The Scottish War Memorials Project

DerekR

1514 Memorial - Hawick

The equestrian memorial stands at the end of the High Street in Hawick.

This memorial commemorates the victory of local youths or "callants" from the town over a party of English raiders at Hornshole, just outside Hawick in 1514, most of the men of the town having been killed on Flodden Field the previous year .
The English flag was captured and carried back to Hawick, the capture of which is commemorated in this proud statue.

Unveiled in June 1914 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the skirmish and was financed wholly by public subscription. The sculptor responsible for the ‘Horse’ statue as it became known was William Beattie. (see a thread on William Beattie in the Sculptor section HERE)

In August, 1921, fully seven years after its unveiling, the sculptor Thomas Beattie returned to his native Hawick to complete the final details on his son’s ‘1514’ memorial, work which had been interrupted by the outbreak of the Great War.
Although it had been commissioned to celebrate the achievements of young Hawick men from a much earlier conflict, with the cutting of inscriptions on either side of the memorial’s base, Thomas ensured that the record of our most recent loss would not be readily forgotten.
With the skill of a master craftsman and the love of a bereaved father he carved the words:
‘Sculptor Major William F.Beattie M.C. R.F.A., a native of Hawick, born 1886, killed in France 1918’.
A line of Latin was added: ‘merses profundo pulchrior evenit’, the literal translation of which reads:
‘You may overwhelm it in the deep; it arises more beautiful than ever’.

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There must be a place under the sun where hearts of olden glory grow young .....

DerekR · Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:38 am Post subject:

The young scupltor William Beattie can be seen sitting three to the left of the chap standing on the podium.
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There must be a place under the sun where hearts of olden glory grow young .....

DerekR · Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:41 am Post subject:

This is possibly the Committee involved with the Hawick quater-centenary celebrations of 1914 which culminated in the unveiling of the "Horse".

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There must be a place under the sun where hearts of olden glory grow young .....

dhubthaigh · Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:30 am Post subject:

Derek,

A fantastic Memorial with a great story and poignant touch. The photos are tremendous also.

Thanks for posting I very much appreciated it.

Mark