The Black Watch is the senior Highland Regiment in the British Army and was raised as a result of the troublesome times after the 1715 Rebellion led by the Earl of Mar on behalf of the Old Pretender. Reviving the 17th century 'Highland Watch' idea, six Independent companies of Loyal Highlanders were raised and, in 1739, with the threat of war against Spain, George 11 ordered that the Independent Companies should be incorporated into a Regiment of Foot under the Earl of Crawford.
The origins of the name "Black Watch" are open to some dispute. From the start, the Independent companies were known locally as "Am Freiceadan Dubh" (The Black Watch), thus distinguishing them from the Regular "Saighdearan Dearg" (red-coats). The "Black Watch" may have referred to the dark tartan they wore.
Whenever a clan went into battle it was accompanied by its pipers, who played warlike tunes to raise the spirits of the men. After the Jacobite rising of the 18th century, the bagpipe was banned by the Hanovarian government as an instrument of war and even its possession was a capital crime. The Black Watch can claim a large part of the credit for the continued existence of the bagpipe, for it was the pipers attached to the first independent companies who kept the instrument and its music alive in Scotland.
The Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch are always a popular draw on their tours and have been known to attract crowds upwards of 200,000. | 
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