Lanarkshire Philatelic Society

 

"Scottish War Memorials"

 

Miss Elsie Miller

 

 

It was a timely display at the Lanarkshire Philatelic Society meeting on Friday evening (16th Nov.) when our Press Officer, Elsie Miller, presented "Scottish War Memorials".

 

She began by informing members that at the beginning of the First World War bodies of the Fallen were brought back to this country and laid out in the depths of Glasgow Central Station where relatives came to identify them and remove them.

 

However, once the numbers of the Fallen rose – and many buried where they fell – this was stopped and thereafter no bodies were permitted to be brought home. This left relatives at home in deep grief – and the thus the building of War Memorials became the focal point of remembrance of the Fallen.

 

Many postcards illustrated the many different styles of memorials – many sculptures of soldiers – and of sailors – obelisks; archways; gateways; Celtic Crosses; cairns; clock towers; Mercat crosses; Pillars – some with a broken top indicating ‘life cut short’; cenotaphs; some with lions atop; one with a unicorn; boulders (– see Blair Atholl); Allegorical figures of Victory - also Memorial Halls and, at Leith – the Children’s Ward of the Hospital was the War Memorial. At Skelmorlie the Craig War Memorial Home was bought as a Convalescent Home for War veterans of the Colville Group of steel companies.

 

Quotations – many from famous poets – Burns; Browning; Longfellow; Shakespeare; Bunyan; Milton; Binyon – and also some 28 different Biblical texts. 

 

Some postcards showing plaques and walls added to mark the Second World War – and various postcards showing what has happened to some Memorials through the years – especially with many having had to be moved to allow new road alignments - Irvine originally built in the middle of the High Street!

 

Finally, it was mentioned that there are very few women named on WW1 memorials – but each of Greengairs, Gartcosh and Cupar name 1 woman (all different) and the Roll of Honour for Cambuslang names another 2 – and these all died together (with 4 others from England) – by a German Air bomb on their protection trench 30th May 1918 and are buried in a row of 9 graves in the Abbeville Commonwealth Extension Cemetery in France.

 

Derek Wiltshire led members in giving warm thanks to Elsie Miller for presenting an interesting, and informative, display.

 

Our next meeting in the Caledonian Bowling Club, Motherwell Road, Hamilton, is on Friday, 30th November, 2018, at 7:30pm when members look forward to welcoming Mr. Alan Blakeley who will present his display of "Temperance" and "Maritime Provinces". 

Anyone with an interest in stamps, postal history, postcards etc is very welcome to attend.