Scottish Art - Paintings of Scotland:
Black Watch Piper
by D. Bruce Bennett
Eye of the Black Watch
Do you detect a little arrogance in this Black Watch piper as he sizes up his bagpipe competition?
That may well be because he's part of Scotland's senior Highland Regiment, a regiment whose origin has been much debated.
For years, the story has been that The Black Watch originated from six independent companies raised by the English in 1725 to quiet the unrest that followed the Jacobite Uprising of 1715. Chosen from clans loyal to the Hanoverian King George I (Campbells, Grants, Frasers, and Munros), they were stationed across the highlands to keep some semblance of order.
Historian Andrew Ross claims, though, that the origins of the Black Watch go back even further to August 3, 1667 when King Charles II commissioned the Earl of Athol to raise a guard for the purpose of keeping peace in the Highlands.
The story also goes that they were not called the Black Watch until 1861, the name originating from their dark green and black-navy tartan and the dark nature of their original duties - to "watch" their own countrymen.
You'll notice his Red Hackle, the Watch's well-known emblem originally made from vulture feathers, which commemorates the regiment's gallantry at the Battle of Geldemalsen in 1795, 50 years after the regiment first saw action. In 1822, the Black Watch received exclusive rights to the wearing of the Red Hackle.
The Black Watch has served in India, in Egypt during the Napoleonic Wars, in the Crimea, in South Africa during the Boer Wars. In World War I, 25 Black Watch battalions earned honors, and 8,000 of its members died. The Watch fought in almost every campaign of World War II, as well as serving in the Korean War.
Far from being a regiment from the misty past, the Black Watch is now serving in Iraq. In March 2006, it was merged into The Royal Regiment of Scotland. While it still retains Black Watch as its primary identifier, many Scots are less than pleased with this change.
So, was the Watch's origin 1667 or 1725? From an American point of view, either one's an awfully long time ago. Plenty of time to develop the superior attitude of the Black Watch "dude" above. We suppose this lad has a right to appear just a teensy bit haughty.
His glowering presence, the somber oil-painting style, and the painting's sheer size have made this picture of Scotland a conversation-starter in a client's home and an unmistakable statement about his Highland heritage. Would you like something similar? Check our commission procedures and contact us about your own piece of Scottish Art that will help you make a similar statement.
Eye of the Black Watch Picture of Scotland
Medium: acrylic on hardboard
Image Dimensions: 20" w. x 24" h.
Mat: none
Glass: none
Frame: 4" wide Olde-World-style burgundy and gold wood; 27.5" w. 31.5" h.
(This painting of a Black Watch piper SOLD in December 2002,
but you could commission a similar version of a Black Watch bagpiper.)
Please note that all Paintings of Scotland (and Paintings of England, too) on this site are the original artwork of U.S. artist, D. Bruce Bennett. United States customers pay no U.K. exchange rate, no customs duty tax, and no international mailing costs. All we have to add to the very reasonable price of our Scottish Art is plain old U.S. postage (and state tax for Colorado residents).
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