The Lowland Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland is a Territorial band, one of the Regiment’s three military bands, which recruits primarily from Edinburgh, but also from all over the lowlands of Scotland.
The band was originally formed in 1958 for service with the 7th/9th (Highlanders) Battalion of The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment), based at East Claremont Street in Edinburgh, and they wore a Hunting Stewart kilt, the uniform of the old ’Dandy 9th’ Battalion who, as highlanders living and working in Edinburgh, refused to go to war in the Royal Scots’ customary tartan trews.
In 1961, the 7th/9th (Highlanders) Battalion was amalgamated with the 8th (Peebleshire) Battalion of The Royal Scots to become the 8th/9th Battalion and when the Territorial Army Volunteer Reserve (TAVR) was reorganised in 1967, the 8th/9th Battalion became part of the ’Royal Scots and Cameronians Territorials’.
This unit was disbanded in 1969 and its soldiers were transferred to the newly raised 52nd Lowland Volunteers but the band, supplemented by bandsmen of 278 Field Regiment Royal Artillery, were put under the command of the Edinburgh and Heriot Watt University Officer Training Corps and they became known as The Royal Scots (Territorial) Band East Lowlands.
A further change of command took place in 1970 when the band followed the other elements of the old ’Royal Scots and Cameronians Territorials’ and came under the command of the 52nd Lowland Volunteers but they retained their name.
