Tribute paid to lost sailors at Seafarers Memorial ceremony in Wick
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Tribute was paid to lost sailors during a ceremony at the Seafarers Memorial in Wick on Remembrance Sunday – the first event of its kind since the statue was unveiled at the Braehead earlier this year.
Between 60 and 70 people gathered to commemorate those who lost their lives on HMS Exmouth during World War II. The destroyer was sunk by a German U-boat off Noss Head on January 21, 1940, while escorting the British merchant vessel Cyprian Prince.
A total of 190 officers and men died, and 15 of the sailors were buried at Wick cemetery.
Representatives of the Royal British Legion Scotland and the Merchant Navy Association were joined by members of the Wick RNLI team in the cold and crisp autumn sunshine on Sunday afternoon to remember the Exmouth men and others lost at sea over the years.
Beverley McPhee, treasurer of the Wick, Canisbay and Latheron branch of Legion Scotland, read lines from Binyon’s poem For the Fallen and a lament was played by Pipe Major Leslie Campbell of Wick RBLS Pipe Band.
Wreaths were laid by Lord Thurso, the Lord-Lieutenant of Caithness, and Mike Coupland, secretary of the Caithness branch of the Merchant Navy Association.
Lord Thurso had laid the first wreath at the war memorial as part of the town's Remembrance Sunday parade at 11am.
Speaking after the Braehead ceremony, he said: "It has been a brilliant day in Wick.
"The Seafarers Memorial is such a wonderful tribute to all those who have lost their lives at sea both in war and in peace. It is a tremendous addition and it has been a real pleasure to be here at the Seafarers Memorial for the first time on a Remembrance Sunday."
The unveiling in May of the Seafarers Memorial – designed by sculptor Alan Beattie Herriot – represented the culmination of a five-year campaign to raise more than £100,000 for a statue honouring all those lost at sea from or in the WK registration area.
John Bogle, secretary of the Seafarers Memorial Group, said: "We were delighted at the turnout at the short service of remembrance at the memorial on Sunday. From the very start one of our aims was to create a place of reflection and remembrance for those affected by the loss of loved ones, ancestors and colleagues at sea.
"We are grateful to the Royal British Legion Scotland, the Merchant Navy Association, the RNLI, Lord Thurso and Pipe Major Leslie Campbell for attending the ceremony, plus of course members of the public who came along."
