Eyemouth, in the Scottish Borders Region, just a few miles north of the border and of Berwick, is the town where my mother spent most of her childhood before her family then moved to Dumbarton.

It’s a typical Scottish fishing village/town where a river (the River Eye) flows into the North Sea via a harbour.

I’ve been there several times before, as a child with my mother, and later as an adult but it was many years ago now. When the good lady’s blog friend, Peggy, was here last summer we took the opportunity to visit as she wanted to see it.

I hadn’t remembered this decoish set of windows:-

This is the War Memorial, “Sacred to the memory of officers, NCOs and men of Eyemouth who fell in the Great War”:-

The reverse names the second war’s dead and the column’s inscription reads, “Sacred to the memory of officers, NCOs and men of Eyemouth who gave their lives in the Great War II, 1939-45.” Note also Merchant Navy, Fishermen plus Egypt 1952 and Iraq 2005:-

The original Jack Deighton, my grandfather, was the minister at the local Episcopal Church, St Ebba’s, named after a local saint, the Abbess of Coldingham. The Lifeboat at Eyemouth was also named for her as this lifebelt in the museum attests:-

From over the street:-

Honfleur is a relatively small town. Just look at all those names. “To her children of the armies of the land and sea killed for the homeland 1914-1918.” A measure of what France lost between 1914 and 1918:-

World War 2 names are at the base of memorial. In front is a stone poilu’s helmet above crossed swords with the inscription, “Gloire au Soldats Francaise”.

Off to one side was this plaque to Albert Manuel, “heros de la résistance, croix de guerre”:-

This plaque commemorates “The veterans of Indo-China in Normandy. To their lost and disappeared 1945-54.”

Another notes “19th March 1962. End of the war in Algeria.”

Porto’s War Memorial is an imposing structure with a statue of a soldier reminiscent of many British War Memorials, set in a large square with a lovely pavemented approach:-

Plaque to those fallen in subsequent conficts:-

Plaque to commemorate 100 years since the start of World War 1:-

The base of the Memorial pedestal is decorated with representations of artillery shells:-

Sadly there was some grafitti on the base of the Memorial, a piece of which can just be seen to the right above.

Dedication to those who died in defence of overseas provinces. (If my deciphering of the Portuguese is correct):-

There are three cartouches on the Memorial, to the sides and rear. This one commemorates Angola, Naulila, Inhoga, Mongua, Ngiva:-

As best as I can make out this one says Franca, La Lys, Laventie, La Couture:-

And this one Mozambica (Mozambique,) Necomano? Sirra Micula? Namacourra?

It is one of the less remembered aspects of the Great War that Portugal was one of the Allies and sent troops to fight on the Western Front.

Germany declared war on Portugal on 9/3/1916 though before that there had been tensions over sea trade embargoes and border clashes in Africa. 12,000 Portuguese troops died and 82,000 civilians due to food shortages.

In São Bento Railway Station in Porto we found a commemorative display of photographs of Portuguese involvement in the war.

Grande Guerra (the Great War):-

Declaração de guerra (Declaration of war):-

A caminho das trincheiras (Portuguese trenches?):-

A retaguarda (Training?):-

A vida nas trincheiras (Life in the trenches):-

Destruição e desoleção (Destruction and desolation?):-

Campos de prisoneiros (POW Camps):-

O desfile da vitoria (Victory parade?):-

On the way in to Ferrol from the ship we passed an area known as Arsenal Militar. A mannequin recalled Spain’s military past. Here’s a photo with some beardy bloke beside it:-

Ferrol seems to be laid out in a grid pattern though the streets are not wide. This was at siesta time when the streets emptied:-

A square in Ferrol:-

The building to the left of the square in the photo above has an odd mixture of architectural styles. See the glass gable-end:-

It was also hard by what may be a memorial to Spain’s colonial wars (if I can trust my reading of the Spanish inscription.) It was in the middle of a busy road so I didn’t linger long:-

You know you’re not in Calvinist Scotland any more when you come across a statue like this in an otherwise perfectly normal street. (Hooded penitents are apparently a big part of Holy Week celebrations in Ferrol.):-

Lorient has an airy feeling with relatively open streets lined with trees. Its War Memorial lies to the edge of an open area off the Quai des Indes opposite the Parc Jules Ferry and is flanked by trees. It is an imposing structure with stylised figures.

The inscription reads “Lorient, A Ses Morts, 1914 1918, 1939 1945. There is an additonal plaque for Indochina, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria 1952-62.

Close-up:-

Reverse:-

Despite the absence of a “Commonwealth War Graves here” sign on the gateposts we found three war graves in Abernethy churchyard.

Private J Gray, RASC, 18/11/1917, aged 33:-

Private P Scott, Royal Scots Greys, 20/2/1919, aged 28:-

Private H Rutherford, Cameron Highlanders, 10/12/1918:-

In addition several headstones commemorated war dead.

Alexander Stephen, 16/8/1018, aged 48:-

William Edmiston, 23/5/1915, aged 19:-

Private John Greenhill, 28/10/1914, aged 20:-

John Saunders, died from wounds at Boulogne, 26/5/1915, aged 35:-

Sergt Alexander Mitchell, RAF, died in Cambridge Hospital, 13/10/1918, aged 31:-

Kenneth James, CMF, 22/3/1944. aged 26:-

Abernethy is a village in Perth and Kinross. It contains one of only two intact Pictish towers left in Scotland. (The other is in Brechin.)

Tower from street:-

A view from the tower. Graveyard just below:-

Tower from graveyard:-

War Memorial from Tower:-

War Memorial from ground level:-

Original inscription carved into plinth:-

War memorial names. Great War names above, 1939-45 below:-

Newhailes is a stately home near Musselburgh in East Lothian. It’s now in the care of the National Trust for Scotland.

Front view:-

Rear view:-

There was a tree there festooned with a mushroom-type growth, in several places:-

Walking the grounds we came upon this memorial to the Battle of Dettingen. There is a Latin inscription in memory of John, 2nd Earl of Stair, who fought as 2nd in command to George II at the Battle of Dettingen:-

The battle took place in the War of the Austrian Succession and was the last one in which a British Monarch led his troops.

Reverse view:-

English inscription after a renewal in 1907:-

Just to continue the gardening theme….

The good lady is a keen gardener and had always hankered to visit Gardening Scotland at Ingliston. This year we finally got it together to see the show.

There weren’t many show gardens but one of them was in commemoration of the 100^th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme:-

Side view:-

Another was on behalf of Erskine Hospital which cares for injured veterans of British wars. I only got round to this photo as the garden was being dismantled:-