Gatherings remember those who fell in wars

Published on Monday 10 November 2008 08:59

THEY gathered around the Heart of Midlothian Memorial at Haymarket as the Capital fell silent in memory of those who lost their lives while serving their country.

A crowd of more than 500 people assembled to pay their respects at the Remembrance Sunday ceremony and watch the poppy wreaths being laid.

Hearts manager Csaba Laszlo and player Christophe Berra represented the club, while city councillors and team supporters Eric Milligan and Steve Cardownie were also in attendance.

The defender read out a moving letter sent by a soldier on the frontline during World War I to his family back in Edinburgh.

The club delegation were joined by servicemen and women, past and present, to mark the 90th anniversary of the end of 1914-1918 conflict.

A small procession by the Salvation Army Band from Dalry Road to Haymarket Junction proceeded the two-minute silence at 11am, which was broken by the traditional firing of the One O'Clock Gun at Edinburgh Castle.

The silence was also observed during a ceremony at the Stone of Remembrance at the City Chambers before a bugler and a piper played the Last Post, Flowers Of The Forest and Reveille.

First Minister Alex Salmond then laid a wreath at the memorial before joining a church service at St Giles' Cathedral.

A number of other events were due to be held across the city yesterday, including ceremonies at the Corstorphine War Memorial and the cenotaph in South Queensferry.

The Heart of Midlothian War Memorial was built by the Gorgie club in 1922 to remember the team's footballers who had signed up to fight in the Great War.

Cllr Milligan said: "I've been attending the service at the Hearts memorial for a good number of years and I was very pleased that so many people turned out.

"In the 60s and 70s, attendance at these events fell away slightly but there has been a recent upturn of interest in remembering those who died in war.

"Any football supporter believes there is something that makes their club a bit special. The sacrifice that the Hearts players made in 1914 by joining up is one that should always be remembered."

Derek Watson, chairman of the Hearts Supporters' Trust,

said: "I think it's very important to keep the memory alive and I was glad that several hundred people came along to help do that."

Lord Provost George Grubb and Alex Fergusson MSP, the Scottish Parliament's presiding officer, were among around 400 people who gathered for the Stone of Remembrance ceremony alongside the First Minister.

Mr Salmond said: "It is the sacrifice of all those who have served in the forces which preserved our values and enabled us to enjoy the freedoms which so many of us take for granted today."

Right Rev David Lunan, moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, said: "Remembrance Day gives each of us, from all walks of life, from every cultural background, and from every corner of the nation, the opportunity to stop, and reflect, and give silent thanks."

In other remembrance ceremonies in Edinburgh yesterday, the 10th Leith Boys Brigade paraded from New Kirkgate car park to the remembrance service at South Leith Parish Church, while members of the Edinburgh Central Branch of the Royal British Legion assembled at Heriot Hill Place before parading to St Mary's Church for a service.