They also acquired, early on, a self-belief which was itself enough to turn several encounters their way against seemingly overwhelming odds. "We have troops brave enough to attempt the reduction of the Universe", wrote a young ensign in the West Indies in 1757, adding: "Nothing can or dare withstand us."
This is the first serious history of the regiment since (and I declare an interest) my father Eric and brother Andro wrote their combined account in 1977. It draws on that and contemporary diaries, letters and reports of which there are many. Victoria Schofield, whose biography of Lord Wavell showed that she has a sure grasp of military matters, here enlivens the usual litany of campaigns and battles with contemporary observations on a soldier's life which shows that, while much has changed in the British army, certain themes remain the same. Their complaints about equipment, pay and long service abroad would be immediately familiar to the troops of today, though we have not heard any recent complaints about the Highland plaid being cut too short. Defence cutbacks in time of peace were discussed as much in the 18th century as today. Compensation for injury in battle also crops up — a sergeant whose arm was severed at Fontenoy was promised "compensation to the value of an arm", though what that was is not specified.
Some things, however, have changed. When the regiment was reorganised under George III, the pay for those embarking for India was five shillings a day and a black servant for every man. Before the battle of Seringapatam, they were given a dram and biscuit. Women were an extremely important part of campaigns well into the 19th century, not just to prepare food, wash uniforms, and keep campsites tidy, but because they did so much for morale. Four women were assigned to each company, and when, in 1815, on the way to face Napoleon, this was reduced to two, there was a near-mutiny.
Victoria Schofield has compiled as authoritative a history of the regiment as we are likely to get, and one that acts as a reminder of a key aspect of soldiering, which is as important today as it was at Ticonderoga, Alma or Tamai. Most soldiers, plucked from civilian life and thrust into the unfamiliar and gruelling life of a campaigning army, turn to their comrades, their officers, and the traditions of their regiment for succour and support. Remove that loyalty, and you remove a central component of a successful fighting force.
Whether that can be retained within an army confined to patrolling North Sea oil installations or mounting military parades is one of the many challenges that Alex Salmond may have to face if he pulls off his own campaign victory in 2014. History suggests that the soldiers of today, as yesterday, look for a little more.
