Men from the Highlands of Scotland have been recruited into the armies of Europe since the Middle Ages. Men drawn from highland regions have proved to be hardy and intrepid. In this context, a historical survey of highlanders must include the Gurkhas of Nepal and the Pathans of the North-West frontier, Italy's Alpini, France's Chasseurs Alpins (see chasseurs), and the Tirolean Jägers of Austria. But the Scots Highlander is probably the most recognizable of military icons.
The clann system of Highland Scotland prior to the mid-18th century required military service by able-bodied males. Although inter-clan warfare declined in the 16th century, the tradition remained, as did the raw material. Continental wars in the 17th century encouraged Scots, many of whom were Highlanders, to enlist in foreign armies, as their ancestors had done for over 400 years. Highlanders fought in the Scots armies during the British civil wars of the mid-17th century and in the British army following its reconstruction in 1660 but in the latter force they were not distinguished by their native dress. The exile of their Catholic King James VII (James II of England) in 1688 led to 60 years of Jacobite-inspired disaffection in Britain, centred chiefly in Highland Scotland, and, in the early 18th century, independent companies of Highlanders were raised, dressed in the plaid and bonnet of their native areas, to police their neighbours. In 1739 these companies became the regiment now famous as the Black Watch, the first regiment of Highlanders in the British army. Other regiments of Highlanders came and went throughout the 18th century and the reputation of the Scots Highlander as a redoubtable soldier was made in India, in America, during the Napoleonic wars, and ever after.
The British army continues to recruit Highland regiments, each with its traditions and music, although these are increasingly drawn from the more populous urban areas of Scotland, rather than from the desolate and deserted mountains. Gurkhas and Scots Highlanders have always had a close mutual affinity and the Gurkha bagpipe and diced bonnet are directly drawn from those of their Highland comrades.
— Stephen Wood
