are more.

 

Battle Casualties;

Action.KilledDied of Wounds'Wounded'Dangerously
Wounded
Severely
Wounded
Slightly
Wounded
MissingTotal
The Battle of the Alma 281 146- -- -175
First bombardment of Sebastopol, first battle of Inkermann and minor actions -- 5- -- -5
The Battle of Inkermann 49- -- 4677 4176
Assault on the Quarries -- -- -- --
First Attack on the Redan 4- -1 25 -12
Final Attack on the Redan -- -- -- --
2nd, 3rd, 4th, & 5th Bombardments of Sebastopol and Minor Actions. 17- -9 2347 298
Magazine explosion at the French Siege Train -- -- -- --

Grand Total:     

466
 

Men who served in the Crimea also eligible for:

Turkish Crimea Medal 1855

 


VCs: 5;   Craig, McKechnie, Reynolds, Knox, Lindsay.   see VC page

 
 

Battle Honours:  Alma; Inkerman Sevastopol.

 
 
 

Revolt of Arabi Pasha and the 1st Sudan War 1882  1st Battalion

Egypt and Sudan Medal 1882-89

 
clasp:....none....

Tel-el-Kebir

total medals
number: 77715 792

 

 

Recipients also entitled to a Khedive's Star  "1882"

Battle Honours:  Tel-el-Kebir, Egypt 1882 

 
 
 

The Nile Expedition 1884-5 Both Battalions provided detachments for service with  the Guards Camel Regiment and the 2nd Battalion served at Suakin 1885

Egypt and Sudan Medal 1882-89

 

 

Clasp:
The Nile 1884 -85

Abu Klea

Suakin 1885

Battalion: combined figure (battalion not indicated on the roll) 2nd
Number: 92 84?
 

 

Recipients also entitled to a Khedive's Star dated 1884-6

Battle Honour: Suakin 1885

 
 
 

Ashanti Expedition 1895-96 Detachment of the 1st Battalion

Ashanti Star 1895-96

number:

19
 
 
 
 

Anglo - Boer War 1899 - 1902.  1st Battalion November 1899 to the end of the War, and 2nd Battalion April 1900 to the end of the War 

Queen's South Africa Medal 1899-1902, with or without the King's South Africa Medal 1901 - 1902 (the majority of 2nd Btn. men are not entitled to a KSA)

Common clasps: Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal, South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902; also:

 
Btn. 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st
clasp:

Belmont

Modder River

Paardeberg

Driefontein

Johannesburg

Diamond Hill

number: ? ? 223 ? ? ?
             
Btn. 1st 2nd        
clasp:

Belfast

Wittebergen

       
number: ? ?        
 

 

Casualties:

Officers NCOs and Men
KIA & DOW/ DOD Wounded Missing / POW KIA & DOW Death from disease Wounded Missing / POW
1st Battalion
- / 2 6 - 33 43 79 -
 
2nd Battalion
1 / - 4 - 15 66 55 -
 

Battle Honours: Modder River, South Africa 1899-1902

 
 

Queen's South Africa Medal, 1st Scots Guards.

Above: the medal to 2249 Private George Hockton 1st Battalion, Scots Guards.
Died of Disease Kroonstad 24th April 1900. 1 of the 45 DoD of the 1st Battalion.

****

The Great War 1914 - 1918  ( 3 battalions; 2 served overseas:- )

Generally awarded the British War Medal & Victory Medal, men overseas prior to 1/1/1916 also a 1914 or 1914-15 Star.

Battalion → 1  2
date of first overseas service.
 (first theatre red x )
14/8
1914
7/10
1914
France & Flanders x x
Gallipoli    
Egypt & Palestine    
Mesopotamia    
Macedonia    
Star
possible ?
1914 or 1914-15 x x
or 1914-15 only    
VCs at a glance:
died
Extracted from : "Soldiers / Officers Died in the Great War" (consider approximate - in addition the regiment as a whole lost an additional  64 officers who are recorded with 'battalion not shown'  or with battalions not shown here, or who we have  not yet allocated a battalion.) (note SDGW does not distinguish OR's Battalion for this regiment)
2730
25 21
 
Regular Territorial Force New Armies Garrison.

 

Territorial Force War Medal 1914-19
2 men of the Scots Guards also qualified for this medal.

 


VCs: 5;  Boyd-Rochfort, MacKenzie, McKaulay, McNess, Wood. see VC page

 

Battle Honours: Retreat from Mons; Marne 1914; Aisne 1914; Ypres 1914, 1917; Festubert 1915; Loos; Somme 1916, 1918; Cambrai 1917, 1918; Hindenburg Line; France and Flanders 1914-18. Langemarck 1914; Gheluvelt; Nonne Bosschen; Givenchy 1914; Neuve Chapelle; Aubers; Flers-Courcelette; Morval; Pilckem; Poelcapelle; Passchendaele; St Quentin; Albert 1918; Bapaume 1918; Arras 1918; DrocourtQuéant; Havrincourt; Canal du Nord; Selle; Sambre.

 
 
 

Jewish / Arab unrest, Palestine 1936 - 39 1st Battalion

General Service Medal 1918 -62

clasp:

Palestine

numbers: ?
 
 
 
 
 

WW2 1939 - 1945  

Battalion → 1st 2nd 3rd
campaign ↓      
Norway 1940 x    
France and Belgium 1940.
(Dunkirk )
     
North Africa & Middle East x x  
Burma      
Sicily / Italy x x  
N.W. Europe   x x
 

Notes.

  24th Infantry Brigade (Guards)
-also operated as a Independent Brigade Group.
Norway 15/4/40 - 6/6/40

Arrived North Africa 9/3/43, Italy 7/12/43

In Egypt at the start. Served 29th, 18th Infantry Brigade and 22nd Guards Brigade, which became 200th and 201st Guards Motor Brigade Group.  NW Europe with 32nd Infantry Brigade (Guards) 20/2/45 - 31/8/45. 15/9/41-14/1/43 and 2/2/45-16/6/45 with 6th Guards Armoured Brigade (intermediate title 6th Guards Tank Brigade) as 3rd Armoured or 3rd Tank Battalion Scots Guards as appropriate. Landed NW Europe 18/7/44  (Brigade title changed to "6th Guards Brigade" 17/6/45)
 
 
 

WW2 Stars common to the Battalion. (excluding 39-45 star )
 Key: A = Africa, P = Pacific, B =  Burma, I = Italy,  F&G = France and Germany

  A, I A, I, F&G F&G
     


VCs: 1;  Wright.  see VC page

 

Most also entitled to the 1939-45 War Medal and many the Defence Medal

 

Battle Honours:  Quarry Hill; Rhineland; North-West Europe 1944-5; Gazala; Medenine; Djebel Bou Aoukaz 1943; North Africa 1941-3; Monte Camino; Anzio; Italy 1943-5.   Stien; Norway 1940; Mont Pinçon; Estry; Venlo Pocket; Reichswald; Cleve; Moyland; Hochwald; Rhine; Lingen; Uelzen; Halfaya 1941; Sidi Suleiman; Tobruk 1941; Knightsbiidge; Defence of Alamein Line; Tadjera Khir; Medjez Plain; Grich el Oued; Salerno; Battipaglia; Volturno Crossing; Rochetta e Croce; Campoleone; Carroceto; Trasimene Line; Advance to Florence; Monte San Michele; Catarelto Ridge; Argenta Gap.

 
1946 3rd Battalion disbanded for the last time.
 

The Malaya Emergency: Operations against Communist insurgents. 1948-60 2nd Battalion (1948-51)

General Service Medal 1918 - 62

clasp:

Malaya

number:?
 
 
 
 
 

Indonesian Confrontation, North Borneo  1962-1966  1st Battalion

General Service Medal 1962-2007

clasp:

Borneo

Malay Peninsula

numbers: ? ?
 
 
 
 
 

Northern Ireland "Operation Banner"  1969-2007   1st and 2nd Battalions; numerous tours

General Service Medal 1962-2007

clasp:

Northern Ireland

number:?

 

 
 
 

Falklands War 1982  2nd  Battalion.

South Atlantic Medal 1982

 
number: ?
 

Battle Honour: Falkland Islands 1982, Tumbledown Mountain.

 
 
 

Gulf War to liberate Kuwait  1990-1991  1st Battalion

Gulf Medal 1990-91

clasp:....none....
16th Jan to 28th Feb 1991
numbers: 1523
 

Battle Honour:  Gulf 1991

 
1993 Regulars reduced to a single Battalion; the 1st .
 

Iraq War, or Second Gulf War 2003 and Aftermath.  1st Battalion: 4 Armoured Brigade Operation Telic 5  (2004-5) and 4 Mechanised Brigade Operation Telic 11 (2007-8)

Iraq Medal 2003-

  
number:?
 

 

 
 
 

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Selected Links

The Regimental Museum. (Located in )

 
 
 

Selected Bibliography;

 
Author/ Ed.. Etc. Title Publisher
Major-Gen. Sir F. Maurice The History of the Scots Guards from the Creation of the Regiment to the Eve of the Great War.   2 vols London: Chatto & Windus, 1934.
F. Loraine Petre, Wilfred Ewart and Major-Gen. Sir Cecil Lowther. The Scots Guards in the Great War, 1914-1918.  349 pp. London: John Murray, 1925
Compiled by David Erskine. The Scots Guards, 1919-1945.  London:  624 pp. Published for the Scots Guards by William Clowes & Sons Ltd., 1956
Edited by Capt. J. H. Cuthbert The 1st Battalion Scots Guards in South Africa, 1899-1902.  259 pp. London: Harrison & Sons [1903]
??? 2nd Battalion Scots Guards in Malaya, 1948-1951.  90 pp. Kuala Lumpur: Caxton Press Ltd., 1951
Anthony Goodridge The Scots Guards  149pp London Leo Cooper 1969
     
     
     

 

Additional Bibliography for this Page.

 
Author/Compiler Title Publisher
Officers of the Regiment. Unpublished rolls in the care of the National Archives; WO 100/ etc. -
  Additional bibliography same as Northumberland Fusiliers page  
     
     
 

 

 

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