WHILST it was saddening to read of the death of the iconic hero Ian Hamilton, liberator of The Lia Fal, or fake-of-a-fake Coronation Stane, it was heartening to read of the tributes by our First Minster and Stewart Hamilton, who told The National his late father lived a good life and should be known for his many other interests and achievements.
Nevertheless, he will best be remembered for his part in the liberation of the Stane. He well knew that Edward I sent his men back a few months late to ravage the area and find the real Stane. Ian and his compatriots at first thought they had broken it when they dragged it through the Abbey on a trench coat. They later learned that it had been blown up by the Suffragettes.
When Baillie Bertie Grey and stonemason repaired it, he reiterated that the real stone was recorded in all the annals as being from a meteorite and of black creosote with runic markings and that the Perthshire sandstone substitute could not have possibly been “Jacob’s Pillow” that saw ladders ascend to heaven. Nor could the Perthshire lavvy lid possibly have come from Ireland, let alone the Near East, the Holy Land and up through Egypt and brought by Queen Scotia and her Celtic mercenaries through the Iberian Straits to Kerry and used to crown the ancient Scottish kings from Ireland on their journey to Dunadd in Argyll and to the Pictish capital of Scone, where the kings and queens of Scots continued to be crowned.
READ MORE: Stone of Destiny liberator Ian Hamilton dies aged 97
Apart from ancient myth and fact, the most relevant and important issue of today is that King Cherlie will be crowned on a fake-of-a-fake Perthshire stane. When Bertie repaired the Stane and re-joined it with a hollow tube, he inserted this message in the tube: “March 1951. Stone of destiny. This Stone belongs to Scotland. It was stolen by Edward I of England in 1296. The Church of England should be ashamed to admit that they allowed this piece of stolen property to remain in Westminster Abbey from that time. It must be returned to Scotland for the reopening of the Scottish Parliament which was never closed in 1707.”
We must be grateful to Ian Hamilton and all those who played their part in this daring but peaceful escapade that so fired the Scottish nation and inspired so many anti-imperialists worldwide. Songs of the “Wee Magic Stane” were kept alive by the late Morris Blythman, aka Thurso Berwick, and Jim McLean who is still pounding them out.
Donald Anderson
Glasgow
I WAS saddened to hear of the passing of a great Scot Ian Hamilton, one of the group who repatriated the Stone of Destiny in 1950.
A perhaps surprising fact was that one of the participants in the enterprise was in fact an Englishman. Even more surprising was the treatment of the perpetrators of the momentous deed.
No imprisonments, no fines, in short no punishments whatsoever for the most audacious, symbolic strike at the heart of the British state by Scots in modern times.
READ MORE: The Stone of Destiny does not need a road trip to London
Merely an example of “Anglo British magnanimity” you say? I don’t think so, and would suggest that Westminster had learned from the 1916 Irish Uprising and determined that there would be no Scottish martyrs.
Thus the repatriation of “the Stone” was successfully swept under the British state’s bulging carpet, to the extent that most of our population have probably barely heard of the event.
I believe that in most countries an exploit such as that carried out by Ian and his group would have resulted in their names being celebrated in the nation’s songs and stories for evermore.
However, this is Scotland, so I would merely like, as a Scot, to say to Ian, Kay, Gavin, Bill, Johnny and Alan: RIP and thanks.
Malcolm Cordell
Dundee
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