Scots and the Battle of Loos (25th Sep-8th Oct 1915)

British and French Vs. Germans (German victory)

Near the village of Loos and Hill 70, Scottish Piper Daniel Laidlaw played the bagpipes as the soldiers went over the top and continued to play despite being gassed and shot in the leg - he was awarded a VC (Victoria Cross)

Contribution - this shows Scots contributed to the battle by inspiring others with their incredible bravery

Experience - this shows some Scots experienced incredible pride in the battle as they saw people show amazing courage

Role - this shows the role for some Scots was to inspire the troops around them

At the end of the battle a total of 21,000 names were put onto a monument to remember the soldiers who died, 7,000 of those names were that of Scottish soldiers

Contribution - this shows Scots contributed to the battle by showing incredible willingness to sacrifice their health and lives to achieving an objective

Experience - this shows some Scots experienced incredible loss, injury and death in the battle

Role - this shows the role for many Scots was to follow orders even when they asked for suicidal attacks

Haig planned to release chlorine gas but as it was being released the wind changed directions, blowing the gas back onto the Scottish 9th Division

Contribution - this shows Scots contributed to the battle by showing incredible resilience to continue fighting despite such a terrible accident

Experience - this shows some Scots experienced incredible pain and suffering in the battle

Role - this shows Scots had a terrible role in the battle as they became victims of a horrible new technology

The 15th Scottish Division broke through the German lines and captured the village of Loos

Contribution - this shows Scots contributed to the battle by achieving some initial tactical and strategic successes

Experience - this shows some Scots experiences success in the battle as they took their initial objective and captured the German trenches

Role - this shows the role for many Scots was to achieve remarkable success as ‘shock troops’

The battle was planned by Douglas Haig, a Scotsman and leader of the first Army (but not commander-in-chief)

Contribution - this shows Scots contributed to the disaster at Loos by choosing to use tactics that led to many deaths, but ultimately would wear down enemy morale and troops

Experience - this shows some Scots experienced the battle out of the trenches in relative safety

Role - this shows Scots had important leadership roles in planning and directing the overall strategy of the battle