Scotland`s War Memorials
Perth & Kinross-shire
I have a large collection of War Memorial images, both in the UK and abroad and this section is due to be revamped with memorials listed in their respective regional locations etc*
Aberfeldy
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The small, bustling Perthshire town of Aberfeldy stands on the south side of the River Tay, surrounded by magnificent scenery. It sits at the point where the high-level road south to Crieff meets the east-west road along the Tay valley, a strategically important location in earlier times.
Despite its rural situation, Aberfeldy was home to productive industries such as cotton milling, whisky distillation and in more recent times, machine tools. Fortunately for lovers of Scotland`s national drink, the local distillery is still in full flow. 
Aberfeldy's Tay Bridge, also known as `General Wade's Bridge`, was built as part of the network of military roads constructed by General George Wade following the 1715 Jacobite uprising. The bridge, designed by William Adam, father of the rather better-known Robert Adam, was completed in 1733. It has been remarkably well-preserved and is still used by motor traffic.
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Overlooking the river and bridge, and with fine views north west to the Glen Lyon and Ben Lawers mountains is the Black Watch Monument. It was erected in 1887 and stands near the spot where, in May 1740, the Black Watch first mustered as a regular army regiment of the line.
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Castle Menzies lies close to the River Tay, just north-west of Aberfeldy. Menzies is the ancestral seat of Clan Menzies who relocated here after their original castle at Comrie was destroyed by fire in 1487. The then clan chief, Sir Robert Menzies built his new stronghold, known as Weem Castle or Place of Weem, close to where the present castle now stands. In 1502 Neil Stewart of Garth attacked and destroyed the castle, threw Sir Robert into a dungeon and forced him to sign over much of the Menzies lands. The current castle was built in the sixteenth-century and is a fine example of an altered and extended tower house.
In the 1715 Rising it was captured by the Jacobites and during the '45, on his long retreat from Derby, Prince Charles Edward Stuart, `Bonnie Prince Charlie`, spent two nights here before continuing north to his defeat at Culloden (right) in April 1746. |
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The Duke of Cumberland's forces, not far behind, arrived at Castle Menzies just four days later and when they found that the occupants had sheltered the prince the Hanoverian troops evicted them and took over the castle. In addition to `Bonnie Prince Charlie`, another noteworthy temporary resident was Maharaja Dalip Singh, the last Maharajah of the Sikh Empire, who lived at Castle Menzies between 1855 and 1858, following his exile from the Punjab in 1854. After the last of the Menzies line died in 1918 the castle changed hands several times until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 when it was used as a medical supply depot by the Polish Army. When hostilities ended the troops moved out and the castle fell into disrepair. It has since been restored by the Clan Menzies Society and is usually open to the public between Easter and mid-October.
Blairgowrie
Although most often referred to as the Blairgowrie War Memorial, its official title is the `Parishes of Blairgowrie & Rattray War Memorial. It stands in the town`s Wellmeadow and was unveiled on Sunday 21 June 1921 and honours the 175 men from the district who lost their lives during the Great War (1914-1918). The memorial consists of a mature Scottish soldier, dressed in a regulation trench coat, standing with his head bowed while resting his hands on the butt of his rifle, the tip of which is resting on his boots. The stepped stone base has a square plinth bearing plaques which contain the names of the dead with a sculpted cross, the dates `1914-1919` and wreath above. A tall circular column rises from the centre of the structure.
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Alexander Carrick was one of Scotland’s greatest ever monumental sculptors and was responsible for numerous war memorials, not only in the UK but also overseas. Unlike most other sculptors, Carrick actually served during the Great War as an artilleryman on the Western Front and witnessed the horrors of life and death in the trenches first hand. Additional detailed information on his career and other works can be found on this dedicated website: www.alexandercarricksculptor.co.uk.
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Carrick was born in Musselburgh, near Edinburgh, and in 1897 he became an apprentice stonemason, working under Birnie Rhind, who was a respected monumental sculptor of the time. Carrick went on to study at Edinburgh College of Art and later became head of sculpture there. During the Great War Carrick served for three years in the Royal Garrison Artillery, an arm of the Royal Artillery, and saw action on the Western Front. His experiences appear to have had a large influence on many of his works.
Two men from the district lost their lives in the Korean War (1950-1953).
At the end of the conflict he returned to Edinburgh and shortly thereafter received his first commission to create a war memorial for Lochawe (LINK)* which stands at the entrance to Saint Conan's Kirk. Other examples of Carrick`s work can be found inside that church and at various locations, not only in Scotland and England but also in South Africa. He was also a great influence on sculptors that followed.
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Additional images and information can be found on my blog, Clydeside Images.com. Further War Memorial and Military History content, not exclusively relating to Scotland, may also feature in the galleries of individual countries on this site. Also, check out my Stock Photography Archive for even more shots.
The countryside surrounding Blairgowrie, which lies about 20 miles from Perth, was an ideal training area. During the Second World War, numerous regiments including the Coldtream Guards, Grenadier Guards, Scots and Welsh Guards forming the 201st Guards Brigade, which was part of the Guards Armoured Division, were billeted in the town or dotted around its outskirts. A large camp, one of many, was constructed beside the old mill on the banks of the River Blair for example. Anti-tank gun courses were held at a range near Coupar Angus, about 6 miles away, during which crews trained with live ammunition and used their 6-pounders to blast away at various targets including an old US Honey light tank (M3 Stuart). These Churchill Mark II tanks of the 65th Battalion, 16th Tank Brigade (1st Polish Corps) were lined up at Blairgowrie, on 11 December 1941 for inspection by Major General L. H. Williams, the Director of Wartime Stores. |
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Bruar
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This fine memorial stands next to the House of Bruar car park, overlooking the main A9 Perth to Inverness road near Blair Atholl. The bronze figure is by Alan Herriot who also sculpted the Highland Division Monument situated on the North Inch of Perth.
Originally the Highland Division was a formation of the Territorial Force, created as a result of reforms to the army carried out in 1908 under the Secretary of State for War. The division's insignia was a stylised 'HD' inside a red circle. During the Great War, following initial `teething problems` the division`s reputation as fierce kilted warriors quickly grew to such an extent that the Germans named them `The Ladies from Hell`. The Highlanders of the 51st were considered a leading assault division and were tasked with capturing some of the Western Front`s most heavily defended objectives including Beaumont Hamel and High Wood on the Somme and others at Ypres. |
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This painting by John Bulloch Soutar, on display at the Scottish National War Museum (LINK)*, is of an unknown Black Watch officer and was painted in 1925. His medals suggest that he served during the First World War. Black Watch battalions formed part of the 51st in both World Wars.
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By chance the Army were putting the finishing touches to the memorial when I stopped at Bruar several years ago. The piper figure featured is from the Second World War.
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At the outbreak of the Second World War the 51st Division formed part of the British Expeditionary Force (B.E.F.) but with the capture of two of its brigades in France in 1940 the division effectively ceased to exist.
The 9th (Highland) Infantry Division was renumbered as the 51st and subsequently served in the North African campaign, which included action at the Battle of El Alamein in 1942. This painting by Ian Eadie, also on display at the Scottish National War Museum, shows the commanding officer of the 51st pointing out enemy strongpoints and minefields just before the division attacked. To aid recognition in the featureless desert landscape, each battalion was given objectives identified by code-names which referred to Scottish place names in its home recruiting area. The Allied victory at El Alamein was a significant step in the defeat of Rommel`s Afrika Corps and ultimately Hitler`s Germany. |
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From North Africa the 51st Division went to Sicily then Italy before returning to the UK in preparation for the Normandy landings. It landed in France on 7 June 1944 and ended the war in the Bremerhaven area of Northern Germany having suffered a total of 19,500 battle casualties.
`A Tribute to the achievements and sacrifices of all units of the 51st Highland Division and to the glorious story of our Highland Regiments`. Five Highland regiments are commemorated on the memorial which was unveiled on Saturday 7 October 2006 - the Gordons, the Camerons, the Argylls, the Seaforths and The Black Watch. `On the day of Battle, Friends are good`. (to edit)*
`A Tribute to the achievements and sacrifices of all units of the 51st Highland Division and to the glorious story of our Highland Regiments`. Five Highland regiments are commemorated on the memorial which was unveiled on Saturday 7 October 2006 - the Gordons, the Camerons, the Argylls, the Seaforths and The Black Watch. `On the day of Battle, Friends are good`. (to edit)*
Doune
This statue of Colonel Sir Archibald David Stirling, DSO, OBE, (15.11.1915 – 04.11.1990) stands near his place of birth outside Doune in rural Perthshire. The memorial to Stirling was unveiled in 2002. (to edit*)
Son of a Brigadier General, Stirling was a tall athletic figure, extremely fit and always up for a challenge. He was commissioned into the Scots Guards in 1937 and when war broke out he was training to climb Mount Everest. He joined an early Commando Unit in 1940 and immediately realised the potential of a small, well organised, hard-hitting force operating behind enemy lines. Despite initial setbacks the SAS (Special Air Service) went on to achieve many successes in the North African desert, often using specially adapted Jeeps of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) to assault enemy airfields and shoot up parked aircraft rather than physically attaching bombs to each one.
In January 1943 Stirling was captured by the Germans but soon escaped. He was then re-captured by the Italians, who passed him back to the Germans but he escaped a further four times before being transferred to Colditz Castle where he saw out the rest of the war.
Son of a Brigadier General, Stirling was a tall athletic figure, extremely fit and always up for a challenge. He was commissioned into the Scots Guards in 1937 and when war broke out he was training to climb Mount Everest. He joined an early Commando Unit in 1940 and immediately realised the potential of a small, well organised, hard-hitting force operating behind enemy lines. Despite initial setbacks the SAS (Special Air Service) went on to achieve many successes in the North African desert, often using specially adapted Jeeps of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) to assault enemy airfields and shoot up parked aircraft rather than physically attaching bombs to each one.
In January 1943 Stirling was captured by the Germans but soon escaped. He was then re-captured by the Italians, who passed him back to the Germans but he escaped a further four times before being transferred to Colditz Castle where he saw out the rest of the war.
Dunning
The historic Perthshire village of Dunning is home to St Serf`s Church which is signposted from the A9 Stirling to Perth road and well worth a look. The church dates from around 1200 and is home to the Dupplin Cross, an acclaimed masterpiece of Pictish sculpture, carved around 800AD. The cross, crafted from a single block of red sandstone, is one of only a few complete, free-standing medieval crosses that survive in Scotland.
The church is currently under the care of Historic Scotland and is normally only open to the public between April and September when there is usually a knowledgeable guide on hand to provide background information and answer any questions relating to the church`s history. Admission is free but donations are always welcome.
The site of the church was chosen because of its association with St Serf, an early Christian missionary. The church tower is thought to be relatively unchanged since it was constructed, apart from the addition of the four clocks, one on each face. Although fairly small, the church has a number of impressive stained glass windows, most of which were installed between 1895 and 1907.
The church is currently under the care of Historic Scotland and is normally only open to the public between April and September when there is usually a knowledgeable guide on hand to provide background information and answer any questions relating to the church`s history. Admission is free but donations are always welcome.
The site of the church was chosen because of its association with St Serf, an early Christian missionary. The church tower is thought to be relatively unchanged since it was constructed, apart from the addition of the four clocks, one on each face. Although fairly small, the church has a number of impressive stained glass windows, most of which were installed between 1895 and 1907.
The churchyard is also worth exploring as there are a number of unusual gravestones, many from the 17th and 18th centuries. The earliest stone, marking the grave of a Thomas Rutherford, dates from 1623. In addition to the standard headstones is this military grave from the First World War. Surprisingly, it commemorates an Australian infantryman, Lance Corporal W.L. Crowe, who died on 6 July 1918, aged 24. I don`t know why he came to be buried in the Perthshire churchyard and can only assume that he was being treated at a military hospital in the area.
Spittal of Glenshee
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The Spittal of Glenshee is a small settlement at the head of Glenshee in the highlands of eastern Perth and Kinross where the confluence of many small streams flowing south out of the Grampians form the Shee Water. The A93 trunk road from Blairgowrie winds its way north to Braemar, passing the Glenshee Ski Centre. For centuries, there has been a hostel or inn at the Spittal and, in modern times, the small village has become a centre for travel, tourism and winter sports.
Glenshee Parish Church was built in 1822 and sits in a scenic location at the foot of Ben Gulabin (806m). This Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) headstone in the kirkyard marks the last resting place of No. 2757488 Private J. Grewar of the Black Watch who lost his life during the Second World War on 6 March 1943, aged 35. It also records the fact that his brother Andrew was killed in Malaya on 7 January 1942, age 31.
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Very close to the church is a stone bridge (above) built under the supervision of Major Caulfield as part of the 18th century military road building project. These roads, conceived by General Wade in 1725, were constructed in response to the threat of Jacobite rebellion and were intended to enable quick and easy movement of British troops to quell any sign of unrest. The roads, however, proved just as useful to the Highlanders as the Hanoverian troops who built them.