Remembering members of Scotland's legal profession who fought in the First and Second World Wars

On Remembrance Sunday, the nation will remember the sacrifice made by our forebearers. In Scotland, there are ceremonies throughout the country including the ceremony at the cenotaph in Edinburgh. The remembrance is led by the First Minister, the presiding officer, the Chief Constable and the leaders of Scotland’s religions.

I represent the judiciary and the Scottish Courts in commemorating the dead who made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of this country and the freedoms that we all enjoy. It is an honour to do this. When I was Lord Advocate, I represented Scotland at a ceremony in Mons, Belgium, to mark the outbreak of the First World War. There is a war cemetery nearby at St Symphorien which contains the graves of the first and last British soldiers to be killed in the Great War. The graveyard is so peaceful, yet tinged with sadness for the loss of so many young lives.

The Scottish legal profession was subject to much change during the Second World War. Many of the judiciary who fought in the Great War had by the commencement of the Second World War progressed significantly in their careers and were appointed to the bench before or during the war period.

Due to their exemption as government employees and, in some cases, being of an age which put them outside the conscription limits, most judiciary did not directly take part in war actions whilst on the bench.

However, many did get involved in the limited ways that they could, from volunteering with the Home Guard like Lord Sorn, delaying retirement like Lord Moncrieff, or training as fire marshals for their building or area, like the Lord President, Lord Normand. Others served in the after-war efforts, like Lord Patrick, who was on the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo.

Nicknamed ‘Grandpa’

Those who do have military records from the Second World War were individuals who were too young or inexperienced to have been appointed to the bench by 1939, leaving them available to volunteer or be conscripted into war service. Many who served went onto take judicial office. Lord Avonside (Ian Hamilton Shearer) served as a major in the Royal Artillery. Lord Birsay (Harald Leslie QC) joined the 8th Battalion of the Royal Scots at the start of the war and served in the Normandy campaign, being awarded an MBE in 1945 and leaving with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Lord Cameron (Sir John Cameron QC) served in the First World War as a midshipman with the Royal Navy Volunteer Service and, in the Second World War, he once again joined up, his age at the time meaning he was nicknamed ‘’Grandpa’ by his crew in 1940. He was mentioned in despatches for commanding Motor Torpedo Boat 107 in Operation Dynamo, with his MTB being the last torpedo boat out of Dunkirk.

Operation Dynamo rescued thousands of British troops from the beach at Dunkirk in 1940 (Picture: Topical Press Agency) | Getty Images

His boat saved 12 crew from ships in the crowded harbour at night, manoeuvring and dodging other recue craft despite having no reverse gear and a turning circle of half a mile. He also took part as a lieutenant-commander in the Normandy landings. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for “gallantry, skill, determination and undaunted devotion to duty”.

Lord Cameron spent 30 years on the bench after his appointment in 1955 and returned to Dunkirk in 1990 at the age of 90, as part of the Association of Dunkirk Little Ships crossing. He travelled from Dover on MTB 102, the one torpedo boat from the event that was still able to be used due to later restoration work. He was the oldest person to make the crossing that year. During the crossing, a single Spitfire flew over and waggled its wings, a manoeuvre that the planes had originally performed during the Dunkirk evacuation to show the soldiers below their support.

Military Cross and Croix de Guerre

Lord Dunpark (Alastair McPherson Johnston) served in the Royal Artillery Territorial Army in the Second World War, being mentioned in despatches and serving in the Middle East for some time. Lord Emslie (George C Emslie) served in North Africa, Italy, Greece and Austria with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and was made an MBE in 1946 in the King’s Birthday Honours.

Lord Fleming MC (David Pinkerton Fleming) served during the Great War in the Scottish Rifles in France, earning the Military Cross, the Croix de Guerre, and multiple mentions in despatches, ending the war as a captain. In the Second World War, he served in the Home Guard from its creation until his death in 1944. Lord Fraser of Tullybelton (Walter Ian Reid Fraser) served in the Royal Artillery in the UK and in Burma during the Second World War. He died tragically in a car accident in a snowstorm on the M90 in February 1989.

Lord Mayfield (Ian MacDonald) served as a captain in the Royal Tank Regiment in the war, fighting in Libya, Egypt and Italy. He was awarded the Military Cross for supporting infantry troops to cross the River Santerno in Italy by creating a bridgehead with his tanks, despite having been injured in the process. His MC recommendation states that he “displayed the very highest qualities of initiative, leadership and devotion to duty”. After the war he remained in the Territorial Army Lothians and Border Horse from 1948 to 1962.

Lord Hunter (John Oswald Mair Hunter) was a member of the Royal Navy Volunteer Service (RNVS) from 1939 to 1945. He served on the Royal Navy mine-layer Menestheus with distinction as a Lieutenant-Commander and was mentioned in despatches.

Shot down over German lines

Lord Patrick (William Donald Patrick) served in the First World War in the Royal Flying Corp (a predecessor of the Royal Air Force). Reaching the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, he was shot down over German lines in France in April 1918 and interned in Germany for the rest of the war. He was appointed to the bench in 1939 and, during the war, sat on a Tribunal of Inquiry which explored how to ensure Glasgow Docks were as efficient as possible for the war effort.

British soldiers pictured in a narrow trench on October 28, 1914 (Picture: Hulton Archive) | Getty Images

After the war ended, he was selected in 1946 to sit as one of the 12 international judges of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo, trying Japanese war criminals. After representing Britain on the tribunal during the trial of 28 political and military leaders, he returned to Scotland and the Inner House bench in 1949, remaining as a senator until his retirement in 1964.

Lord Robertson (Ian MacDonald Robertson) served initially as a weapons officer for the 8th Royal Scots, later becoming an intelligence officer for the 44th Lowland Brigade. He was mentioned repeatedly in despatches and took part in the D-Day campaign. He wrote a book, “From Normandy to the Baltic: the story of the 44th Lowland Infantry Brigade of the 15th Scottish Division from D-Day to the end of the war in Europe” anonymously, with it being attributed only to ‘Advocate’. It was based on his experiences as part of the brigade headquarters staff during that period. The book was published in Bad Segeberg, Germany, in 1945 and a copy is held by the National Library of Scotland. He has a famous granddaughter, Laura Kuenssberg, who was the BBC political editor from 2015 to 2022, and presents the BBC political interview programme, Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.

Defence of Singapore

The Shrieval bench also has a rich history of war service. Sheriff Principal for Grampian Highlands and Islands, Stewart E Bell QC served as a lieutenant in the Loyal Regiment 2nd Battalion in Singapore and Malaysia during the war. After being wounded during the last defence of Singapore in 1942, he and his regiment were ordered by their command to surrender, thereafter being taken prisoner by the Japanese and held as prisoners of war of the Imperial Japanese Army in camps in Singapore and Korea. Sheriff Principal Thomas Pringle McDonald QC served between 1940 and 1945 with the Royal Scots, seeing action in Normandy, Belgium and Italy, later joining the Judge Advocate General’s department.

Sheriff George Chapman Carmichael served initially with the Royal Artillery (Field) and later with the King’s Own Scottish Borderers between 1942 and 1945. He was awarded the Military Cross in 1945 when, as a lieutenant, the three officers senior to him were injured during an action to liberate the city of Flushing/Vlissingen in the Netherlands from German occupation. This meant he was in command and led his platoon in street and pillbox fighting while under fire. His MC recommendation states that he showed “complete disregard for personal safety and by his fine example was an inspiration to his men”.

Sheriff Harold Frank Ford served with Lothians and Border Yeomanry, being captured in 1940 and held as a PoW for the rest of the war. In 1945, he served as legal adviser to the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Organisation (UNRRA) and in 1947, he became the legal adviser to the International Refugee Organisation (IRO) in British Zone of Germany.

D-Day weather forecasting

Sheriff Charles Ramsay Macarthur left his legal apprenticeship to become a Royal Navy meteorologist in 1942, serving until demobilisation as a lieutenant in 1946. Meteorology was so important to the allied victory in the Second World War By the evening of June 4, 1944, the Allied meteorological team, headed by Group Captain James Stagg of the Royal Air Force, predicted that the weather would improve sufficiently so that the invasion could go ahead on June 6.

He met Eisenhower and other senior commanders, and a decision was taken to invade the Normandy coastline on June 6, 1944. In contrast, the German military meteorological centre in Paris predicted two weeks of stormy weather and took the view, wrongly, that the Allies would never invade during this predicted stormy period. As a result, many Wehrmacht commanders left their posts to attend war games in Rennes and Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, who was in charge of the sea defences, returned to Germany for his wife's birthday and to meet Hitler.

Sheriff Alan Cameron Miller served with the Royal Navy in Dunkirk, North Africa, Egypt and Italy. He set the discus record at an athletics meeting in Sicily in 1943. Sheriff Alexander Moncur Prain, served with Royal Armoured Corps from 1940 until March 1943, reaching the rank of major before being called from the forces to become a sheriff in Airdrie.

Received town’s surrender

Sheriff Stanley Scott Robinson joined the Territorial Army in 1935 and served from 1939 to 1945. He commanded the Montrose detachment of the Royal Artillery, served in France, Belgium, Holland and Germany and was at Normandy landings. He received the surrender of the town of Oldenburg in Germany. He was mentioned in despatches twice (1944 and 1945), awarded an MBE in 1944 and the Territorial Decoration.

He was demobilised at the end of the war with the rank of Major. He continued his connection with the military after the war, commanding a regiment of the Royal Artillery (Territorial Army) in Montrose between 1947 and 1951, leaving with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. He later wrote the Law of Interdict and The Law of Game, Salmon and Fresh Water Fishing in Scotland.

Sheriff Thomas Blantyre Simpson QC fought with the Royal Scots in the first battle of the Somme in the First World War, where he was badly injured. In the Second World War, he was chairman of the Enemy Aliens Tribunal for Scotland.

These are just a selection of the war service of Scots lawyers who answered the call. There is clearly a rich history of service from the Scottish legal profession in our country’s wars. When the call came, they were not reticent and were prepared to put their lives on the line and we should be forever grateful for that and honour their service and sacrifice.

War-enforced changes

The changes in the legal profession during the Second World War should also be remembered. Jury numbers were reduced from 15 individuals to seven. This allowed the courts to continue to function with the reduced jury pool caused by the demands of war service on men and women.

Civil jury trials were suspended for the duration of the war. Fatal accident inquiries had previously sat with a jury of seven, but there were no jurors for the duration of the war as the court sat with a single judge to hear the evidence and make determinations. The High Court had previously been escorted by military guards when it went on circuit, but this practice ceased due to the priorities of war.

In August 1940, with fears of invasion increasing, the then Lord Justice General issued two statutory rules and orders. These created four war-zone courts with wide jurisdiction over all crimes committed in the war zone, and gave procedure acceleration powers to the sheriff courts. The four courts were each to be presided over by senior members of the judiciary, with three senators and one sheriff appointed. As no invasion came, they were never required to function in practice.

Interestingly, although the Scottish courts retained their jurisdictions over criminal prosecutions, sometimes national interests would mean these were not enforced. In September 1941, two spies who had landed on the Banffshire coast were, after discussion, despatched to trial in London, despite the Acts of Union preserving the right of Scotland to prosecute crimes committed within the country.

Storage and evacuation of records

Letters were sent asking the courts about their candle stockpiles in case of a sustained loss of power, beds and bedding supplies for emergency shelters, and requesting data on how many staff had completed their anti-gas, decontamination, air casualty and air raid warden training.

Letters were also sent giving approval for paper supplies to be reserved and stockpiled for the Justiciary Office, and there were discussions about the storage and evacuation of records. Plans by the Justiciary Office to put records into sacks and lower them out of the window to a designated strong room area were communicated to HM Treasury in anticipation of war breaking out.

As a large city-centre building hosting a high number of judiciary, court staff, advocates and the general public, it was essential for Parliament House to have an air raid shelter built which could safely hold a significant amount of people.

To accommodate this need, a number of the old underbuilding cells on level two were refitted as a shelter. The four feet thick walls gave it strength, and the two entrances were fitted with gas-tight air locks. Two internal rooms were fitted out as first aid stations (one for men, one for women). With a separate lighting system and an air purification system that could be worked by hand if the power failed, the shelter was as safe and secure as it could be.

In the event of the exits being blocked, a trapdoor in the floor of one led to an emergency exit to the Cowgate. The shelter was referred to in newspapers as “one of the most comfortable in the United Kingdom” and was designed to hold 400 people comfortably, although 500 was possible if needed. One newspaper report mentions there were still “stout iron grills and hand shackles fastened to walls”, a reminder of the cells’ earlier use as a city prison facility.

Air raid sirens sound

In September 1939, the Court of Session was given emergency powers to hold sittings elsewhere than Edinburgh, although they intended to continue sitting in the city, referencing the “commodious air-raid shelters fitted with air-conditioning plant” which would likely make Parliament House easier to deliver court business in than any other potential location.

On October 21, 1939, the shelter had its first wartime use. Air raid sirens led all participants in court cases in Parliament House to head down into the shelter within the building, where the gas-proof doors were closed, air purifiers were switched on, and 430 people waited out the raid.

Firefighting precautions were of high importance during the war, and in January 1941 the Lord President, Lord Normand, set an example by being one of the initial volunteers when a fire watcher volunteer list was created. These volunteers would provide weekend relief for the primary fire watchers who would monitor the building for potential fires during an air raid.

Parliament House was used for many other official functions during the war years, from public inquiries into disasters such as the explosion at the Valleyfield Pit coal mine in 1939, or public projects such as the Tummel-Garry hydroelectric scheme in 1945.

The Conscientious Objectors Appellate Tribunal and the Scottish Advisory Committee on Interned Aliens both sat in Parliament House for the duration of the war. In April 1940, while the Court of Session was on vacation, a military court sat for the first time ever in Parliament House, when an officer of the Royal Scots was court martialled for passing cheques without sufficient funds.

200 weddings in a rush

Until July 1940, ‘irregular’ marriages (ie those not performed by a minister in a church) could be formalised by declaration before a sheriff, whose court could then issue a warrant to allow the marriage to be officially registered. War made many couples think about regularising their irregular marriages, and this led to a rush of weddings. By September 1939, Edinburgh Sheriff Court had set a new record, with over 200 marriages performed since the outbreak of war.

Finally, despite the war, there were still cases of great public interest. One such case was HMA v Dewar which was tried in October 1944 before a jury of seven persons in court three of Parliament House. The case was so interesting to the public that entry had to be ticketed to control the numbers trying to get into the courtroom.

Stolen coffins

An Aberdeen town councillor and crematorium manager was accused alongside an Aberdeen undertaker of stealing or resetting a huge number of coffins, coffin lids and shrouds. The thefts were of 1,044 coffin lids, seven coffins and two shrouds while the reset was of 100 coffin lids and two coffins. The coffins and lids were reused or repurposed instead of being cremated. To demonstrate the scale of the scam, a number of items were brought into the court as evidence.

This included: 120 coffins lids, arranged on racks in the advocate’s box in the court room, 96 pieces of wood, coffin nameplates, a wooden garden box, wooden radio cabinets, a wooden writing desk, a wooden rabbit or guinea pig hutch, a wooden tea tray, wooden flower support sticks, a wooden bird-egg collecting box and a wooden garden cold-frame.

Some items were so large they had to be stored behind the judge’s bench. At one point, two children’s coffins were placed on the bench beside the Lord Justice Clerk, the trial judge. These were then examined and confirmed to show signs of having been used.

The jury were clearly persuaded of guilt, with the crematorium manager being sentenced to three years’ penal servitude and the undertaker being imprisoned for six months. It is unknown what happened to the various coffins and repurposed coffin parts.

Lord Mulholland is Senator of the College of Justice; Jennifer Findlay is head of library and archive services at the Scottish Courts, Parliament House, Edinburgh