Lost in France?

Following your article (The Scotsman, 1 June) regarding the sacrifice of the 51st Highland Division at St Valery en Caux on 12 June 1940, you may be interested to know that my wife and I have just returned from France, where we attended the 75th Anniversary Remembrance of this sad event.

The event involved various ceremonies in St Valery and in surrounding villages which were all affected by the battles. In fact, the citizens of St Valery and surrounding area hold Remembrance Ceremonies every year.

The French went to great lengths to organise a whole programme of events over the weekend of 12-14 June.

Many Scots attended the ceremonies, including a detachment from 7 Scots, the descendants of the 51st Highland Division and the Provost of Inverness.

However, I was disappointed when organising our trip to find a complete lack of information in Scotland. I also felt very embarrassed when in St Valery to see the effort that all sections of the community put into the event and compare the lack of interest shown back home.

As the Highland Division was raised north of the River Forth, I would have thought it incumbent on the local authorities in the area to be represented. Where were the Provosts of Perth, Aberdeen, Dundee, Dunfermline or Kirkcaldy? If the French could do so much to remember the sacrifice of Scottish soldiers, surely our local authorities could do the same and, at least, be represented.

Rodger A Scott

Feus Road

Perth