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Royal Regiment of Scotland 31/07 -22/08/09 Mitchell Library

 
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Jim



Joined: 30 May 2008
Posts: 195

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 9:31 am    Post subject: Royal Regiment of Scotland 31/07 -22/08/09 Mitchell Library Reply with quote

A small exhibition about the uniforms and equipment of Royal Regiment of Scotland is being mounted in the Granville Street foyer of the Mitchell Library between the above dates.

I'm told the exhibition is by way of trying to generate interest in a possible United Services Museum to be located in the west of Scotland, perhaps near the new Museum of Transport on the Clyde.
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Adam Brown
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 10:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jim

That's interesting about the suggestion of a new war musuem in Glasgow. Do you know who is behind the proposal. Would it be a City Council musuem or would it be privately owned do you know?

Cheers

Adam
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Adam Brown
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 11:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

After I submitted the last post I remembered something discussed here before

http://warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=3638

It's about a charity called Military Heritage Scotland. I wonder if they are behind this exhibition?

Adam
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Adam Brown
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 11:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Whilst looking about for Military Heritage Scotland I came across this website for Scottish Military Heritage!

http://www.scottishmilitaryheritage.com/news/


SMH seems to be a website set up in 2006 which simply promotes the regimental museums of Scotland. I wonder if all the museums got together to pay for it? There is only one event listed which dates from 2008. No details about who maintains it.

Anyway I did find out more about MHS and it would seem that they are likely to be behind the Mitchell display

http://secretscotland.wordpress.com/2008/08/17/military-heritage-scotland/

Military Heritage Scotland

Set up as a charity, Military Heritage Scotland aims to create a world class museum facility which will embrace all aspects of Scotland’s military history.

The Daily Record covered the story a few weeks ago, Call to build £100m Scottish Museum of War.

Inspired by former Scots Guard James Percy, a steering group has been formed, chaired by Professor Gordon Murray from Strathclyde University’s School of Architecture and Jon-Marc Creaney of leading architects GCA, and the project is already reported to have attracted a donation from the New York-based Friends of Scotland organisation. The plan is also reported to have received backing from First Minister Alex Salmond – for a museum to rival London’s Imperial War Museum – and MPs and MSPs from all parties have also given their support, although there seem to be no tangible contributions (ie cash) so far – just the political equivalent of kissing babies and looking good.

At this stage, the organisation is seeking donations to help fund a feasibility study, as they have to establish the location of an appropriate site, likely operation costs, and the potential long term sustainability of the the concept. We’ve noted the demise of one or two formerly well-established museums in Scotland here in recent years, and while their content may make a difference, falling visitor numbers in all but the most wodely publicised venues, eg Kelvingrove, may not be promising. Scotland’s science centres are also pleading for money to keep them open, and places such as The Big Idea in Irvine have simply been unsustainable, and folded.

We don’t have such a facility here (yet?), so we have to hope they get the formula right:

It is envisaged that the project will produce a building and destination that will draw visitors nationally and worldwide, providing an opportunity to display warships, submarines, landing craft, armoured vehicles, tanks and fighter planes, allowing visitors to experience them first hand.

The facility will also incorporate educational and research resources with a repository for books, memorabilia and artefacts relating to Scottish Military Heritage, providing a military centre which will encourage Scots of all ages to take an interest in its own history and heritage.

The preferred choice of site would see a world-class floating museum built at Govan docks next to Glasgow Science Centre, with alternative locations possibly being seen in Rosyth, or Leith docks. Collections would take many forms, with warships, submarines and landing craft moored nearby, and tanks, fighter planes, uniforms, medals and memorabilia housed indoors, with special galleries established for notable features and events.

It’s an ambitious project, and has rightly identified both its setup and running costs as key factors, together with its potential for sustainability. It is a particular class of museum that Scotland lacks, and even a casual tour of facilities down south will reveal a glut of related resources, both national and private.

This project deserves serious attention and support, even of only to stem the steady loss of museums and collections that Scotland has seen over the years.
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Jim



Joined: 30 May 2008
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 11:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Adam Brown wrote:
Jim

That's interesting about the suggestion of a new war musuem in Glasgow. Do you know who is behind the proposal. Would it be a City Council musuem or would it be privately owned do you know?

Cheers

Adam


I don't know. It was one of the Culture and Sport chaps setting up the displays who mentioned it. He said the riverside location was the suggestion of the City Council.

There's to be a low key opening around 15.00 today. It's my intention to get along to that to see what I can unearth and report back.
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Jim



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PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 3:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote



A low key event despite the attendance of the Lord Provost. The organisers made a good pitch for the city's support for Military Heritage Scotland. Worth a visit.

See also
http://warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=3638&highlight=heritage
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Adam Brown
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It looks like this display was in Edinburgh at the Central Library before moving to Glasgow.

Thanks

Adam
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David McNay
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 12:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'll go along tomorrow and get some more pictures.
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Jon-Marc Creaney



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PostPosted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 4:03 pm    Post subject: Military heritage Scotland Reply with quote

Hi,

Military Heritage Scotland is a registered charity who's committee has been actively pursuing the development of a Scottish Miltary Museum facility. Exhibits are to include ships, submarines, land vehicles, fighter planes and many other exhibits sourced from a mixture of private collections and the Army, Navy and Airforce.

Various sites have been identified with one on the Clydeside a possibility.

Awareness of the project is the main purpose of the exhibition at the Mtchell which has been organised by members of the committee and the exhibits are mainly from a private collection belong to one one the members of the committee.

We are actively seeking people to become members of the organisation and help with the work involved in promoting the project and would be interested to hear from anyone willing to give a bit of help.

As with most organisations of this type, funding is a big issue that needs tackled in order to commision the studies required for a project of this size and magnitude.

Everyone approached so far has provided their utmost support for the project including Politicians, the army, the navy and the airforce as well as many other organisations.

I hope this provides some background to what we are trying to achieve.

Please get in touch if anyone wants some more information.

Regards

Jon-Marc Creaney
Vice Chairman
Military Heritage Scotland
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David McNay
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 9:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jon-Marc,

I'm afraid your post doesn't really give much more information than we already knew. If you don't mind, I'd like to ask some questions. I hope you don't think I'm being impertinent.

There has been several mentions of exhibits including "warships, tanks, and planes" - where would these come from? Hardware such as this is not cheap - has the acquisition of these items been discussed or is this at the "we'd like to have these" stage?

What response has there been from politicians and the armed forces? Knowing MPs and the like, it's very easy for them to give a nod of approval but it's another thing for them to actually do anything. Is there any support beyond a soundbite? What about the armed forces? What has been there response? There are several regimental museums in Scotland as well as the National War Museum in Edinburgh Castle - where would your museum fit in with these?

In this thread and others there has been links to articles about a museum at the old Royal High School building in Edinburgh - I take it this is the same organisation? Have the plans expanded beyond a building like that? Is that still an option being discussed?

There has been mention of a research/learning centre and this appeals to me as for me the military history of Scotland is more about the people and the stories they have to tell than hardware and trinkets such as medals and trophies. I'd like to know more about this part of the plan - what is envisaged? How big a part of the museum would it be? We have several projects running which might fit in with this part of the plan - how would outside projects fit in?

I hope you don't think I'm being rude in asking so many questions - I'm keen to know more as I'm sure others are. I'm interested to know how far advanced discussion is and where projects such as The Scottish War Memorials Project would fit in to it.
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Adam Brown
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 11:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Some very good questions there from David. I hope we can get some answers and I've got a few of my own too, to fill in some gaps.

I recently posted about the plan to buy an Egyptian ex-RN destroyer (HMS Whimbrel) for a war memorial on Merseyside which has fallen through because of costs. I’d like to know how much money MHS are expecting to spend on the large exhibits?
I know it’s only at the feasibility stage now but costs have been worked out at approx £100m according to the ‘Daily Record’ so how much is allocated to buying large kit?

I’m also interested in the periods of military history being focused on which hasn’t really been mentioned. One of the articles above says the museum would “embrace all aspects of Scotland’s military history”.but another mentions it being a sort of rival to the IMW which only focuses on post-1914 and all the things mentioned are 20th century hardware.
How far back is this going, are there plans for anything before 1914, or is it going to be mostly 20th Century? I’m sure if it includes a bit about the Scottish regiments then it will cover the Colonial Wars of the 19th Century and the wars against France in the 18th Century.

I must admit my main interest is the Second World War so I’d be happy to see lots about that but I am also interested in 17th Century Scotland and I wonder if there has been any thought given to the British Civil Wars, the Scots mercenaries in Europe, the Jacobites and the Covenanters from that period. This is the period before the formation of the Scottish regiments and gets scant attention in Scottish military museums.
Before that period we’ve got all the wars with England, the Vikings and back to the Picts and the Romans to consider if it ‘embraces all aspects of Scotland’s military history’ so I’d be interested in what thought has been given to these many wars too.

Lots more questions on top of David’s I’m afraid but I’m just trying to pin you down on what’s being looked at. It’s all a bit too high level for me at the moment and before I feel I can give a commitment or a donation I would have to know a bit more.

Thanks

Adam
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David McNay
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 07, 2009 8:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was in the Mitchell Library yesterday and took a look at the display.

There's four main display cases - one shows the "dress khaki" uniform (not sure what it's proper name is), two of the cases have camo uniforms, the green in one and desert combats in the other. The red tunic is a case showing the uniform of the regimental band.

There's a couple of cases in the middle. One has a female uniform, one has a selection of rank slides and tactical recognition patches, and one has headgear showing the different hackles.

There's displays giving information on each battalion (name, colonel-in-chief, deployment since becoming RRS etc) and there are two large maps, one was Afghanistan and the other was of Helmand Province.

There was one poster for MHS which was the same as the information on their website.

I didn't get any photos as the batteries had gone on the camera.

If you're in the area I'd take a look, but it's a small display so I wouldn't make a journey just to see it. Combine it with a trip to the archives in the Mitchell.


Last edited by David McNay on Fri Aug 14, 2009 12:25 pm; edited 1 time in total
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David McNay
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 21, 2010 5:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sorry for bringing a fairly dormant topic back to life, but I happened to look for this groups website tonight and found that the domain name had expired.

I think that, combined with no response to my questions posed in this thread, speaks volumes.
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David McNay
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 01, 2012 12:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Another check on this website shows the main page still active with a link for donations, but nothing more.

There's also a note here:

http://secretscotland.wordpress.com/2008/08/17/military-heritage-scotland/

stating the project was dissolved in 2010.

I made some enquiries privately and the impression I got was that this organisation was rather "pie in the sky" and the whole thought of a museum on the scale they envisioned was nothing more than a fantasy.
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