Scottish Command or Army Headquarters Scotland (from 1972) was a command of the British Army. The successor role, since 2015, has been the Military Secretary and General Officer, Scotland.
History Early history
Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793.Robert Burnham and Ron McGuigan, The British Army Against Napoleon: Facts, Lists and Trivia, 1805–1815 (2010) p. 7. The Scottish District was commanded by the Commander-in-Chief, Scotland. In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in Great Britain and Ireland’ was published, with the ‘Active Army’ divided into eight army corps based on the District Commands. 8th Corps was to be formed within Scottish Command, based at Edinburgh. This scheme disappeared in 1881, when the districts were retitled ‘District Commands.Army List 1876–1881.
Early twentieth century The 1901 Army Estimates introduced by St John Brodrick allowed for six army corps based on six regional commands. As outlined in a paper published in 1903, VI Corps was to be formed in a reconstituted Scottish Command, with HQ at Edinburgh.Col John K. Dunlop, The Development of the British Army 1899–1914, London: Methuen, 1938. Lieutenant General Sir Charles Tucker was appointed acting General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOCinC) of VI Corps in April 1903. Scottish Command was established in 1905 at Edinburgh Castle but moved to Craigiehall in 1955.
First World War Army Order No 324, issued on 21 August 1914, authorised the formation of a 'New Army' of six Divisions, manned by volunteers who had responded to Earl Kitchener's appeal (hence the First New Army was known as 'K1'). Each division was to be under the administration of one of the Home Commands, and Scottish Command formed what became the 9th (Scottish) Division. It was followed by 15th (Scottish) Division of K2 in September 1914. The 64th (2nd Highland) Division was established in the Command by 1915 after the departure of 51st (Highland) Division for France.
Second World War In September 1939 consisted of Highland Area with 9th (Highland) Infantry Division and 51st (Highland) Infantry Division, and Lowland Area with 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division and 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division, plus other troops.Leo Niehorster, Scottish Command. Retrieved December 2008 By 1940 during the Battle of Britain the command was responsible to Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces.
As France was capitulating, General Władysław Sikorski. the Polish commander-in-chief and prime minister, was able to evacuate many Polish troops—probably over 20,000—to the United Kingdom. Wojsko Polskie we Francji. Świat Polonii. Various sources give estimates that can differ by a few percent. After initially regrouping in southern ScotlandJames Dunnigan, Albert Nofi; Dirty Little Secrets of World War II: Military Information No One Told You By, HarperCollins, 1996, , Google Print, p.139 these Polish ground units (as I Corps, comprising the 1st Independent Rifle Brigade, the 10th Motorised Cavalry Brigade (as infantry) and cadre brigades largely manned by surplus officers at battalion strength) took over responsibility in October 1940 for the defence of the counties of Fife and Angus; this included reinforcing coastal defences that had already been started. I Corps was under the direct command of Scottish Command. While in this area the Corps was reorganised and expanded.Diana M. Henderson, The Lion and the Eagle: Polish Second World War Veterans in Scotland, Cualann Press, 2001,
Post War In 1950, the 51st/52nd (Scottish) Division was split, restoring the independence of the 52nd Lowland Division, which took regional command of Territorial Army units based in the Scottish Lowlands, including the Territorial infantry battalions of the Lowland Brigade regiments.Reorganizing Territorials, The Times, 21 July 1960.
In 1948, the 9th Special Communications Unit was formed in Forfar administered by Scottish Command. The 30th Armoured Brigade was reformed in Scotland after the war as a fully Territorial Army formation, known as the 30th (Lowland) Independent Armoured Brigade. It was headquartered in Glasgow.
In 1955, Headquarters Scottish Command moved into modern facilities at Craigiehall, close to Cramond, around 9 km (5.6 mi) west of central Edinburgh. At this time, the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief had 92 separate locations under his command, with 2,500 regular service men and women and 8,800 members of the Territorial Army, representing 14% of the total across the UK.Trevor Royle, "Facing the Bear: Scotland and the Cold War," via Google Books.
The Command was merged into HQ United Kingdom Land Forces (HQ UKLF) in 1972 and the headquarters in Scotland was downgraded to the status of a district, known as Army Headquarters Scotland. Scotland continued to have district status until 2000 when the last General Officer Commanding Scotland stood down and the Army HQ Scotland was replaced by HQ 2nd Infantry Division with control of troops in Scotland and the North of England.Major change of direction Mark Strudwick; After commanding the Army in Scotland, running PSYBT is a surprisingly suitable new career The Glasgow Herald, 25 June 2006
General Officers Commanding Commanders-in-Chief have included:Whitaker's Almanacks 1905–2000Army Commands
Commander-in-Chief, Scottish Army 1661–1663: John Middleton, 1st Earl of Middleton 1663–1667: John Leslie, 7th Earl of Rothes 1667–1674: George Livingston, 3rd Earl of Linlithgow (acting) 1674–1677: Sir George Munro 1677–1679: George Livingston, 3rd Earl of Linlithgow 1679–1679: James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth 1679–1685: Tam Dalyell of the Binns 1685–1685: George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton 1685–1688: William Drummond, 1st Viscount StrathallanCharles Dalton, The Scots army, 1661–1688, with memoirs of the commanders-in-chief (London, 1909). 1688–1688: James Douglas 1689–1690: Hugh Mackay 1690–1697: Thomas Livingstone, 1st Viscount Teviot
Commander-in-Chief, Scotland (or North Britain) 1702–1705: George RamsayCharles Dalton, English Army Lists and Commission Registers volume 5 (London, 1902) page 226.Patrick Cracroft-Brennan, Dalhousie, Earl of (S, 1633) in Cracroft's Peerage. Retrieved 9 September 2012. 1706–1710: David Leslie, 3rd Earl of Leven 1710–1712: David Colyear, 1st Earl of Portmore 1712–1716: John Campbell, 2nd Duke of ArgyllCharles Dalton, English Army Lists and Commission Registers, volume 6 (London, 1904) page 220. 1716–1724: George Carpenter, 1st Baron Carpenter 1724–1740: George Wade ... 1743–1745: Sir John Cope 1745–1745: Roger Handasyd 1745–1746: Henry Hawley (Prince William, Duke of Cumberland in overall command) 1746–1747: William Anne Keppel, 2nd Earl of Albemarle 1747–1752: Humphrey Bland 1752–1753: George Churchill 1753–1756: Humphrey Bland 1756–1767: Lord George BeauclerkR. S. Lea, BEAUCLERK, Lord George (1704–68). in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1715–1754 (1970). Online version. Retrieved 9 September 2012. 1767–1778: John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne 1778–1780: Sir James Adolphus Oughton 1780–1787: Alexander MackayEdith, Lady Haden-Guest, MACKAY, Hon. Alexander (1717–89), of Strathtongue, Sutherland. in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1754–1790 (1964). Online version. Retrieved 9 September 2012. ... 1789–1798: Lord Adam Gordon 1798–1799: Sir Ralph AbercrombyD. G. Henry, ABERCROMBY, Sir Ralph (1734–1801), of Tullibody, Clackmannan. in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1790–1820 (1986). Online version. Retrieved 9 September 2012. ... 1803–1806: Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Earl of Moira 1806–1812: William Cathcart, 1st Viscount Cathcart 1812–1816: Henry WynyardRichard Cannon, Historical Record of the Forty-Sixth, or the South Devonshire Regiment of Foot (London, 1851) pages 71–72. 1816–1819: Sir John Hope 1819–1825: Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas BradfordRon McGuigan, Bradford, Thomas in British Generals of the Napoleonic Wars 1793–1815. The Napoleon Series, 2007. Retrieved 9 September 2012. 1825–1830: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert O'CallaghanRon McGuigan, O'Callaghan, Robert William in British Generals of the Napoleonic Wars 1793–1815. The Napoleon Series, 2007. Retrieved 9 September 2012. 1830–1837: General Patrick Stuart 1837–1842: General Lord Greenock 1842–1847: Lieutenant-General Sir Neil Douglas 1847–1852: General Henry Riddell 1852–1854: General Sir Thomas Napier 1854–1860: General Viscount Melville 1860–1861: Major-General Duncan Cameron 1861–1867: Major-General Edward Forestier-Walker
Commanding the troops in the North British District 1868–1873: Major-General Randal Rumley 1873–1875: Major-General Sir John Douglas 1875–1878: Major-General John Stuart 1878–1880: Major-General Robert Bruce 1880–1881: Major-General William Hope 1881–1885: Major-General Alastair Macdonald 1885–1888: Major-General Alexander Elliot 1888–1893: Major-General Sir Arthur Lyttelton-Annesley
Commanding the troops in the Scottish District 1893–1894: Major-General Arthur Lyon Fremantle 1894–1896: Major-General Sir Hugh Rowlands
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Scottish District 1896–1901 Lieutenant General Sir Edward Chapman 1901–1903 Lieutenant General Sir Archibald Hunter 1903–1905 Lieutenant General Sir Charles Tucker
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Scottish Command 1905 Lieutenant General Sir Charles Tucker 1905–1909 Lieutenant General Sir Edward Leach 1909–1913 Lieutenant General Sir Bruce Hamilton 1913–1914 Lieutenant General Sir James Wolfe Murray 1914–1918 Lieutenant General Sir Spencer Ewart 1918–1919 Lieutenant General Sir Frederick McCracken 1919–1923 Lieutenant General Sir Francis Davies 1923–1926 Lieutenant General Sir Walter Braithwaite 1926–1930 Lieutenant General Sir William Peyton 1930–1933 General Sir Percy Radcliffe 1933–1937 General Sir Archibald Cameron 1937–1940 General Sir Charles Grant 1940–1941 Lieutenant General Sir Harold Carrington 1941–1945 Lieutenant General Sir Andrew Thorne 1945–1947 Lieutenant General Sir Neil Ritchie 1947–1949 Lieutenant General Sir Philip Christison 1949–1952 Lieutenant General Sir Gordon MacMillan 1952–1955 Lieutenant General Sir Colin Barber 1955–1958 Lieutenant General Sir Horatius Murray 1958–1961 Lieutenant General Sir George Collingwood 1961–1964 Lieutenant General Sir William Turner 1964–1966 Lieutenant General Sir George Gordon-Lennox 1966–1969 Lieutenant General Sir Derek Lang 1969–1972 Lieutenant General Sir Henry Leask
General Officer Commanding, Scotland 1972–1976 Lieutenant General Sir Chandos Blair 1976–1979 Lieutenant General Sir David Scott-Barrett 1979–1980 Lieutenant General Sir Michael Gow 1980–1982 Lieutenant General Sir David Young 1982–1985 Lieutenant General Sir Alexander Boswell 1985–1988 Lieutenant General Sir Norman Arthur 1988–1991 Lieutenant General Sir John MacMillan 1991–1993 Lieutenant General Sir Peter Graham 1993–1995 Major-General Michael Scott 1995–1997 Major-General Jonathan Hall 1997–2000 Major-General Mark Strudwick Note: There was no General Officer Commanding, Scotland between 2000 and 2012 2012–2015 Major-General Nick Eeles
Military Secretary and General Officer, Scotland 2015–2017 Major-General Nicholas Ashmore 2017–2019 Major-General Bob Bruce 2019–2021 Major-General Tim Hyams 2021–2023 Major-General William Wright 2023–present Major-General Robin Lindsay
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