Princess Royal to unveil battalion's war memorial

From today's Edinburgh Evening News:

The Princess Royal is to visit soldiers in the Capital to unveil a new war memorial.

She will visit The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (1 SCOTS) on Tuesday to take part in the unveiling and dedication ceremony.

The battalion's spokesperson, Major Norrie McKinnon, said: "The memorial was commissioned to commemorate members of 1 SCOTS killed on operations. There are three names on the memorial: Corporal Johnathan Moore, Lance Corporal Joseph Pool and Private Sean McDonald, who were all killed in Afghanistan.

"The memorial is a modern- design Celtic cross. It has been donated by Stancliffe Stone Limited and the Commanding Officer of 1 SCOTS would like to publicly thank them for their generosity.

"The memorial can be moved with the battalion wherever it is based and will serve as a lasting memory to those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice".

602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron - On this day in Scottish Military History - 1925 and 1940

A slightly different On-this-day because it covers two events on the same date, fifteen years apart.

In the mid-1920s it was decided to form an air reserve equivalent to the Territorial Army and Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. It would be called the Auxiliary Air Force and several squadrons would be formed around the UK. The first auxiliary squadron to be raised was No 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron. It was formed at RAF Renfrew on this day in 1925. It was initially equipped with Airco DH9As. The DH9A was an aircraft which had served during the last months of the First World War and was effectively obsolete before it was even sent to 602 squadron.

Another Scottish squadron was raised shortly afterwards; No 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron was formed at RAF Turnhouse on 14th October 1925. Both squadrons went through various aircraft over the next fourteen years; Avro 504Ks, Fairey Fawns, Westland Wapitis, Hawker Harts, Hawker Hinds, Hawker Hectors, Gloster Gauntlets and Gloster Gladiators. Over that time they changed role from light bomber to army co-operation to fighter squadrons.

By late 1939 both squadrons were equipped with Spitfires and were on defensive duties in Scotland. In October 1939 603 squadron intercepted the first German raid against the UK when Luftwaffe JU88s attempted to attack the naval base at Rosyth. 603 were still at their base at RAF Turnhouse and brought down the first German aircraft to fall on British soil. 602 were based at RAF Drem in East Lothian and were also in the air on that day. Shortly after 603 shot down their bomber, 602 claimed their first kill. The Commander-in-Chief of Fighter Command, Air Marshall Sir Hugh Dowding sent a message to the squadrons that night. "Well done. First blood to the Auxiliaries!".

By August 1940 the Battle of Britain was reaching a critical point. The Luftwaffe had switched to bombing London after a raid on Berlin by the RAF. Air Marshall Dowding replaced his tired squadrons in 11 Group in the South of England with squadrons from the Northern Fighter Groups. 602 Sqdn went to RAF Westhampnett in Sussex on 12th August 1940, and 603 Sqdn went to RAF Hornchurch in Essex on 27th August 1940. They were soon in the thick of the fighting and would be for the rest of the battle.

This day seventy one years ago was the turning point of the Battle of Britain. Both squadrons were in action on this day. 602 squadron shot down 10 German aircraft, and 603 Squadron intercepted two Luftwaffe raids, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Germany had launched 1,500 aircraft against London over the day but Luftwaffe losses were so great on 15th September 1940 that two days later Hitler postponed his invasion plan, Operation Sealion, until 1941. Luftwaffe tactics also now changed from day attacks to night bombing.

The Battle of Britain had reached its climax but there was still a lot of hard fighting to be done by both Scottish fighter squadrons over the next five years.

We should also not forget No 612 (County of Aberdeen) Squadron. It was formed at RAF Dyce on 1st June 1937 during a pre-war expansion of the Auxiliary Air Force and soon took on a reconnaissance role. It served throughout the war in the vital but not very glamorous maritime reconnaissance role as part of Coastal Command.

In 1957 all three Scottish reserve squadrons along with all other Royal Auxiliary Air Force squadrons were disbanded.

In 1999 it was decided to reuse the old RAuxAF squadron numbers for non-flying RAF part-time reserve units. No 2 (City of Edinburgh) Maritime Headquarters Unit became 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron. In 2006 the mission support element of the Edinburgh Squadron was split away to form another squadron in Glasgow and No 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron was back on the RAF books after a hiatus of nearly fifty years.

Eighty five years after it was first formed, Glasgow's own is still going strong. It now has an ISTAR (Intelligence Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance) mission support role. In recent years Its members have served at RAF Kinloss and on attachment to RAF units in Iraq, Cyprus and Afghanistan.

Cave Leonem Cruciatum

Beating Retreat at Edinburgh Castle

While today there is still a military presence in Edinburgh Castle, the garrison there is largely for administrative and ceremonial purposes. Beating the Retreat is no longer required to mark the end of a soldier's day at the castle, but the event still place at certain times.

On the 3rd June this year Dennis and Morag White were presnt for the Beating the retreat ceremony which was performed by the Edinburgh Postal Pipe Band and Dancers.

My thanks to Morag and Dennis for the following images and video. For more information, I've also scanned the programme of events, which you can see after the video.

Birth of Haig - On this day in Scottish Military History - 150 years ago

Eighty years after his death Earl Haig still rouses passions about his management of the War. Some see him as Scotland's greatest soldier, others consider him the butcher who killed more Scots than anyone else in history.

We've mentioned him a couple of times before on the blog, here and here.

On this day one hundred and fifty years ago the man destined to rise to the top job in the British Army was born in Edinburgh's New Town.

The One O'Clock Gun is fired at Edinburgh Castle for the first time - On this day in Scottish Military History 1861

At one o'clock eack weekday and Saturdays on Princes Street in Edinburgh a strange thing happens. Locals look at their watches and visitors look up and around them to see where the loud bang came from.

The reason is of course because at the Mills Mount Battery of Ediburgh castle a blank round from a L118 105mm gun has been fired.

The piece of artillery may have changed, and up until fairly recently it was a 25 pdr, but the same ritual has been going on now for 150 years.

On 7th June 1861 the idea of firing a cannon from Edinburgh Castle at exactly the same time a ball dropped from Nelson's Tower on Calton Hill, as a time signal for ships in the Firth of Forth, was first put into practice.

Even though the original purpose may have been overtaken by technological advances the firing is still going strong all these years later. The current District Gunner, who is responsible for firing the gun, is Sergeant Jamie Shannon

The former HMS 'Lochinvar'

News came out yesterday that the marina at Port Edgar at South Queensferry is going to be closed in a few years by the City of Edinburgh Council because they cannot afford to renovate it. This is the latest in a long line of financial worries for the marina because Edinburgh Leisure who run it also have to maintain the just as crumbling Meadowbank Stadium.

For many years Port Edgar was also known as HMS 'Lochinvar' and was home to destroyers and minesweepers from the First World War right up until the Cold War.

The Royal Navy left in 1975 and moved across the Firth of Forth to HMS 'Caledonia' at Rosyth. I doubt if much has been done there since the Navy left and they probably didn't do much since the Second World War.

We'll see if it struggles on but it is also near the proposed site of the new Forth bridge so it is likely to be impacted by that too.

A sad end to a forgotten naval base. There is still a memorial there to remind people of its glorious past though.

The Tynemouth World War 1 Commemoration Project

I don't know if any Scottish town is being as pro-active as Tynemouth in preparing for the 100th anniversary of the Great War?

I know Edinburgh University is working on the Edinburgh's War project in the run up to 2014 but I don't know of any community doing something similar.

See their website here: http://www.tynemouthworldwarone.org/

The Tynemouth World War 1 Commemoration Project

Over the next three years there will be an increasing public focus on the forthcoming centenary of the outbreak of the First World War (4th August, 2014), and thereafter, until 11th November, 2018 (the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice with Germany and the Central Powers), the nation will be reminded, by a series of important anniversary dates of key events, of the sacrifice of the nation, which brought personal loss to almost every family in the land.

The former Borough of Tynemouth marked that loss with a Roll of Honour published in 1923 containing very brief details of the 1700 local residents known to have lost their lives due to causes associated with the war and their service.

The project has been formed with the aim of reminding the population today of that loss and also to explore the social and economic consequences for the town and its inhabitants.

A large-scale research effort is planned in order to expand greatly the biographical information about as many as possible of the names on the Roll of Honour. When as much information as can be traced has been entered into an electronic database the public will have available to them an accessible resource when seeking details of family members who were lost in the War.

A copy of the Roll, sorted by reference to the date of death of the 1700 on the database, will be exhibited widely so that the population today can gain an understanding of the impact of this tragic period in the town’s history.

Proposal for an Edinburgh War Memorial Garden

Michael Blackley in today's Edinburgh Evening News reports on plans from the Council to re-launch their proposal for a war memorial garden for Edinburgh. It would commemorate the servicemen from the City who have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan in recent years...

City leaders are preparing to launch an attempt to revive stalled proposals to create a new memorial to Edinburgh's fallen war heroes.

The city council is to start a fundraising drive to take forward its plans for a garden of remembrance in Princes Street Gardens dedicated to members of the armed forces from Edinburgh.

It is to seek donations from members of the public and private benefactors to revive the scheme, expected to cost at least £500,000.

You can read more here

Alistair Urquhart and Tom Renouf in Edinburgh on May 5th

Blackwells Bookshop on Edinburgh's North Bridge will host a talk by two recently published Scottish Second World War veterans.

Alistair Urquhart wrote "The Forgotten Highlander" about his time as a Gordon Highlander in Malaya in 1941-2 and then as a PoW of the Japanese; and Tom Renouf has written "Black Watch" about his experiences in North-West Europe with a battalion of the 51st Highland Division during 1944-45.

The evening will be chaired by Trevor Royle. It starts at 6:30pm and is only a couple of days away on Thursday 5th May.

The talk is ticketed, but tickets are free. They are available from the front desk at Blackwells.

1914 Hibs - Hearts derby to be recreated at Pozières

From today's Edinburgh Evening News

Hearts and Hibs back at war . . on a French battleground

Published Date: 12 April 2011
By SUE GYFORD

IT was one of the most poignant scenes of Edinburgh's war years - the derby at which the entire Hearts team signed up to serve in the First World War, followed by supporters from both sides.

Now the match at Tynecastle, which gave birth to McCrae's Battalion, is to be re-enacted on the French battlefields.

The event will be at the heart of commemorations at the village of Pozières, close to where the battalion, 16th Royal Scots, fought in the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

For the past five years, the anniversary of the start of the battle, July 1, has been marked by a Son-et-Lumière show at the village, with a different theme each year.

This year's events will honour Edinburgh and the role played by the 16th Royal Scots and their founder and commander, Sir George McCrae.

Jack Alexander is the author of the book McCrae's Battalion, and was part of the group that arranged the creation of the Edinburgh Cairn, a monument to the battalion in nearby Contalmaison in 2004.

He said the re-enactment of the December 1914 derby - which Hearts won 3-1 - would be organised by the authorities in Pozières. The game famously saw Sir George parade the players to encourage others to join.

Mr Alexander said: "This year (the French authorities] have chosen us as their central theme and it's quite an honour. We've worked very hard to make friends with the locals.

"They don't know a great deal about the details of the match, so they've been asking me questions about things like what colour strips, so I'm talking to Hearts and will be talking to Hibs about finding old-style kits. It's going to be the portion of the football match with the reciting of a speech from Sir George.

"A local will make his speech and then people depicting the players and supporters will all join together and enlist together.

"From an Edinburgh point of view, it's something we should be very proud of."

The day will also include a re-enactment of the bravery of Edinburgh Corporation greenkeeper Corporal Michael Kelly, who single-handedly overcame a group of German signalmen.

Mr Alexander said: "The production values are quite spectacular. It's quite a rural area but it's a little bit like one of the re-enactments at Edinburgh Tattoo."

Although the battalion is closely associated with Hearts, Mr Alexander said he was keen to stress the contribution of other teams, including Hibs.

He said: "The heart of the battalion was the Hearts players, but once they made the gesture of joining up they became a footballers' battalion.

"There were substantial contingents from people who followed Hibs, there were Falkirk players, Raith Rovers players, it was a very broad church."

A group from Edinburgh will travel to Pozières by coach for the event and there are still a small number of places available - contact Mr Alexander on 07876 106 509 for further details.

DECEMBER DERBY DAY ROLL CALL

BY December 1914, football players were being criticised for not signing up for the war effort while other young men went off to fight. Lieutenant-Colonel Sir George McCrae announced that he would raise a battalion of men and pledged to fill it within seven days.

At Tynecastle on December 5, during the Edinburgh derby, he paraded the Hearts team members who had already enlisted and gave a speech, inviting anyone else in the stadium who wanted to follow their lead to join the parade. The entire Hearts first team signed up, followed by 500 of their supporters and 150 Hibs supporters. By the end of that day, 980 men had enlisted at the recruiting office in Castle Street.

Sir George commanded the battalion on the Western Front, where it was credited with achieving the deepest penetration of the enemy line anywhere on the battlefront at the Somme. The battalion suffered massive losses, including seven of the Hearts players.

City of Edinburgh War Memorial Vandalised

From today's Scotsman

Outrage as Capital war memorial vandalised

10 March 2011
By LAURA CUMMINGS

A MYSTERY vandal attack which damaged the war memorial outside the City Chambers has been condemned.

The Stone of Remembrance on the Royal Mile was daubed with white paint, along with a nearby wall, in the incident. It is thought to have taken place on Tuesday night or in the early hours of Wednesday but the motive is a mystery.


The city council believes specialist paint was used as a team of dedicated cleaners had to be called in to remove it yesterday afternoon after initial attempts failed in the morning.

Lord Provost George Grubb, who said he had no idea who was responsible, branded the vandalism "disgraceful".

He said: "This memorial was created in memory of those who died in war and it's always been regarded as a sacred spot as far as the city is concerned. It should be treated with great respect.

"This was an act of vandalism which is sad because we gather every Remembrance Sunday to lay wreaths, along with the First Minister and the British Legion. Last year we had a great parade. It's very hard to express in words how one feels."

Councillor Grubb added: "When we left the City Chambers on Tuesday night it was all right, so it must have happened during the night."

The paint has now been removed by water jet, with cleaners set to return today to polish the marble.

The spokesman for the Royal British Legion Scotland, Neil Griffiths, described the vandalism as "totally shocking".

"All vandalism makes your blood boil but the desecration of a war memorial is above that," he said.

"This represents the death of many thousands of Scots and it is the focus of national remembrance. Every year the whole nation gathers around the memorial and this year we have got the Armed Forces Day in June, when again it will be a centrepiece.

"It's an important piece of work for not just the ex- service community, but the whole community. It represents the memory of Scots who died all round the world serving the country since World War One."

A council officer spotted the vandalism at around 7am yesterday and reported it to the local authority.

Councillor Robert Aldridge, the city's environment leader, said: "As soon as this was reported to us, we had a team of experts on hand to remove the graffiti.

It is hard to understand how someone can stoop so low and deface a war memorial for those who gave their lives for this country."

No mention made that this very modest memorial took nine years to build after the First World War. But that story is for another day...

Scottish Railway Staff Records at General Register House

The National Archives of Scotland are due to close their West Search Room in Edinburgh on Friday 25th and before that happens they are moving records to General Register House on Princes Street. Among the records already moved are Scottish railway staff records. This may interest anyone researching names on any of the railway company war memorials in Scotland.

The records of interest would be

First World War

• BR/ CAL/15: Caledonian Railway staff records, 1867-1935
• BR/GNS/15: Great North of Scotland Railway staff records, 1870-1929
• BR/GSW/15:Glasgow and South Western Railway staff records, 1890s-1930s
• BR/HR/15: Highland Railway staff records, 1878-1957
• BR/NBR/15:North British Railway staff records, 1867-1936

Second World War

• BR/LMS/15: London Midland and Scottish Railway staff records, 1924-1948
• BR/LNE/15: London and North Eastern Railway staff records, 1923-1947

We have the five Scottish railway company war memorials on the Scottish War Memorial Project here:



Caledonian Railway, Glasgow

Great North of Scotland Railway, Aberdeen

Glasgow & South West Railway, Ayr

Highland Railway Company, Inverness

North British Railway Company, Edinburgh

We also have two other railway memorials:

Kipp's Locomotive Repair Department, North British Railway

Perth Railway Station Staff

Meet Adam Brown - The SMRG Team

We thought it might be a good idea to publish mini "profiles" of members of the Scottish Military Research Group. That way you get to know a little more about us, what our interests are, and what we're all about. The first "volunteer" is Adam Brown, who some of you may know is one of the administrators of the Group. Together with myself we are responsible for the running of the two main Projects (War Memorials and War Graves) and here Adam explains where his interest in all things military came from.

I am the wrong side of forty and as far back as I can remember I have been interested in military history. It's a long story but I think I can trace it all back to a pack of 1/32nd Airfix British Paratroops given to me when I was about five. I'll not bore you with all the details but thanks to Airfix models, 'Commando' books, and the 'Victor' and 'Battle' comics by the time I was a ten I was daft on the Second World War.

As a teenager my horizons were broadened by 'O' Grade and Higher History topics on the First World War and Nineteenth Century European revolutions and unifications. I also started putting together my own very modest collection of reference books. Growing up in East Sutherland meant any trip to Inverness included a trip to Melven's Bookshop in Union Street which always had a selection of Osprey Men-at-Arms books which were within my pocket money budget.

My student years and the years just after that were not years of plenty so book purchases tended to be from charity shops or car boot sales but it did mean I broadened my horizons further and I would read just about anything on military subjects from the Ancients up until the Falklands and First Gulf war.

That eclectic range of military subjects continues to this day and recent books on my reading pile have included books on Robert the Bruce, the Atlantic Campaign 1939-45, Earl Haig, The Berlin Wall, US Army forts in the 'Wild' West, Maps of Europe 1789 - 1914, and for light relief - Bernard Cornwell's "The Fort". I also subscribe to the BBC History magazine so I've always got a copy of that handy to dip in to.

I can probably trace my interest in war memorials back to the early 1990s. It was then that I first transcribed the names on my local memorial in Brora and started to try and find something about them. I was living 250 miles away from the memorial so I was a regular visitor to the Edinburgh Central Library to pour through old copies of Soldiers Died in the Great War and the CWGC registers. I was young, free and single and living in the Lawnmarket at the time so could visit the library every evening. There was no electronic searches in those days, I just scanned each dusty page looking for a name or a place name. As I came across another local town or place in an entry I would note the name and details down and before I knew it I was researching all the other memorials in Sutherland too. I'm not a genealogist, that doesn't interest me greatly but I am a 'delver'. I like looking through databases and registers and spent many happy hours in the back of the Central Reference Library before home PCs, CD-Roms and the internet changed the way I approached my hobby.

It wasn't just an interest in the names on a memorial though, it was an interest in the memorials as well. Perhaps the statues remind me of the Airfix soldiers from my childhood? Who knows. I guess when it comes down to it like most British males I'm a bit of an anorak but instead of trains or birds I happen to be a war memorial spotter!

The Royal Scots Club completes refurbishment

The Royal Scots Club in Abercromby Place in Edinburgh has recently completed a £1.5 million refurbishment, which was unveiled by the Princess Royal.

The Scotsman has an article about the club and the upgrade which is well worth reading.

With the recent closure of the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) Memorial Club, is this perhaps the only club of its kind in Scotland?

Featured Memorials - St Cuthbert's War Memorial Chapel, Edinburgh

Hidden away, but right in the centre of our Capital is a little gem. After the First World War the congregation of St Cuthbert’s chose to make an old part of the church into a small war memorial chapel and what a magnificent job they did of it.

St Cuthbert’s is worth a visit anyway if you like churches. It’s a fine late nineteenth century Romanesque style church with stained glass and marble frieze in the chancel.

If you ask the helpful volunteers on duty they’ll unlock the chapel doors and let you see it.

There’s no point in going into more detail here because we’ve got loads of photos on the Scottish War Memorials Project.

Success in hunt for family of fallen war hero

A successful follow-up to an article we posted back in November, from the Edinburgh Evening News:

The closest surviving relatives of a soldier killed in a bomb blast in France more than 90 years ago have been traced by Edinburgh historians.

Charles F Fox died on June 6, 1918, on a farm in the village of Fletre in northern France, along with two other Edinburgh soldiers, William Marr Constable and Andrew Scott Greig.

Farm owner Didier Godderis enlisted the help of local historian Yvonne McEwen, honorary fellow at Edinburgh University's Centre for the Study of the Two World Wars, to find out more about the men killed in his barn all those years ago.

Along with her husband Alistair, she managed to find personal details of the soldiers from the 1901 census and from birth records and has now managed to track down members of Edinburgh-born Mr Fox's family.

Gordon McDonald is Mr Fox's great-great-great nephew and was traced by the historians through the website ancestry.co.uk, as Mr McDonald had already been researching his family tree.

He said he had been aware of the existence of Mr Fox, but knew no more than that.

Mr McDonald, a physics teacher at Beath High School in Fife, said: "His closest living relative is actually my mother, who is 84, as my mum's grandmother, Emily Fox, was Charles' sister. My mum can remember her but doesn't remember Charles. I hadn't researched Charles as such as part of the family tree so I hadn't realised he was a war casualty.

"He was born in Bread Street, Edinburgh, but he doesn't seem to have married.

"I was told he was of German descent, which was a bit of a surprise to my mum, but she said it actually explained a lot about her grandmother and some of her mannerisms."

The owner of the farm where the soldiers were killed wants to honour them by organising a memorial service to take place on June 10, 2012 and wants to find all of the families before then so that they can attend the ceremony.

Mr McDonald, 54, said he would love to take his mother out to France for the service.

He added: "I actually visited the war graves of two other relatives, Michael and Peter Owens, before I found out about Charles. It's quite emotional to think that someone you're related to is buried there. I'd love my mum to be able to go to the service because she is the closest relative of Charles that I'm aware of."

Dr McEwen, who has recently launched an online archive called Edinburgh's War, has also been in contact with the family of one of the other soldiers and hopes to be able to find the third family. She said: "Didier is absolutely over the moon that we have found these families.

"They have got all kinds of wonderful things planned for the ceremony, which I will also be attending."

Her husband Alistair, who found Mr McDonald through the family tree website, said it was great to be able to share information with relatives.

He added: "It all came as a huge surprise for Mr McDonald. It gives you a warm feeling inside."

Anyone with information on any of the soldiers can get in touch with Dr McEwen through www.edinburghs-war.ed.ac.uk or on 0131-651 1254.

The SMRG Advent Calendar - Day 15

Today we have a couple of clips.

The first from the 1994 Edinburgh Tattoo.

This was the final appearance at the Tattoo for the Gordon Highlanders as they were amalgamated with the Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforths and Camerons) in 1994.



The second is another performance by the Gordon Highlanders during their farewell concert.

Tributes to One O'Clock Gunner Eddie

From the Edinburgh Evening News. Article by David McCann:

Tributes have been paid to the first man to fire Edinburgh's famous One o'Clock Gun by hand, after he died aged 65.

Edward McCarthy manned the weapon from 1968-72 and was the first district gunner to fire the renowned timepiece manually rather than igniting it the traditional way, using weights and an electrical signal from the Royal Observatory on Blackford Hill.

He died peacefully at home last Monday. Mr McCarthy was a corporal in the T.A. 529 Company of Royal Army Service Corp but was entitled to wear the badge of the Royal Regiment of Artillery during his stint on the Castle ramparts.

Raised in Musselburgh, the former gunner lived in Bonnyrigg with his wife Margaret.

Affectionately known as Eddie, he served as a past chairman of the One o'Clock Gun and Timeball Association and met a host of figureheads as bombardier, including the Duke of Edinburgh.

But it was the thousands of tourists who flocked to the attraction every year that Mr McCarthy most enjoyed meeting. His greatest thrill was being photographed by ordinary people from all over the world.

As an important part of Edinburgh tradition, Mr McCarthy cherished his role as district gunner and never shirked his reponsibilities to be keeping time six days a week, except Sundays, Good Friday and Christmas.

George Robinson, secretary of the One o'Clock Gun Association, said: "Eddie always did his best to promote the tradition of the One o' Clock Gun.

"During his spell as chairman he did his best to keep the peace and guide the organisation forward. Well balanced and down to earth, he was extremely proud of the part he played in the time-gun's long history.

"It's a great pity he will not be present at the 150th anniversary of the One o' Clock Gun in June.

"He will be sadly missed by his friends and his family."

Snow on the Ground...

All this snow reminds me of one of my favourite films 'Tunes of Glory' which was taken from James Kennoway's book. It’s set in a fictitious Scottish castle in winter time. In fact a lot of the exterior shots were filmed in and around Stirling Castle.

Although filmed in the home of the Argylls and the officers are wearing Cameron kilts, the regiment it was based on was the one Kennoway served in just after the war in Edinburgh; 1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders

He had joined the Camerons just after the war but transferred to the Gordons and didn’t enjoy his time in the regiment. You can probably get that vibe from the book and the film.

Coincidentally the writer George MacDonald Fraser also served in the Gordon Highlanders at the same time. First with the 2nd Battalion in Libya, and then with the 1st Battalion in Edinburgh when the two battalions merged in 1948.

MacDonald Fraser did enjoy his time with the regiment though and turned them into the amusing "General Danced at Dawn" trilogy.

His third book "McAuslan in the Rough" deals with his time in Edinburgh at the same time Kennoway was there.

What is fascinating is that in both books, which claim to be of fictional regiments, certain characters in them are quite clearly the same people and must be the men of 1st Bn Gordon Highlanders.

I'd heartily recommend the "General Danced at Dawn" series of books and "Tunes of Glory". If you read them back to back you'll recognise the martinet colonel, RSM, pipe sergeant, adjutant and other characters used by both authors.

Interestingly in the film there is a character Captain Rattray, a dark-haired, thickset officer played by Ricard Leech who is one of the ringleaders in the mess taking Major Sinclair's side against Colonel Barrow. I wonder if that was Kennoway's recollection of McDonald Fraser? Leech certainly has a resemblance to GMF and in his books GMF doesn't seem to care for his new colonel.

Some thoughts on Scottish memorial design

It never ceases to amaze me that decades after the end of the Second World War there are still war memorials being erected to that conflict. The latest to be unveiled was in the Port of Leith on Remembrance day and was closely followed by another memorial to the Merchant Navy just last week.

What makes these memorial unveilings special is the fact they are both very distinctive memorials. They could easily have been traditional designs but in both cases they have taken a standard format and given it a twist. The first to be unveiled was the Leith Academy WW2 memorial. Here the list of names follows a rational style but the way it is displayed is distinctive. The names are inscribed on a glass panel and behind that is a stylized map of the British Isles where the land is made to look like the zigzag camouflage applied to ships during the war.

It really is quite a stunning memorial and what makes it even more impressive is that most of the work was done by Leith Academy pupils. The driving force behind it was pupil Glynn Mullen who compiled the list of names; four art pupils designed it and technical pupils made it. It is a credit to them and their school.

The second memorial unveiled was the Merchant Navy memorial. I already posted about the unveiling last week but what I didn't mention was the memorial itself, and what a cracker it is. The artist responsible is Jill Watson. Her latest work takes a traditional memorial obelisk but adds so much detail it makes it unique in Scotland. Earlier commissions of hers such as the Eyemouth Fishing Disaster memorial used small figurines for effect and she has taken this a step further in her latest, and biggest, work.

Between them these two Leith memorials have raised the bar for Scottish war memorial design. Here's hoping future designers look to Leith for inspiration and come up with something new and thought provoking and not just the usual scaled up gravestones or stainless steel plaques which we have seen of late.