Remembrance – Dunkeld and Birnam
The first armistice day or Remembrance Day as we now know it was the 11th of November 1918. This was an agreement for peace that brought an end to the First World War (which was known as the great war at this time). The ceasefire began at 11am which is why a two minute silence is now held on the 11th of November at 11am to remember those soldiers who lost their lives in the wars.
110 years on since the start of the first world war, our exhibition for this year focuses on local people who served in the armed forces. Please take a moment to read their stories and remember them.
First World War
Alexander Stewart
This medallion was sent to the next of kin for Alexander Stewart born in 1892 in Dunkeld. Originally a member of the Scottish Horse regiment, enlisting in September 1914, he later transferred to the Royal Army Medical Corps. Through our records we can see his promotions prior to his transfer. Alexander Stewart was promoted to lance Corporal by 1915 and corporal by 1916.
Alexander Stewart sadly died on the 15th of April 1917. By tracing his memorial we were able to discover more about his passing to expand on the original message sent to his next of kin which state he was “lost at sea”.
Alexander was travelling on the HMT Arcadian from Salonica (now Thessaloniki) when the ship was hit with a singular torpedo which caused it to sink within six minutes. There were around 1300 individuals on board and 279 lives were lost in the sinking. Those who perished have been remembered in the memorial in the British Military cemetery in Mikra, Greece.
Dead Man’s Penny – Alexander Stewart
Photograph taken of the HMT Arcadian as she sank.
Memorial in Mikra, Greece.
Known as the “Dead man’s penny” due to their resemblance to the reverse of the standard penny at the time in the United Kingdom, these memorial plaques were sent to the next of kin of those who died during the conflict in World War one. 1,355,000 were medallions were issued, made from 450 tons of bronze. No rank was stated, because there was no distinction made between the sacrifice of individuals. The medallions were personalised with each service man or woman’s name.
The design features the figure of Britannia facing to her left and holding a laurel wreath in her left hand. In her right hand she is holding a trident. In representation of Britain’s sea power there are two dolphins each facing Britannia on her left and right sides. A growling lion is stands in front of Britannia, with another much smaller lion under its feet, biting the German Imperial eagle. The name was cast in raised relief on each plaque.
Around the edge of the plaque are the words “He died for freedom and honour”.
The McDougall Family
The McDougall family lived at 1 Cathedral Street, Dunkeld. Several of the men in the family served in the First World War.
Alexander George Dow McDougall – Born in 1889, Alexander fought in the 1st Battalion Blackwatch Royal Highlanders. He was killed in action during the Battle of the Somme, on the 25th of September 1916, he was 27 years old.
Angus Campbell McDougall – Born in 1890, he fought as a Gunner in the Royal Artillery Regiment, he was severely injured during the Battle of the Somme and was honourably discharged on the 10th of August 1917. He was awarded the Silver war Badge on the 3rd of September 1918, this was a badge specifically for those who had been honourably discharged due to wounds or illness during the First World War.
Peter McDougall – Born in September 1891, Peter served in the Royal Navy during the first world war.
Neil McDougall – Born in 1895, Niel had served in the Scottish Horse regiment prior to the outbreak of the war and served with them during, he was later transferred to the Blackwatch Royal Highlanders. He was also wounded in action like his brother, Angus, but Neil recovered from his wounds and continued his service.
The Low Family
The Low family lived at Oak Place, Birnam. Their father William was a local draper and the family was well known within the community.
William Thomas Low – Born in Birnam in 1884. William enlisted to fight in the war in November 1915. He fought in a number of regiments, his final posting was with the 2nd Battalion Scots Guards. He died on the 11th of October 1918, aged 34.
George Alexander Low – George first joined the military aged 15 in 1907, he joined the Blackwatch regiment. On the 18th of September 1914 he was mobilised and by 1915 he was in France, fighting alongside the British expeditionary force. He later became Second Lieutenant in the 2nd Battalion., Royal Scots Fusiliers. George sadly died on 28th September 1918 in Belgium.
John Low – Brother of William and George Low. He served with the Royal Scots Fusiliers 2nd Battalion, as a gunner. He died on the 12th of May 1917 in Arras, Northern France.
All three brothers in this family sadly died. A descendent of William Thomas Low went on to fight in the Second World War. His name was James Wilson.
Photograph of William Thomas Low.
Second World War
James Wilson
Born 21st of June 1913 in Dunkeld, Perthshire. James was born and raised in Niel Gow’s cottage at Inver. His father William Low was killed during the first world war, and his mother died whilst he was still a child. James then went to live with his Aunt Agnes in Dundee.
James enlisted in the Royal Corps of Signal just before the outbreak of the Second World War, he served as a signal man and saw active service in both North African and Mediterranean theatres of war. Sadly, James was captured by German forces on the 26th of April 1941 whilst defending the Corinth Canal at Tolon in Southern Greece. He spent the remainder of the war in a succession of German POW camps.
James reflected on the event in his own words
“My war as a prisoner started at Argos in Greece in 1941. The Germans were gaining control of Greece and whilst most people in the British Main Force got away by Sea, a rear guard was left at the Corinth Canal to protect their escape. This was the 1st Australia corps and I was with them. The Germans could not follow us by land as our own men blew up the Bridge over the canal. When the Germans parachuted men down, it was terrifying. We had no air cover, our heavy guns were destroyed and we were completely surrounded. We fought our way to the beach with virtually no ammunition or medical supplies.”
During this fight James was buried alive and sustained shell shock, he took over 11 months to “recover” but in later life he seldom talked about the war as he found it too difficult. During this time the captured troops were taken north towards Yugoslavia and then Austria.
“We were marched to Corinth and from there we were taken across the Epirus mountains into Yugoslavia. We travelled sixty men to a cattle truck in a journey lasting 12 days, we were given little food or water. It was terrible.”
Censored letter from James Wilson to his Aunt Agnes. The letters were censored by the soldiers running the camp to stop the potential passage of “Sensitive” information which could benefit their enemies i.e. the Allied forces.
James Wilson can be seen on the right of this photograph.
The troops in these prisoner of war camps would receive ration Parcels from the red cross, the ration parcels would be fund raised for, there are records from Birnam and Dunkeld of several events being held to raise money for POW’s. These red cross packages were a life line for those in Prisoner of war camps as the food ration they received from their captors was small and poor in quality.
During his time in POW camps James was moved several times and also once attempted to escape alongside a fellow prisoner. They were at the Lavamund camp for seven weeks and then attempted to escape towards what they thought was the Swiss border as Switzerland was neutral, however they had no maps or compass and accidentally travelled towards Italy. They were caught by Italian troops and returned to the camp, after a week of punishment they were transferred to another camp, Marlag und Milag Nord. James was later sent to the Heydebreck camp which was built to produce synthetic oil for the German military. This camp was heavily bombed after the US Air force set up in base in Italy which made the previously inaccessible area a new and important target.
In January 1945 the Heydebreck camp was evacuated by the german military so that the allied prisoners of war would not be liberated, they were forced to march through upper Silesia, the Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia and Germany during a particularly harsh winter with inadequate equipment and supplies. James was liberated by allied forces on the 23rd of April 1945, almost exactly 4 years after he was first captured.
The Laird Family
The Laird family were local to Birnam, their parents James and Margaret Laird lived in Ladywell Cottages, Birnam. All the members of the family served in the second world war.
George Laird – Fought in North African and Italian campaigns.
James Laird – Fought at Dunkirk and then was sent to North Africa where he was badly wounded at Tobruk in Libya in 1941. He recovered from his wounds and was sent back to active service.
David Laird – Part of the North African Campaign, potentially landed at Anzio.
William Laird – Part of the North Africa Campaign, fought at El Alamein, landed at Anzio and potentially fought at the battle of Monte Casino.
Jean Laird – Served in the Women’s Royal Air Force.
Mabel Laird – Mabel was unable to serve in the armed forces but instead became a telegraph officer with the Post Office on Orkney which was a strategic base for the British Armed forces, in particular the Royal Navy.
Morag Laird – Was a member of the land Army.
Helen Laird – member of the Women’s Royal Air force and was stationed on the south coast of England, her duties included flight control, and taking in the aircraft which had been fighting over France.
All members of the Laird Family came home at the end of the war.
Poster advertising the Women’s Land Army. IMW collection.
Murray Campbell – Son of a local plasterer, Murray Campbell served in both the Merchant Navy and the RAF during the Second World War. One of his daughters, Rita, recalls being sent gifts from abroad by her father during the war. One such gift came with an accompanying letter warning Rita’s mother not to throw away the box, it had a false bottom and Murray had smuggled stockings into the base, an absolute luxury during the time of rationing!
Graham Wood- Served with the Company Royal Army Service Corps, he enlisted on the 2nd of March 1943. Graham was a driver within the regiment and undertook his training to drive amphibious vehicles on the 3rd of February 1944. The “D-Day” landings took place in Normandy starting on the 6th of June 1944, I seems likely that Graham was training to participate in this invasion of mainland Europe. The Royal Army Service Corps were essential to this task, they were responsible for supplying other regiments as well as the building of the famous Mulberry Harbours used after the initial phase of the D-Day landings to supply the troops in France during their campaign.
Post 1945
Alexander Angus MacDougall – Was called up for National Service in 1953, he served 3 years with the REME and BOAR (British Army of the Rhine) in Germany.
David James MacDougall – Was called up for National Service in 1954, he joined the REME (Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers) after his basic training and went to Dusseldorf in Germany for his first deployment. Listen to Dave’s story in his own words.
Click this link below to listen to some oral history and see Dave’s photo album from his time in the military.