The 3rd (Militia) Battalion
A regiment of the Stirlingshire Militia existed in 1639 and fought for and against the Covenanters, and in defence of Stirling Castle against the Jacobites during the 1745 Rebellion. In 1797, with the reorganisation of the Scottish forces, it became The Fifeshire Regiment of The North British Militia. In 1803, it became The Stirling, Dumbarton, Clackmannan and Kinross Militia, until 1855, when it became The Highland Borderers Light Infantry. In 1881, it became the 3rd Battalion, Princess Louise’s Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. After the First World War, it was placed in “suspended animation”.Embodiments
Covenanter’s Rebellion, 1648 and 1668
Jacobite Rebellion, 1745
Revolutionary War, 1797 – 1814 (almost continuous periods)
Crimean War, 1855 - 1856
Indian Mutiny, 2 November 1857 – 1860
South African War, 23 January 1900 – 4 December 1901
South African War, 6 January – 23 September 1902
The 3rd Battalion, Princess Louise’s Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, under the command of Colonel the Duke of Montrose KT ADC, volunteered for foreign service during the South African War. The Battalion embarked for Cape Town with a strength of 925 Officers and Men. On arrival on the 19 February 1902, three Companies proceeded to De Aar, one to Fraserburg, one to Sutherland and three to Simonstown. Between the times of arrival and departure from South Africa, the Battalion was never united.
The Battalion was employed at various times on blockhouse duty from De Aar to Victoria Road and on the cross-country line from Victoria Road to Calvinia. Whilst stationed on the branch line, because of the difficulty in bringing supplies from the main line, the men were frequently on half rations. When Colonel the Duke of Montrose was appointed to command a column to protect the construction work on the blockhouse line from Carnarvon to Calvinia, part of the Battalion was also employed on this work. At the end of hostilities, 1200 rebels surrendered in this district, which explains the hard work experienced by the Battalion and why it was subjected to so much sniping. The Battalion embarked for England at Cape Town in September 1902.
In 1908 the Battalion became a part of the Special Reserve and during the First World War provided drafts for the Active Battalions. On the outbreak of the First World War the Battalion was embodied at Stirling, it moved to Woolwich in August 1914 and to Edinburgh in May 1915. In March 1917, it moved to Dreghorn and then to Kinsale, Ireland in November 1917, as part of the 25th Reserve Brigade. It ended the War in Ireland.
After the First World War, the 3rd battalion went into “suspended animation”.
Continued: 4th (Militia) Battalion
