Highlanders were soldiers from the Scottish Highlands who served in the militaries such as the British Army, France's Gardes Écossaises, Australia's "kilted companies", Canada's sixteen Canadian-Scottish regiments (such as the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Princess Louise's)), the New Zealand Scottish Regiment, South Africa's Cape Town Highlanders and a few other reserve units, and the US Army's 12th Illinois Infantry Regiment and 79th New York Infantry Regiment.
The Highlanders were clansmen warriors and soldiers from the highlands of Scotland. A group of Highlanders raised in 1745 under the banner of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, also known as Bonnie Prince Charles or the Young Pretender, fought against English royalist armies with the goal of restoring the Scottish line of kings (the Stuarts) to the throne of England. They were ultimately unsuccessful and many highlanders scattered to mainland Europe and America to escape the ruthless oppression of the Scottish Highlands. In their new homes, regiments of these Scotsmen fought as part of other armies.
Highlanders carried swords, daggers and rifles. They wore kilts, bonnets (a seamless and brimless woolen cap typically with a strip of tartan around the headband) and double-breasted coats.