Great Britain: The Scottish Fencible Regiments: 1759

Research: Abstract of the Napoleonic Era

Army:

Great Britain: The Scottish Fencible Regiments: 1759 – 1802

Name	Year Raised	Year Disbanded	Strength	Notes
Argyle Highlanders	1759	1763	1,000
Sutherland Highlanders	1759		1,000	260 Men were above 5 feet 11 inches tall; had two grenadier companies
Argyle Highlanders (Western)	1778	1783		700 men were Highlanders; rest were from Glasgow and SW Scotland
Gordon Highlanders	1778	1783	960
Sutherland Highlanders	1779	1783	1,100
Grant Highlanders	1793	1799		Strength unknown, however there were 41 Lowlanders, 3 English, and 2 Irish
Breadalbane Highlanders	1793	1st Battalion: 1798 2nd Battalion: 1798 3rd Battalion: 1802	2,300
Sutherland Highlanders	1793	1798	1,084	Had so many volunteers, they could not enlist all of them; many joined the 93rd Foot in 1800
Gordon Highlanders	1793	1798		150 men were from the Lowlands of Aberdeen, Banff, and Elgin.
Rothesay and Caithness Highlanders	1st Battalion: 1794 2nd Battalion: 1795	1st Battalion: 1799 2nd Battalion: 1802	1st Battalion: Unknown 2nd Battalion: 1,000	19 officers were six feet tall or taller
Dumbarton Highlanders	1794	1802		Reduced to 500 men in 1796
Reay Highlanders	1794	1802	800	600 had family name that began with Mac
Inverness-shire Highlanders	1794	1802	600	Only 350 were Highlanders
Fraser Highlanders	1794			300 soldiers had Fraser as family name; 30 Lowlanders, and 18 English and Irish
Lochaber Highlanders	1799	1802	800	740 were Highlanders
Clan-Alpine Highlanders	1799	1802	756	In 1799 all were Highlanders; in 1800 strength was 1230: 780 Highlanders, 420 Lowlanders, 30 English and Irish
Glengarry Highlanders	1799	1802		Over half came from the Glengarry Estate; regiment was known as a handsome body of men
Regiment of the Isles Highlanders	1799			All Highlanders; had large number of Donald Macdonalds.[1]
Argyle Highlanders	1799	1802

Source: An Account of the Scottish Regiments, with the Statistics of each from 1808 to March 1861. Edinburgh: William P. Nimmo; 1862. Pages 45 - 47

Notes:

[1] Legend has it that when “. . . the sergeants of companies called over the muster-rolls, there having been so many Donald Macdonalds in each, that they had to be numbered. The sergeants, therefore, used to commence in the Gaelic pronunciation and accent with Tonald Mactonald, No. 1; Tonald Mactonald, No. 2; Tonald Mactonald, No. 3, and so on, until the Tonalds were exhausted in each company, the voice being raised to a higher pitch, very amusingly, as they called out the name of each man.

Placed on the Napoleon Series: August 2008

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