ON the night the Scottish Parliament paid tribute to all those who died in the First World War serving Scotland, a centenarian has shared images of a roll of honour book which includes five relatives who also fought.
The book was created by Reverend Andrew Hunter of the Kirkton United Free Church in Carluke, South Lanarkshire, who served alongside the troops in France in 1915. He compiled the roll to honour the courage of the 123 church men who served, 23 of whom did not survive.
Included in the roll of honour are the names and photographs of five members of the family of 101-year-old Janie Stewart. Brothers Wilson, Andrew and William Brooks were Stewart’s uncles, while Alexander and Robert Brooks were her cousins. All survived the war and returned to Carluke. Stewart said her prized copy was gifted to her uncle Andrew “in recognition of his service in the Great War”.
Reverend Iain Cunningham, minister of Kirkton Church, said: “The book produced at the end of the First World War is a thoughtful and respectful memorial to the 123 young men from Kirkton who answered the call to serve.
“There can be no doubting the immense courage demonstrated by the people of Carluke, especially by so many young men during those years of conflict.
“Nor should we ever underestimate the enormous price that was paid by the whole community, not only in loss of life, but also in long-term injury, pain and grief.”
At Holyrood, the names of all who died serving Scotland were projected on to the parliament facade.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here