Tag: Royal Scots Museum

Remembrance 23 – Connecting People, The Royal Scots and Dalkeith Palace

Royal Scots Remembrance Exhibition at Dalkeith Palace

From today, Saturday 4 to Wednesday 8 November 2023, The Royal Scots Museum, Edinburgh Castle, are bringing Remembrance 23, a free interactive exhibition, to Dalkeith Palace.  

This temporary exhibition has been specially designed to promote the strong connections between The Royal Scots (373 unbroken years of service – 1633 to 2006), the local regiment for Midlothian, and Dalkeith Palace, as well as the continuing relevance of Remembrance today.

The exhibition curators are especially keen to engage with the wide-ranging community of Midlothian by including fascinating military stories from soldiers from Edinburgh, the Lothians and Peebleshire, the heart of the old regimental recruiting area, that will appeal to visitors of all ages.  

8 RS take a ditch on the Moortdyjke Road and consolidate the position, 3rd November 1944.

Two of these stories, that have already created local interest, are from Lance Corporal Peter Burnett and Private Andrew Cornwall, 2 Battalion, The Royal Scots.  Their story focuses on the tragic sinking of the Japanese troop ship Lisbon Maru, sunk in the South China Sea on 01 October 1942.  Of the 1816 Prisoners of War aboard 828 perished, 183 of whom were Royal Scots.

After a recent appeal to the Midlothian community for information about Lance Corporal Peter Burnett and Private Andrew Cornwall, a living relative has been found and will attend the exhibition.  

The exhibition also includes living history films featuring former Royal Scots talking about their time in the regiment.  In one video, Rob Wainwright, one-time Medical Officer to the 1st Battalion, a former Captain of the Scottish rugby team, and capped for the British Lions, gives his take on serving in the armed forces and the impact of warfare on those who serve.  

Videos are available on YouTube: ttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6Wj9U1GMbA78Qg-bCfhhJg/videos?view_as=subscriber

Remembrance 23 will provide an opportunity to:

·       Visit Dalkeith Palace.

·       Explore the connections between Midlothian people, The Royal Scots and Dalkeith Palace.

·       Learn about the history of the local Regiment and remember why We Should Never Forget.

·       Watch Living History films. 

·       View displays and objects.

·       Research local veterans and medals.

·       Explore the history of The Royals Scots during the Boer War and the two World Wars.

·       Understand the continuing relevance of Remembrance.

The proud heritage and privilege of being Right of the Line has been taken forward by successors to The Royal Scots: The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

Remembrance 23 tickets are free but need to be booked online:

https://www.dalkeithcountrypark.co.uk/event/remembrance-2023/

Keeping history alive for future generations

Family honour Victoria Cross recipient at The Royal Scots Museum, Edinburgh Castle

On Monday (18 September 2023), the Royal Scots Regimental Museum in Edinburgh Castle was delighted to welcome Mr Brian Gaskin and his family from Ontario, Canada. 

They came to view the Victoria Cross which Brian’s grandfather, Private (Pte) Henry H. Robson, originally from South Shields, had won for an act of “most conspicuous bravery” in December 1914, when aged 20, whilst serving with the Regiment in Flanders.

For Mr Gaskin, his family’s trip to Scotland has a deeper resonance. As a fourteen-year-old boy in 1965, Brian had been present at the ceremony when, after Pte Robson had passed away, his family had presented his Victoria Cross to the Royal Scots Museum. 

Mr Gaskin has now returned with his wife, Jane, his son Kevin and grandson Luke to “visit the museum and medals and keep the history alive”.

Pte Robson was a regular soldier in the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Scots, which had deployed to Belgium in August 1914 as part of the British Expeditionary Force that was sent to prevent the German advance. 

The Battalion took part in a number of significant actions as the war ebbed and flowed that autumn before an attack near Kemmel on 14 December.  Badly wounded during the action for which he received the award, Pte Robson survived the war and emigrated to Canada where he raised a family.

Pte Robson was presented with his Victoria Cross by King George V and Queen Mary at Buckingham Place on 12 July 1915.  

The official citation reads: “Private H. H. Robson. 2nd Battalion The Royal Scots. For most conspicuous bravery near Kemmel on the 14 December 1914, during an attack on the German position, when he left his trench under a very heavy fire and rescued a wounded non-commissioned officer, and subsequently for making an attempt to bring another wounded man into cover, whilst exposed to a severe fire. In this attempt he was at once wounded, but persevered in his efforts, until rendered helpless by being shot a second time.“

For Pte Robson’s great great grandson, Luke Gaskin, a first visit to Scotland was a wonderful opportunity not just to see the medal, tangible evidence of his family’s history, but to see its place in wider Regimental history and how that story continues to be told today.

Lt Colonel Gordon Rae, Chairman of The Royal Scots’ Museum and Heritage Committee, presented the Gaskin family with a copy of “Pontius Pilate’s Bodyguard”, the Regiment’s three volume history, as a memento of their visit showing the bond between the Regiment and the family. 

Lt Colonel Gordon Rae said: “It was a great honour to host three generations of Private Robson’s family at the Regimental Museum today.”

PICTURES: Malcolm Ross

Surprised resident marches the ramparts 79 years on

Alex Laird, a resident at Strachan House, can always be heard telling his stories of his days in the military, so staff at the home made those memories come back to life with a trip to Edinburgh Castle.

Alex has lived at Strachan House for a short time. Staff and residents love his stories of his days gone by serving in the Army. Alex started his military career in 1944 when he joined the Royal Scots Regiment. Shortly after in 1945 he got to volunteer serving with the Indian army in the 15th Punjab Regiment and is often heard telling others about his wonderful adventures as well as his cheeky antics he got up to.

One story that he shares is of when the war ended: “I was protecting the Bay of Bengal when we heard news the war had ended. With no TV, radio or newspapers I learnt over our comms system that the Germans had surrender some 24 hours beforehand.

“I remember looking at my watch it said 7am and thinking: that’s it, the wars over and at least for my friends their fight has ended. That same evening as darkness fell upon us I have vivid memories of me and my comrades singing in celebration, only to wake up the next morning to the sound of shelling as we continued our mission to protect the bay.”

Staff at the home saw how Alex was passionate of all things military and how proud he was to of served in the war, so staff wanted to ensure his heroic past was recognised .

The Royal Scots Museum houses an array of paintings, artefacts and medals from the formation of the regiment to its present day. So for Alex it was a real walk down the castle cobbled memory lane as he immersed himself in all the history that surrounded him with his visit to the castle.

In response to this wonderful surprise Alex said: “It was so touching to know my efforts during the war were appreciated. It is such an amazing feeling to know that staff recognised what was so important to me and cared enough to spring this surprise on me.

“What an incredible afternoon I had. It truly meant a lot to me.“

Gordon Philp, General Manager at the home, said: “We want everyone we care for to know how important they are to us here at Strachan House

“It was so nice to see how happy Alex was – and to be able to say thank you for everything he done for his country all those years ago.”

Strachan House care home is run by Barchester Healthcare, one of the UK’s largest care providers, which is committed to delivering personalised care across its care homes and hospitals. Strachan House provides residential care, nursing care and dementia care for 83 residents from respite care to long term stays.