Old Photograph Of A 2nd Lieutenant King's Own Scottish Borderers Edinburgh Scotland

Old photograph of a 2nd Lieutenant in the King's Own Scottish Borderers with his wife at the door of his house in Edinburgh, Scotland. The King's Own Scottish Borderers regiment was raised on 18 March 1689 by David Melville, 3rd Earl of Leven to defend Edinburgh against the Jacobite forces of James II. It's claimed that 800 men were recruited within the space of two hours. The regiment's first action was at the Battle of Killiecrankie in Perthshire on 27 July 1689. Although this battle was a defeat for the Williamite army, the Jacobite commander, John Graham, 1st Viscount Dundee, Bonnie Dundee, was killed by a volley fired by Leven's Regiment, bringing an end to king James II's attempt to save his throne in Scotland. The regiment was judged to have performed well and was granted the privilege of recruiting by beat of drum in the City of Edinburgh without prior permission of the provost. during the First World War, the regiment was enlarged to nine battalions and served in notable campaigns such as Gallipoli and the Somme. In between the wars, the regiment's regular battalions were sent all over the British Empire to Ireland, Egypt and Hong Kong but were quickly recalled home at the outbreak of World War II in September 1939. One of its heaviest losses during the war was at the ill fated Battle of Arnhem in which the 7th Battalion, as part of the 1st Airlanding Brigade of 1st Airborne Division, suffered 90% casualties. Several of the other battalions were dispatched to Southeast Asia and fought against the Japanese in the Burma Campaign and in India.



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