112 On The Level
We Will Remember Them Special Edition Magazine for St. John Fisherrow No.112 Issue No.2 November 2018 1
Editor’s Comments
By the 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month 1918, when the Armistice between the Allies and Germany came into force, more than 700,00 British troops had died, and in excess of twice that number had been injured. The Great War had touched every household in the country, and would continue to loom over the lives of the population for generations. A century later it stills does.
Brethren, like every other town in Scotland, their population was small, very much family orientated. In the “Honest Toun”, times were hard during the early 1900s. Although there was work in the wire, paper and net mills, on the fishing boats, farms and down the pits, it was still difficult to find work.
As the ending of “The Great War” nears closer to the final days, we at 112 would like to pay tribute to the men and women (599 men and 1 woman, a nurse) who sacrificed their lives and who,
“Gave their Today For Our Tomorrow” I N M E M O RY
The sudden passing of our dear friend Mrs Linda Doyle, much loved wife of P.M. Willie Doyle, and dedicated mother to Steven and Kirsty, wife is indeed a tragic shock to the 112 family.
Linda will be remembered as a wondeful, fun loving, straight talking friend who’s presence truly lit up a room.
Linda will be sadly missed by all at 112. Our thoughts and prayers are with Willie and family. 2
The Master Brethren,
This being the 100th Anniversary of the end of the Great War 1914-1918, let us not forget those who served, those who have suffered and those who have lost.
We must remember the men and women from every part of the British Empire and it’s Allies, who gave selflessly by themselves in countless campaigns and conflicts at places the names of which are curved in the souls of this nation, Gallipoli, Somme, Ypres, Dunkirk, Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland and many many more. They gave their yesterday that we today may live free from tyranny. Lest we forget those who perished unknown, their names though not known to us, are written in the books of God.
We will remember those who fought on the field of battle, in the air, and on the sea. Those who nursed and those who supported, those who served in the fields and factories, those who sailed and fished the seas tempest deep, and those with coal dust in their lungs who kept the home fires burning.
Brethren,
the souls of the righteous are in the hands of
God.
There shall no evil happen to them. They are at peace. 3
A Tribute To Bro. Col. A. H. Buchanan-Dunlop PM O.B.E. T.D. 1874-1947 by Bro. Tom Chrystal P.M. 112
4
INTRODUCTION When I first saw the article "Loretto Pupil Who Stopped The War" in the Edinburgh Evening News on Monday, December 7, 1998, I recognised the name as that of one of our Past Masters. I had every right to recognise the name as I had been looking at his portrait hanging on the wall of our Lodge for many years.
When I read the article I was intrigued by the story and decided that I had to do some research to see if I could find out more about this amazing man. This tribute is the result of my endeavours. My thanks must go to Bursar and the Clerical Staff of Loretto School, the administration section at Edinburgh Castle and Mr Philip R French, the Deputy Curator of the City of Leicester Department of Art & Leisure.
Without the help and information supplied by them, I would never have been able to complete my research.
Bro Thomas Chrystal Past Master of Lodge St John Fisherrow No 112.
5
LIEUTENANT COLONEL ARCHIBALD HENRY BUCHANAN-DUNLOP OBE TD 1874 - 1947
BRETHREN, ON THE 7th DECEMBER 1998, THE EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS CARRIED THE FOLLOWING HEADLINE: "LORETTO PUPIL WHO STOPPED THE WAR"
THIS LORETTO PUPIL, BRETHREN, WAS NONE OTHER THAN LIEUTENANT COLONEL ARCHIBALD HENRY BUCHANAN-DUNLOP, OBE, TD, 16TH LAIRD OF DRUMHEAD, CARDROSS, DUMBARTONSHIRE. A DISTINGUISHED BROTHER AND PAST MASTER OF BOTH LODGE ST JOHN FISHERROW NO 112 AND THE LORETTO CENTENARY LODGE NO 1373. Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Henry Buchanan-Dunlop was born the eldest of four sons of the Fifteenth Laird of Drumhead, Dumbartonshire, Col. H D Buchanan-Dunlop and his wife. His father, Col. H D Buchanan-Dunlop brought his family to live in Inveresk in 1886. It was then that he became a pupil at Loretto School and stayed until 1889 when he joined the Sandhurst Military College. After passing out from Sandhurst, he joined the Royal Berkshire Regiment as a subaltern in 1894. He served two years (1900-1902) on active service in the South African War, during which he won both the Queen's and King's Medals. It was while serving in South Africa that Lt. Col. Buchanan-Dunlop began his Masonic Career. He was Initiated, Passed and Raised in Lodge Rising Star No 1022, English Constitution. He returned, albeit temporarily, to civilian life in 1909 at Loretto School.
On returning to Loretto School after serving during the South African War, the first of many jobs undertaken at the school was that of physical training instructor. In 1910 he joined the Territorial Army and was attached to the Royal Scots as major. He also founded the Loretto School Officer Training Corps and commanded the same until 1928. It was a natural progression for Lt. Col. Buchanan-Dunlop to initiate the organization of this new venture within the school with his usual vigour.
During his extensive military career, he was commissioned and served firstly in the Royal Berkshire Regiment in 1894, served as captain in the Leicestershire and Lancashire Fusiliers. He retired and returned to Loretto School. He joined the T.A. and was attached to the Royal Scots as a major. On the out-break of the 1st world war at the age of 40, he found himself back in uniform.
6
His first job was Embarkation Officer at Southampton. He was then appointed Major, 2i/c of the Leicestershire Regiment and was soon back in active service at Ypres in Belgium where the above remarkable truce on Christmas Day 1914 took place. The Colonel, accompanied by some of his men, wandered into "No-Mans Land" and met with the enemy. They spent over an hour conversing with the German officers and men. This was confirmed in letters that he wrote to his wife who was asked to thank his Mother for sending the pocket edition copies of the Gospels of St John for the Colonel to read to his troops in their darkest hours. The two armies met face to face, they exchanged cigarettes, etc, and then proceeded to conduct a carol service which had been prepared for the pupils of Loretto for Christmas 1913. A game of football followed before the men returned to the trenches. As we now know, the truce was not welcomed or approved of by the British High Command, who issued Orders banning any other such action. The Colonel found himself in serious trouble with his superiors for the major part he had played in the truce. However, this event made international headlines across the world, the Daily Sketch, published in London, quoted the Colonel as "One of the Moving Spirits in this Wonderful Xmas Truce".
THE CHRISTMAS TRUCE OF 1914
The Colonel was instrumental in setting up Talbot House behind the front line, a club used by officers and enlisted men alike for rest and respite after having been at the front for a certain length of time. These clubs were normally for officers only. Within the last ten years, Loretto School has been twinned with "The Heilige Familie School" at Ypres. Just before Christmas 1998, the two schools met at Ypres and unveiled a Peace Bell dedicated to Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Henry Buchanan-Dunlop and the German Officer-in-charge, Johannes Nieman, who helped organize the truce.
7
Major Buchanan-Dunlop, it must be remembered that during this period of service he was a major, was on the strength of the 1st Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment. The Battalion had been involved in the fighting around Armentieres and Rue de Bois. On 31st May 1915, his battalion moved into the line at Ypres Salient and it continued in the Salient until the end of July 1916. On 22nd October 1915, a sniper killed the commanding officer, Lt. Col Stoney-Smith and Major Buchanan-Dunlop temporarily took command. It was reported that Lt. Col Gillespie took command on 15th September 1916. Sometime during this action in 1916, Major Buchanan-Dunlop suffered injury during a gas attack and, after convalescence, he was invalided out of the army in 1917 as Lt. Col. A H Buchanan-Dunlop.
Despite being invalided out of active service, Lt. Col. Buchanan-Dunlop immediately joined the Volunteer Corps and commanded the Midlothian Volunteer Battalion until the end of the war. The Colonel also returned to Loretto to take up his duties, that of Art and Sports Master as well as Officer Commanding of the Officer Training Corps. He compiled the school's "Roll of Honour", which was published in 1924. Out of six hundred and twenty eight former pupils, one hundred and forty seven lost their lives fighting for their country during the 19141918 World War. By 1927 he had completed the compilation of the Second Register of Loretto School.
In 1928, he became the school's first Bursar. Despite having no formal business training and no existing guidelines to help him, he became most proficient in this post and held it until he retired in 1937. He resigned from the T.A. in 1935. It grieved him greatly that he was unable to continue to live in Musselburgh and he moved to Drumfoot at Lasswade.
On his retirement, there was a presentation ceremony when the colonel was presented with an antique electric standard lamp and a walnut cabinet on behalf of the Merchants of Musselburgh. During his long period as bursar, he had always taken the school's custom to the local merchants and this was much appreciated by the merchants. Lt Col BuchananDunlop commented on the fact that bursars from other schools had often complained about the difficulty of obtaining certain commodities. He always told them he had no such problem and that the Merchants of Musselburgh were always able to satisfy the school's requirements.
On the outbreak of war in 1939, at the age of 65, he joined the Edinburgh ARP Service. He tried to join the Pioneer Corps with the intention of getting out to France. This he was unable to do and had to content himself with commanding a company of the Home Guard. For this service he earned the Defence Medal which entitled him to wear medals for service in three wars. In 1940 until 1947, he gave his services as County Army Welfare Officer for the City of Edinburgh. It was in 1945 that he received his OBE in recognition of his fine service.
8
The school held Colonel Buchanan-Dunlop in high esteem. He was always up to something. His dress was always immaculate with tweed suit, (plus fours), his monocle and with his very large hand carved pipe sitting on his chin. He wrote and produced plays for the school. He would organize the props; he would even do the make-up. He would often get up on the stage and entertain the pupils with funny songs. He also put on small art exhibitions of the pupils' work. The Colonel was an all round sportsman, excelling in fencing, shooting, cricket, golf and rugby. He played rugby to a good standard as he represented the Berkshire Regiment, the Berkshire Wanderers and the Orange River Colony. He holds the unusual honour of being the only Scot to play for the Orange Free State rugby fifteen. He represented the British Army at golf. He also excelled in "Swedish Drill", which I am led to believe is a fast form of gymnastics.
He represented Lodge St John Fisherrow No 112 many times in our annual golf matches with Lodge Canongate Kilwinning No 2 as well as at many Provincial golf tournaments. He was Captain of the Royal Musselburgh Golf Club in the years 1919-1920 and was also Past President of the Musselburgh Curling Club. He also became a Musselburgh Town Councillor in 1919 and served three years on the Council. He was President of the local Royal British Legion Branch. In 1925 he was captain of the Fettesian-Lorettorian Cricket Club. He was also an active committee member of the Earl Haig Fund that does so much for all ex-servicemen.
“Brethren, He Was A Truly Remarkable Man.�
Bro A H Buchanan-Dunlop PM: Freemason.
Lieutenant Colonel Buchanan-Dunlop commenced his Masonic Career when he joined Lodge Rising Star No 1022, English Constitution, in South Africa.
He affiliated to Lodge St John Fisherrow No 112 in 1920. He first took office in 1924 as "Standard Bearer". He was unable to attend the Installation Ceremony in December 1923, but he presented the Lodge with a Standard Bearer's Jewel on 20th February 1924. The Right Worshipful Master, Bro Richard Shields, thanked him on behalf of the Lodge and proceeded to invest him with the Jewel he had just presented to the Lodge. He was installed as Right Worshipful Master of the Lodge on 21st December 1927 and reinstalled on 19th December 1928. On his reinstallation, the Lodge was reduced to the lst Degree when the Colonel initiated two of his sons into Freemasonry. Afterwards the Lodge continued with the Installation Ceremony and his sons then witnessed their father being Installed into the Chair. Before vacating the Chair at the end of his second year, the Colonel Initiated his third son into the Craft. His three sons were Robert Arthur, Archibald Ian and David Kennedy Buchanan-Dunlop. As I.P.M., the Colonel was presented with the Gavel to Raise his third son David, to the 3rd or Master Mason Degree, thereby allowing the Colonel to have the honour of Initiating, Passing and Raising his three sons into the Craft.
9
The Colonel was a Founder Member of The Loretto Centenary Lodge No 1373, which was chartered on 6th 1930. He was Secretary for two years and was then Installed as Right Worshipful Master in December 1931, a position he held for the next five years.
Brethren, seven years as a Master over a nine year period. As I have already said, A Truly Remarkable Man. The Colonel's Founder Member's Jewel, his Past Master's Apron and the Lodge Immediate Past Master's Jewel are held in the Loretto School library (see the appendix at the end of this tribute).
The final chapter of this story is very pleasing to relate. When Bro Bobby Law was Installed as Right Worshipful Master on 23rd December 1944, one of his first duties was to inform the Brethren that Bro A H Buchanan-Dunlop was to receive the high honour of the Order of the British Empire at the hand of King George VI at the Palace of Holyrood House. It makes it even more pleasing to know that King George VI was a Past Grand Master Mason of Scotland while he was still the Duke of York and was a Member of The Lodge of Glammis No 99 in Glamis in Forfarshire which was the Queen Mother's home before they were married. Sadly, the colonel passed to the Grand Lodge Above on Saturday, 13th December, 1947, aged seventy-three years at his home, Drumfoot, Lasswade.
His funeral service was held on Thursday, 18th December, first in St Leonard's Church, Lasswade and thereafter at Warriston Crematorium. The service was conducted by Bishop of Edinburgh, assisted by the Rector, Canon T G S Presslie and the Rev. William Robert Buchanan-Dunlop, who was Bro Lt Col A H Buchanan-Dunlop's youngest brother.
10
Lt Col A H Buchanan-Dunlop was an Officer and a Gentleman. He also had strong Christian beliefs, which guided him throughout his life. He was extremely loyal to his church, his men, his pupils, his friends and all with whom he had dealings, in all walks of his life. This can be seen from the notice referring to his passing which was placed in the newspaper by his church which read "A loyal Churchman, a great Christian and a great Gentleman has passed from our midst."
His three sons proudly carried on the family Masonic and military traditions into the 2nd World War and beyond.
Loretto School Stained Glass Window 2014
The window was commissioned in commemoration of the 1914 Christmas Truce and Loretto’s association with that event and was created by Haddington-based artise, Kate Henderson. Its inspiration was the meeting of former Loretto pupil, Major Archibald Buchanan-Dunlop and his German counterpart. Their historic handshake was a gesture during the extraordinary event of the ‘Christmas Truce’ in Ypres 1914. The positive image of enemy soldiers at peace is juxtaposed with the 148 poppies, representing all those Old Lorettonians lost in the conflict. The phrase around the shield Gloria in excelsis deo et in terra pax ((Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace). The official unveiling of the stained glass window will take place during special Commemorative Service in the Loretto Chapel on Saturday, 20th December 2014.
The grandsons of Archibald Buchanan-Dunlop (a former Loretto pupil and one of the instigators of the 1914 Christmas Truce) and Hauptmann Maximilian Freiherr (Baron) von Sinner, (the commanding officer of the Machine-gun Company of the Prussian 6th Jäger Battalion, who was also involved in the Christmas Truce) will come together and unveil the stained glass window together in what promises to be a poignant act of reconciliation.
11
Sir John Hope was Right Worshipful Master for our 150th Anniversary which should have taken place in 1918 but was later held in 1920. Along with Provincial Grand Lodge of Midlothian, there were 28 Lodges in attendance. Here brethren are parading back to Bridge Street where the Lodge was before moving to our present location in Balcarres Road.
In 1915 the last member of the Lindsay family died and Pinkieburn House was gifted to the Scottish Branch of the British Red Cross. Local Edinburgh firm James Jerdan and Son carried out extensions in 1918-1920 for conversion to hospital use. In 1921 the building was opened as a hospital for disabled ex-servicemen, at one time known as the Edenhall Hospital for Limbless Sailors.
A Masonic Service in aid of Edenhall Home for Limbless Soldiers and Sailors was held in Inveresk Parish Church. The Service was conducted by the Rev. Bro. D.C. Stewart of Currie, Provincial Grand Chaplain; Bro. Robert Burnett sang the solos; Mr Cherry presided at the Organ and the Musselburgh and Fisherrow Trades Band was also present. The collection amounted to sixty pounds. Below Edenhall Hospital 1920
12
What passing-bells for these who die as cattle? — Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle Can patter out their hasty orisons. No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells; Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,— The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells; And bugles calling for them from sad shires. What candles may be held to speed them all? Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes. The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall; Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds, And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds. Wilfred Owen 13
DID YE KEN! The War Horses
During the First World War (1914-18), the Army could not have functioned without horses. They were vital for cavalry roles, but also needed for moving supplies, equipment, guns and ammunition, and for transporting the wounded to hospital. The requisition, transportation and care of these animals was of huge importance. In the first few weeks of the conflict, the Army requisitioned around 120,000 horses from the civilian population. Owners who could not prove that their horses were needed for essential transport and agricultural needs had to surrender them.
Travelling by sea was as dangerous for horses as it was for humans. Thousands of animals were lost, mainly from disease, shipwreck and injury caused by rolling vessels. In 1917, more than 94,000 horses were sent from North America to Europe and 3,300 were lost at sea. Around 2,700 of these horses died when submarines and other warships sank their vessels.
On 28 June 1915, the horse transport ship The SS ‘Armenian’ was torpedoed by U-24 off the Cornish coast. Although the surviving crew were allowed to abandon ship, the vessel's cargo of 1,400 horses and mules were not so lucky and all perished.
At the recent Edinburgh Riding of the Marches in September 2018, a special bronze horse shoe was presented to the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, commissioned by the War Horse Association to commemorate an estimated 1.9 million horses, and mules and donkeys which were used and died during “The Great War”. The other three horseshoes had already been gifted to the Lord Mayors of Belfast, Cardiff and London, to signify the service and sacrifice that these animals made from all four corners of the UK.
14
In Flanders Fields In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place, and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing , fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high, If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, through poppies grow In Flanders fields. 15
The Water Fountain, Musselburgh
They shall grow not old As we that are left grow old Age shall not weary them Nor the years condemn At the going down of the sun And in the morning We will remember them 16