‘Highland chieftains’

: officer selection, status and identity in The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders), c.1902-1918

Abstract

This thesis examines the selection and integration of commissioned officers in The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) in the years 1902-1918, a group defined by Scottish national identity and elevated social status.

It analyses the processes by which candidates were selected for commissions and appointed to regiments, charting the evolution of these processes in response to the exigencies of war and highlighting disparities and inconsistencies between regular and auxiliary commissions. It explores how this shaped the composition of the group, demonstrating that the ‘officer corps’ of a Scottish regiment was socially, nationally, and professionally heterogeneous.

Subsequently, it examines how this relatively disparate group maintained a common and enduring social and national character, particularly in the face of wartime diversification. It demonstrates that individuals of diverse backgrounds and commission types adopted the lifestyle and behaviours characteristic of the British officer and the specific regimental and national culture of the unit regardless of their individual origins, promoting an appearance of homogeneity. Further, it argues that this resulted in a very real identification with this social status and national identity on the part of individual members of the group.

Finally, it considers the long-term effects of this phenomenon on the army and the officers themselves, illustrating developments and limitations in officer selection following the experience of wartime diversification and integration, and the impact of their newfound social status and national identity on individuals in post-war civilian life.

Ultimately, it concludes that officer selection was rarely designed to create, and certainly did not achieve, a socially or nationally homogeneous group, but that uniformity could be achieved on both counts through socialisation and integration.

Date of Award	3 Dec 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of St Andrews
Supervisor	Derek Patrick (Supervisor) & Hew Strachan (Supervisor)