Black Watch Museum

Overview

Tickets can be pre-booked via the Black Watch Museum website

The Black Watch Regimental Museum is housed in Balhousie Castle in a suburb of Perth and has recently undergone refurbishment.  This museum takes you through the history of the oldest Highland Regiment with a range of exhibits and artifacts that tell the story of the regiment from the Napoleonic Wars right up to the recent conflicts in Iraq.

The Black Watch Museum is a traditional museum, but it is very good for anyone with an interest in the military. You can see some very fragile old flags that date back to the Napoleonic and Crimean wars. As you would expect, there are displays of the evolution of the Regimental uniforms and lots of examples of the weapons used by the regiment or captured from their enemies.

It's not a museum that will keep young children entertained but it will have some interest and value for children learning about the Napoleonic or World Wars. One thing that will capture the attention of most kids, is the life-size Lego brick model of a kilted Black Watch soldier in full Highland dress. Children will probably also enjoy getting their hands on some of the rifles that are displayed so that they can be lifted to let you appreciate how heavy they would have been to wield in battle.

Visitors should take time to read the interesting stories about the various items on display, such as a bible that stopped a bullet in WWI. Also, look out for the brutal weapons improvised for hand-to-hand fighting in the trenches of World War 1 and the early designs of gas masks. It's horrific to imagine what soldiers had to endure during those dark days of history.

We must also make mention of the lovely cafe and gift shop at the museum. We often call in here for coffee and cake when we are passing through Perth.

The Black Watch Museum is signposted from the main A85 / A989 roads through Perth city centre, but we recommend that you use your Sat-Nav to find the museum as it is in a back street residential area overlooking the open parkland of the North Inch.