The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry | Page 2

Major-General, Commanding 74th (Yeomanry) Division.
PORTSMOUTH, 20th August 1921.

INTRODUCTION
This short history, written by request, was started shortly after the Regiment was disbanded. For the delay in publishing it, I must plead the great mass of inaccuracies which had to be corrected and verified, entailing a considerable amount of correspondence and consequent lapse of time. It has been compiled from Official Diaries and Forms, and from a Diary kept by Lieut.-Colonel J. Younger, D.S.O., without whose assistance it would never have been completed.
It will, however, recall to the reader's mind the strenuous and eventful days we spent together in a regiment of whose history we are all so justly proud, and whose career now as a Yeomanry Regiment is ended, and it will recall the gallant fellows with whom we served and many a gallant deed.
To the glorious memory of those whose graves lie in a foreign land, I humbly dedicate this book.
D. DOUGLAS OGILVIE.
April 1920.

CONTENTS
CHAP. PAGE
I. AT HOME--1914-1915 1
II. ABROAD--1915 9
III. EGYPT--1916 30
LIST OF OFFICERS 40
IV. EGYPT AND PALESTINE--1917 41
V. PALESTINE--1918 107
VI. FRANCE--1918 119
VII. SOME PERSONALITIES 143
VIII. THE PREDECESSORS OF THE FIFE AND FORFAR YEOMANRY 159
HONOURS AND AWARDS 165
LIST OF CASUALTIES 168
INDEX 204

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Face Page
Officers at Fakenham, 1915 Frontispiece
N.C.O.'s at Fakenham, 1915 2
H.M. The King, with Brigadier-General Lord Lovat and Major-General Bruce Hamilton 4
The Regiment in Column of Troops at St Ives 4
Crossing the Bridge, St Ives 6
Lieut. R.G.O. Hutchison and Machine Gun Section, 1915 6
Guard Mounting, Fakenham 8
Entraining Horses, Fakenham 8
Gebel-el-Ghenneim, Khargeh Oasis 18
The Highland Barricade, Asmak Dere, Suvla 18
Captain Tuke on "Joseph" 34
In the Village of Khargeh 34
Sentry on Water Dump "A" 36
Camel Lines at Khargeh 36
Senussi Prisoners, Dakhla 40
The Sergeants' Reel, Moascar 40
The Battalion Mascot 42
Battalion Cookhouse, El Ferdan 42
Dug-outs in the Front Line, Sheikh Abbas 54
A Reserve Wadi, Sheikh Abbas 54
A Platoon Mess, Wadi Asher 58
"C" Company Officers' Mess, Wadi Asher 58
Turkish Trench, with dead Turks, Hill 1070, Beersheba 62
Bathing, Regent's Park 62
Battalion Bivouac near Suffa 110
The Irish Road crossing the Wadi Ain Arik 110
The Battalion Football Team 140
The Fife and Forfar Imperial Yeomanry at Annsmuir 158
Detachment at H.M. The King's Visit to Edinburgh 160
Regimental Drill at Annsmuir, with Skeleton Enemy 160
Group showing Six successive Commanding Officers 164
The Cadre on arrival at Kirkcaldy 164
MAPS
Our Trenches in the Front Line at Suvla 20
Battle of Sheria 68
Operations in Palestine, 1917-1918 106
Trench System on the Somme 134
The Lys Sector 142

THE FIFE AND FORFAR YEOMANRY
CHAPTER I
AT HOME--1914-1915
August 4th, 1914, marks the end and also the beginning of two great epochs in the history of every Territorial Unit. It marked the close of our peace training and the beginning of thirteen months' strenuous war training for the thirty-seven months which we were to spend on active service abroad.
The Fiery Cross which blazed across the entire Continent caught most people unawares and unprepared--but not so our headquarters. Our mobilization papers had already been made out and were despatched immediately on the outbreak of war. Each one of us was bidden to report forthwith to his Squadron Headquarters, and while we kicked our heels there, officers were scouring the country for horses. Soon these came in of every sort and shape, and in a week's time the Regiment was concentrated at Blairgowrie.
The headquarters of the Regiment was at Kirkcaldy, the four Squadrons A, B, C, and D having their headquarters respectively at Cupar, Dunfermline, Dundee, and Forfar. The recruiting area comprised the counties of Fife, Forfar, Kinross, and Clackmannan, and there was also a troop in Stirlingshire within a few miles of Loch Lomond. The rest of the Highland Mounted Brigade, to which the Regiment belonged, was pure Highland, consisting of two regiments of Lovat's Scouts, the Inverness Battery, R.H.A., and a T. and S. Column and Field Ambulance hailing also from Inverness. On changing to War Establishment, D Squadron dropped out and was divided amongst A, B, and C, with the exception of Lieut.-Colonel King who went to Remounts, and Captain Jackson who became Staff Captain on the newly formed Brigade Staff.
The Regiment was fortunate in having about a week at Squadron Mobilization Centres before uniting at Blairgowrie, and a pretty hectic week it was for most of us. The most rapid bit of work must have been that of D Squadron, whose men were distributed amongst the other squadrons, fully equipped, in about three days. This squadron was also called upon to provide the various details, such as mounted police, who were required on mobilization to report to the Highland Territorial Infantry Division, the famous 51st.
[Illustration: N.C.O.'s AT FAKENHAM, 1915. Back Row (left to right).--Sgts. Edmond, Petrie, Annand, M'Niven. Second Row.--Farr.-Sgt. Lindsay, Sgts. Inglis, Gourlay, Farr.-Sgt. Renton, Sgt. Abbie, Saddler-Sgt. Smith, Sergt. Kirk, F.Q.M.S. Allan, Sgts. Hood, Walker, Colthart, Haig, Lumsden, Thorp, Dougall, Couper, Bradfield, Craig. Third Row.--Sgts. Thornton, Aitken, S.Q.M.S. Craig, S.S.M. Edie, S.S.M. Ogilvie, Capt. and Adjt. M.E. Lindsay,