The Royal Scots was first in order of precedence of the foot regiments. The subject of the regiment's origins was as vexed as its nickname 'Pontius Pilate's Bodyguard' suggests. Major Wetherall claimed to be citing received opinion when he stated that the regiment was formed from the bodyguards of the Scottish kings and 'formed a part of the 7000 auxiliaries sent to France in 1420'. More probably the regiment can be traced back to 1633 when Charles I authorised Sir John Hepburn, who had attended his Scottish coronation, to raise a regiment for French service. On 28th March 1633 Hepburn obtained a warrant from the Privy Council in Scotland and the regiment dates its seniority from then. Paterson, its most recent historian, explained this by writing, 'while the regiment was paid by the French and formed part of