Bridge of Allan Roll of Honour

As we approach the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, attention turns to commemorating the servicemen and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice. New publications appear regularly, containing research into those who fought and died in the service of their country.

 

While this is highly commendable, several members of the Scottish Military Research Group (SMRG) feel this does a disservice to the countless Scots who served just as gallantly and after demobilisation returned home to a thankful family.  

 

We believe that those who returned from the war deserve to be remembered just as much as those who died on a foreign field. Many who survived came home with physical and psychological scars and for some their war did not end with the cessation of hostilities; they carried their wounds with them until the day they died, perhaps decades later.

 

As part of our commitment to remembering all those who served in the First World War we are transcribing and digitally republishing rolls of honour from ninety years ago which list the fallen and the survivors. While the current focus is on First World War rolls the SMRG also intends to republish rolls of honour from other historic conflicts.

 

The Bridge of Allan Roll of Honour 1914-1919 was published shortly after the end of the First World War and is a fascinating record of the service given by the men of one town in Scotland .

 

The roll includes soldiers, sailors and airmen. It mentions those decorated for acts of gallantry and those who died on land, at sea and in the air. There is no rank or class divisions in the list; all men are listed equally from the highly-decorated colonel serving as an Aide-de-Camp to the King, to the humble private who did his own bit in achieving the final victory.

 

This rare out-of-print roll of honour is now available to download from the Scottish Military Research Group by following this link: 

The Bridge of Allan Roll of Honour

April 2011 - That Was The Month That Was

Time for our traditional look at what proved popular with you blog viewers. Here's our rundown of the ten most popular postings for the month of April:

1. Three men in a boat. But is the boat real? Is the water? Are the men themselves fake?
2. Fancy a trip to Kelvingrove? Here's some of what you'll see.
3. A lot of spit and polish goes into a Royal Wedding.
4. If Prince William wants to avoid the fate of the last Earl of Strathern, he'll shut the window at night.
5. Trench art from an interment camp makes our number 5 spot.
6. A Glasgow super-museum. Good idea or bad idea?
7. Fancy dressing up? Join some of this lot then.
8. Crash sites in Scotland are to be surveyed.
9. The second-last battle on British soil.
10. Visiting the KOSB Museum this weekend? No you aren't. Because it won't be open.

And here's a look at the search terms that brought you to our merry little blog.

• earl of strathern
• 1888 civil war painting by robert gibb
• alexander wallace macdonald fort william
• green to the bridge military
• ix legion hadrian's wall
• military parade royal wedding
• Gordon highlanders anglo afghan war
• john mcnay (I'd love to get in touch with whoever this was!)
• michael trubshawe david niven

See you next month!

The Month in Review - March 2011

It's been our best month yet for the number of visitors to the blog so welcome to all our new readers. As usual for our month's review here's a quick summary of the top posts over the past 31 days:

• River of Fire: The Clydebank Blitz. A book Review and Competition


• Highland homecoming for drum hidden during Dunkirk Evacuation


• Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Review


• Rome's IX Legion Hadrian's Wall


• David Niven. Our Who's Who which refuses to go away


• Our Dr Who Who's Who - The Brigadier


• The Auld Alliance. Part I


• The Jacobites leave Fort Augustus


• Alexander Brook - The Story Behind The Name


• 1st Bn Queen's Own Highlanders enter Iraq 1991

And to copy last month's round-up post I'll end with some of the keywords used in search engines which led folk here:

eriskay history, scottish military units, angusshire fulsiliers, hms campbeltown bell, the eagle of the ninth stirling the scotsman, what is it like for scottish soldiers in the military, "lieutenant john young" scotland, anniversary battle of culloden 2011, barracks, bataille bauge, rome's ninth legion, 7th seaforth 6 june 1918, bannockburn battlefield excavation, dumfries volunteers robert burns, scottish military, seaforth highlanders, clydebank new memorial for town blitz dead names

The Month in Review - February 2011

So, what were the most popular topics this month?

1. A Trophy from the RHF Museum is our first Object of the Month
2. The Story Behind the Name - Robert Mavor
3. They named it after him, but HMS Camperdown wouldn't have sounded right
4. The Royal Scots Club completes refurbishment
5. The Canadians are Coming!
6. John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudon and his fairly unglamorous military career
7. Armadale & District Roll of Honour - can we get a link on your site now, Tom?
8. A drum hidden during the retreat to Dunkirk comes home
9. Our New Year video keeps racking up the page visits
10. Scottish Railway staff records at General Register House

And, just for fun, what have people been searching for that lead them to our little blog? Here's the top results:

• cairncross twins
• first world war
• scottish military
• barmoor army camp before flodden
• colin hamilton royal navy
• fife & forfar yeomanry wwi
• fife rifle volunteers
• fort george inverness
• gen wimberley
• s/s politician

The month in review - January

We plan to make a habit of this every month. We're a little late, but here are the most visited posts for the last month.

1. David Niven and how he learned not to be flippant on an application form...
   
2. The Battle of Spion Kop. Allan Lynch was there, and he tells us about it
3. The story of Hector "Fighting Mac" MacDonald
4. The Royal Scots Club completes a refurbishment
5. Alexander 'Alick' Dobree Young-Herries and the memorial to him
6. Robert Mavor - we tell you his story
7. Sir John Moore - there's a pub named after him in Glasgow as well...
8. The story of the Colonels-in-Chief of the Seaforth Highlanders
9. Is the Great War the limit to peoples interest when it comes to research?
10. Happy New Year! Here's a video we made
    

Battle is on to commemorate Flodden on its 500th anniversary

From the Berwickshire News comes an article about plans to commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the Battle of Flodden.

Interest in the 500th anniversary celebrations of the Battle of Flodden in 2013 is beginning to grow and the group leading the project have organised a series of workshops to update people on progress so far and give them the opportunity to add their ideas.

Over the past few months interested groups on both sides of the England/Scotland border have been meeting to discuss raising the profile of the battle area near Branxton on the English side, resulting in plans for an eco-museum - a museum without walls which will connect the built, natural and cultural threads that are part of the Flodden story across Northumberland and the Scottish Borders.

This ‘eco-museum’ will link over 10 physical sites with strong associations with Flodden, including: Flodden Field (battlefield walks, interpretation, website); Norham Castle (besieged before the battle); Etal Castle (besieged/taken in 1513 complete with an exhibition of Border Warfare); Heatherslaw Corn Mill (mill working in 1513), Barmoor Castle (Surrey’s camp); Twizell Bridge (crucial river crossing point for English Army); Ladykirk Church (built by King James IV); Branxton Church (adjacent to the battle-site); Coldstream Museum; Coldstream Priory; Weetwood Bridge (river crossing point) and The Fletcher Monument in Selkirk (Selkirk monument erected in 1913 for the 400th anniversary).

EU Leader funding of £24,265 has been successfully applied for which will allow phase one of the project to get underway - establishing the web portal for the ‘Eco-museum’, signage for the initial sites connected with the battle, leaflets and other information led by project offices Chris Burgess and Jane Warcup.

The project team are also running a series of workshops to inform and encourage local people to get involved in this exciting venture and the quincentenary activities marking the Battle of Flodden in 2013.

The idea behind Flodden Eco Museum is to allow communities, projects, locations and events to retain their individual ownership but to be linked through a single brand, in this case the battle of Flodden and the 500th year commemoration in 2013.

A wide range of organisations from the public, private and voluntary sector (over 70) are already on board, such as the Coldstream 1513 Club, Coldstream Community Council etc and organisers are hoping to attract others who can offer their own perspective when it comes to marking this historical event, as part of a wider project.

The workshops scheduled to start next week will offer advice as to how this will work.

The events, which start at 5.30pm and finish around 7.30pm, will be held in locations across north Northumberland and the Borders:

Workshop dates: February 2, Glendale Gateway Trust, Wooler; February 9, Coldstream Community Centre, Coldstream; February 15, The Collingwood Arms, Cornhill on Tweed, (Cornhill/ Branxton); February 16, Black Bull, Lowick (Lowick/Ford/Barmoor); February 21, Salutation Inn, Shoreswood, Nr Norham (Duns/Ladykirk/Norham); February 22, County Hotel, Selkirk.

At each event project officers, Chris Burgess and Jane Warcup will be joined by other experts offering advice on a range of topics such as: eco-museums; funding sources; marketing and branding; interpretation and IT presentation on web portal (businesses, clubs and organisations); development workshop on new research (archaeology and history).

Coldstream & District History Society member James Bell has written a book on Flodden and has studied it for many years.

Explaining events and their historical importance he said: “The Battle of Flodden, or Branxton Moor as the English chroniclers called it, was the culmination of a short campaign by the Scots after their King, James 1V, declared war on England and its King, Henry VIII. The war became known as the Flodden war.

“At the Boroughmuir, the main Scots army were assembling, said by chroniclers of the time to number 100,000. This seems to be quite exaggerated, as the population of Scotland in 1513 was estimated to be only 500,000.

“Despite protestations from his Queen, James set off for the border, meeting the men of the Borders at Ellemford, just north of Duns.

“On August 21, James held his last Parliament on Scottish soil at Duns and on the 22nd, the Scottish army crossed the Tweed at Coldstream and Lennel.

“By invading England King James had broken the Treaty of Perpetual Peace.

“It is said King James got to within 10ft of Surrey before being killed by one of Surrey’s body guards, who fired an arrow through the King of Scots mouth.

“Around James fell almost the entire nobility of Scotland, and it is said, no household in Scotland did not feel the effects of Flodden. Darkness called a halt to the slaughter.

“Surrey berated his commanders for not winning the fight, however daylight revealed what was left of the Scots’ army had left the field, and the thousands of Scots’ dead, who had been stripped naked, littered the blood soaked ground.”

The Battle of Flodden proved a disaster for the Scots, as well as losing King James IV a whole generation of the country’s nobility was wiped out on Branxton Hill, September 9, 1513, when around 10,000 men lost their lives.

It hastened Scotland’s union with England, leaving the country exposed and leaderless.

Since the early 1950s the dead of both nations are remembered annually during the Flodden ride-out, the main event during Coldstream Civic Week when over 300 horses and riders follow the Coldstreamer and his right and left hand men across Coldstream Bridge and over to Flodden, where they lay a wreath at the Flodden memorial before galloping up Branxton Hill where it has become tradition for an oration to be given about the battle.

James Joicey of Ford & Etal Estates, has been heading the initiators group/steering group since 2008, and initial background work has been done by Peter Lewis, from Newcastle University’s International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies. Now they are widening the project out further as more individuals and groups express an interest in becoming involved.

A new documentary film about the Battle of Flodden is currently underway, as is the the acquisition of what will probably be the UK’s smallest Information Centre!

It is hoped to house the information centre in the old telephone box in Branxton. But while the telephone box may have a traditional appearance it will be high tech inside. The plan is that apps (computer software designed to help the user to perform singular or multiple related specific tasks) will be downloadable from internet access, givieng information about genealogical work and other activities.

Dr. David Caldwell from the National Museums of Scotland has indicated plans for an international conference on Flodden to be held in autumn 2011, possibly in Ford Castle.

World War II Today

Thanks again to the lovely Ronnie Scott, we have another website of interest today.

Using "creative commons" material, this blog follows the course of the Second World War seventy years after it happened.

It features previously unpublished combat reports from those on the front line and diary entries from all affected by the war, and also has some fascinating photographs.

You can also use links at the top of the page to see previous entries, so you can look back on events already seventy years past such as hte Battle of Britain and the evacuation of Dunkirk.

Well worth checking it out: World War II Today.

2010 Review of the Year

As we approach the end of 2010, we decided to look back on some of the projects the Research Group has worked on, and to look forward to what 2011 may bring.

Our primary project, the Scottish War Memorials Project has continued to add new memorials and additional information throughout the year. As time goes by, the number of “new” memorials to be added has diminished, but there is always information to be added, and new memorials do continue to be found. The number of civic memorials added to the project is something we can feel justifiably proud of, and our focus in the future will be to add memorials from other sources such as churches, places of work and school/colleges.

Memorials continue to make news headlines, and a recent story in the Courier newspaper was cause for cautious celebration, as the memorial to the men of Mains, located in Caird Park in Dundee will hopefully undergo restoration and relocation in 2011. The members of the Research Group can feel some small amount of pride in this, as it was our initial discovery of the condition of the memorial, and our highlighting it to both the media and local interested parties were the opening stages of what has proven to be a long and complicated process. Hopefully the end of the tunnel is in sight for this much neglected memorial.

Our War Graves Project also continued this year, with new grave photographs added on a regular basis. I will admit that I personally have let my involvement in this project slip as I have worked on other things, but 201 will see me attempting to take a more active interest in this project.

Several members of the Research Group spent a lot of time and effort this year working with the University of Edinburgh on a website concentrating on the efforts of people from Edinburgh and the Lothians during the First World War. The Edinburgh’s War website went live in October this year and has been a great success. 2011 should see more work on the website – watch this space!

Looking at our own projects, the Roll of Honour for the city of Glasgow has lain dormant for a little while, but only last week we were able to launch the first batch of surnames from the transcription. 2011 will see us continue to work on this, with a hopefully second batch being released in the spring.

Another new project, the indexing of the Daily Record for the Great War, has been progressing well. I have been working on the issues from 1915 and John Houston has been indexing those from 1917. Between the two of us we now have almost 12 months of indexing completed, and next year will see that work continue. To see a glimpse of how the complete index will look, we recently showcased the index for January 1915. We're always looking for people to assist with the indexing - if you think you can help, please get in touch!

This year also saw this blog making more of an impact – when I started it in late 2008 I saw it as a method of getting news, research items of interest, and articles “out there” where they might be of interest. I’d like to think that now we’ve finally got the correct balance of news items and our own articles –long may this continue into next year and beyond. We’re also hoping that next year will see more “guest authors” writing for the blog – got something to say? Let us know and we’ll post it here!

The final new development was the launch of our Facebook page – I’ve been using Facebook for a while now, and it seemed a sensible move to create a page for the SMRG – early days yet, but fingers crossed it can grow into a useful hub for information.

So…that was 2010. I’ve made mention of a few things in store for next year, but who knows what’s round the corner? I hope you’ll stay with us to see what crops up!

Can you identify the uniform?

The above photograph was sent to us by Allysa Carberry, and shows her 2xgreat-grandfather, Major Alexander Coghill. You can click on the picture for a closer view.

She is curious to know what regiment he might have served in, so I thought I would post it up on the blog in the hope someone might be able to help - I'm afraid that uniform identification isn't my forte!

She provided further information which narrow the search down:

"Alexander Coghill, Date of birth 21/02/1838 in Thurso, Scotland, and he died 17/12/1905, Thurso, Scotland.

Alexander married Johanna Swanson on 14/06/1866."

The only thing I can make out is that Alexander Coghill is wearing what appears to be the Volunteer Decoration. Unfortunately, the angle of the cap doesn't show the badge, which would make identification a whole lot easier.

So...any ideas, folks? Any suggestions in either the comments here or by emailing scottishwarmemorials@hotmail.co.uk

Fife Militia database now online

In October last year I made a post about the Fife Military Project. I'm happy to say that they now have a website up and running. Please take a look - it's well worth checking out:

The Fife Military Project website.

(Thanks to Chris Paton for the heads-up!)

The Fife Military History Project

Among the many interesting people I met at the Fife Family History Fair on Saturday was one gentleman who has undertaken a very ambitious but fascinating project. I got hold of a copy of one of his "flyers", and I'm sure he won't mind me reprinting the text here for anyone who might be interested:

Did your Ancestors guard prisoners of war with the Fife Militia, ride in the Fifeshire Yeomanry or join thousands of others in the Volunteers guarding the Fife coast against the French in the Napoleonic Wars?

Did they join the Volunteer movement in the Victorian era and join the Fife Rifle Volunteers, Fife Artillery Volunteers or Fife Light Horse?

Did they join up in the Great War and serve in the 7th (Fife) Royal Highlanders, Fife Royal Garrison Artillery or Fife and Forfar Yeomanry?

The Fife Military Project is an attempt to gather as much information as possible about Fifeshire's Militia, Volunteer and Territorial past and publish a website that will enable their descendants to learn more about them.

To illustrate the kind of information that I am acquiring from archives here is an extract of one of my ancestor's pension documents transcribed from the National Archives in Kew.

"His Majesty's Second Battalion. Royal Regiment Of Artillery. Whereof the Marquis of Anglesey is Colonel.

These are to certify That Sgt Andrew Gordon born in the Parish of Balmerino in or near the town of Balmerino in the County of Fife was enlisted for the aforesaid regiment at Yarmouth in the County of Norfolk on the Twenty third Day of April 1805 at the age of nineteen for unlimited service from the Fifeshire Militia. That he has served for the space ofTwenty two years and two hundred forty four Days, after the age of Eighteen"

"To prevent any improper use being made of this discharge, by its falling into other hands, the following is a Description of the said Andrew Gordon. He is about forty two Years of Age, is 6 Feet, Inches in height, Black Hair, Blue Eyes, Dark Complexion; and by Trade or Occupation a Shoemaker"

My name is Richard Dickens and I've spent the last 7 years researching into Fife's military heritage and I'm hoping you may be able to help with this project.

Please contact me at fifemilitia@googlemail.com if you have any information, items, pictures or documents on relatives who served in the Fife regiments.

I will be ready to bring the Fife Military Project online in the next year starting with a complete database of every soldier who served in the Fife Militia from 1798-1855.

I wish Richard every success with his project, and I look forward to seeing the results of his research. I'll be contacting Richard myself to see what assistance the Scottish Military Research Group can provide.

Welcome

Hello. Welcome. This is the blog of the Scottish Military Research Group.

The Research Group grew out of two projects which have been running for quite some time now.

The first of these, The Scottish War Memorials Project, was started in December 2006, and was a means for individuals with a shared interest in war memorials in Scotland to showcase the photos and information they had. It has grown to cover nearly 90% of al lthe civic memorials in Scotland, together with many hundreds of memorials in churches, schools, and other places.

The Scottish War Graves Project came about a little while later, and follows a similar method, this time covering all military graves in Scotland. We are unique in that we not only cover the burials of the two World wars, but all military graves both before the wars and after.

So what is The Scottish Military Research Group? Well, in a way it isn't really anything at all. It's the name for all the individuals working on these projects, and whatever projects they may do on their own. you might say we're a collective, in that we have no real organisation but we can all rely on the others to assist with research and knowledge. It's a group all working towards similar common goals. There are no membership fees, no committees, no books to balance. We simply help each other out and provide information when another of us might need it. It seems to work fairly well so far.

So why do we have a blog? Well, for various reasons. First among them is to get our name "out there". A little publicity can be useful. We're always looking for new blood, more people who have knowledge of areas we might be deficient in. We're also always looking for new projects to work on, and also volunteers for the projects we have. Our database of war memorials and graves might be getting bigger by the day, but the work goes on, and we always welcome more information on any of the memorials we already have.

Secondly, we thought this might be a good idea to highlight some of the interesting stories and bits of information we come across in our research. It's not uncommon to find a little story that proves to be of interest to others, and we thought it would be good to share these at large.

So...in future postings we hope to bring you some of the things we found in the past. One of our plans is to show just how much information there can be found behind a simple name on a memorial plaque.

We'll also try and highlight stories in the media with a slant towards Scottish military history.

In the meantime, take a look at our existing projects (you'll find links to them above). Feel free to sign up, say hello, and don't be afraid to join in. You'll be assured of a warm welcome.