Unprecedented tragedy, Highland ceremony. Thanks to Doc Fraser, Argyll Regimental Historian. From The Spectator. Cirillo death an unprecedented tragedy for Argylls Hamilton Spectator By Mark McNeil The funeral for Cpl. Nathan Cirillo on Tuesday will be the first time the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders have had to bury in Canadian soil a regiment member who died from hostile fire. No Argyll has died in the line of duty since the Second World War, said Robert Fraser, the Argylls official historian. The estimated 1,650 to 1,700 Argylls who were killed during that war and the First World War were all buried in Europe or forever lost on a battlefield. In fact, before the tragic events of this month that also saw Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent killed in a hit-and-run in Quebec, no Canadian Forces member – reserve or regular forces – has died from an enemy attack within Canada since the Second World War, said Andrew Burtch, acting director of the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. In 1963, Canadian soldier Walter Leja was severely injured by an FLQ bomb explosion. He wasnt expected to live but he did, losing most of his left arm as well as suffering brain damage and losing the ability to speak. He lived until 1992. Burtch said HMCS Shawinigan (with 91 killed) and HMCS Valleyfield (125 killed) are examples of Canadian naval vessels that were sunk by German U-boats off the coast of Newfoundland during the Second World War. The program for Cirillos funeral was still being worked out late Friday, but Fraser said Scottish regiments have very old ways of honouring their fallen. He said there will undoubtedly be a strong showing of pipes and drums. The Argylls have a 35-piece bagpipe band that will perform at the funeral. The traditional laments of the Argylls – the Scottish tunes Flower of the Forest and Lochaber No More – will likely be performed at the ceremony that will take place at Christs Church Cathedral, Fraser said. A key part of a traditional Argyll funeral, he said, would be the people who are seeing you off are the members of your own regimental family and they are doing it in uniform with a full ceremony. It takes place with tunes that are capable of conveying all the range of emotion. Scottish regiment traditions also carry over to regular ceremonies and dinners in the officers mess at the John Weir Foote V.C. Armoury, on James street North, Fraser said. There are always two toasts, one to regiment and the other to fallen comrades. The reality of a soldiers lot is that it can involve violent death, so traditions are built into how a serving battalion operates. Fraser, who wrote a book about the Argylls called Black Yesterdays – the Argylls War in 1996, said he interviewed hundreds of families who experienced the loss of a loved one during the Second World War and he found that, even decades later, family members still had trouble coping with their loss. Recalling those interviews, he said, I cant get it out of my mind what it means for Cpl. Cirillos family and those who were closest to him. mmcneil@thespec 905-526-4687 | @Markatthespec
Posted on: Sat, 25 Oct 2014 12:23:21 +0000
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