Memorial details

Memorial type
Other structure
District
Kirkcaldy
Town
Kirkcaldy
County
Fife
Country
Scotland
Commemoration
First World War (1914-1918), Second World War - civilians, Second World War (1939-1945), First World War - civilians, Palestine (1918-1948), Malayan Emergency (1948-1960), Northern Ireland Conflict; The Troubles (1969-1998), Afghanistan (2001-2014)
Ceremony
  • Planted
    Date: 1925
    Attended by: ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET LORD WESTER WEMYSS GCB; CMG; MVD
  • Opened
    Date: 27 June 1925
    Attended by: ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET LORD WESTER WEMYSS GCB; CMG; MVD
  • Show More (1)
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
65512

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Current location

Kirkcaldy Library
Museum And Art Gallery
Abbotshall Road
Kirkcaldy
Kirkcaldy
Fife
KY1 1YG
Scotland

OS Grid Ref: NT 27589 91686
Denomination: Undefined

View location on Google Maps
Description
Kirkcaldy Museum, Art Gallery and Public Library and the surrounding gardens. A cenotaph with the dedication and a wall with plaques of names fronts the museum building. The buildings and garden were bequeathed to the town of Kirkcaldy as a war memorial by linoleum manufacturer John Nairn in memory of his son, Ian Nairn.
Inscription
Cenotaph: TO THE/ ABIDING/ MEMORY/ OF THOSE/ MEN OF/ KIRKCALDY/ WHO GAVE/ THEIR LIVES/ IN THE/ GREAT WAR/ THIS PARK/ AND ITS/ BUILDINGS/ ARE DEDICATED./ REMEMBRANCE/ Plaques: (Names) Along the top of the WW2 wall: GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS On a sarcophagus in front of the WW2 wall: IN PROUD MEMORY OF/THE MEN OF KIRKCALDY/WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN/THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Inscription legible?
yes
Commemorations
  • First World War (1914-1918)
    Total names on memorial: 985
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 985
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname, forenames, regiment, decorations
    Order of information: regiment THEN surname
  • Second World War - civilians
    Total names on memorial: 49
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 43
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, forenames, rank, service
    Order of information: service THEN surname
  • Second World War (1939-1945)
    Total names on memorial: 403
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 403
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, forenames, rank, service
    Order of information: service or regiment THEN surname
  • First World War - civilians
    Total names on memorial: 2
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 2
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, forenames, rank, service
    Order of information: surname
  • Palestine (1918-1948)
    Total names on memorial: 1
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, initial of forename, rank, regiment
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Malayan Emergency (1948-1960)
    Total names on memorial: 1
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, initials of forenames, rank, regiment
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Northern Ireland Conflict; The Troubles (1969-1998)
    Total names on memorial: 1
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, initials of forenames, rank, regiment
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Afghanistan (2001-2014)
    Total names on memorial: 1
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname, initials of forenames, rank, regiment
    Order of information: Undefined
Components
  • Second World War memorial
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Tablet
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Stone
  • Lettering
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Gold
  • Wall
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Stone - Portland
  • Plaque
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Metal
  • Building
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
  • Cenotaph
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
  • Plaque
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
  • Garden
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
  • Tree
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
Condition
History
1928: Library extension added.; 1925: A tree was also planted at the opening.
Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Private
Reference
  • War Memorials Online: www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/147406/
  • From Kirkcaldy Museum- "From the essay on 'The Development of Kirkcaldy Museum & Art Gallery' in our 'Catalogue of the Fine Art Collection', I found the following information. Originally the town was going to build a War memorial in the grounds of Balsusney House in Kirkcaldy. However following the donation by an 'anonymous' donor (later revealed to be John Nairn) it was decided to build an art gallery and memorial. Therefore Balsusney House was razed to the ground and the new art gallery built. The architects for the building & memorial was J S McKay of Heiton & McKay of Perth and Glasgow. The bronze panels on the memorial were designed by Paulin's of Glasgow.
  • The Scotsman Monday 29 June 1925 page 9-KIRKCALDY MEMORIAL.-LORD WESTER WEMYSS AND POST-WAR PROBLEMS. "THE MENTAL REVOLUTION." -The flags on all the principal buildings in Kirkcaldy flew at half-mast on Saturday until a signal flag from the roof of the new Art Gallery was fully hoisted to denote that the town's war memorial had been unveiled. The unveiling of the memorial by Admiral Lord Wester Weymss took place in the presence of large crowds which thronged the Abbotshall and Bennochy Roads, at the junction of which stand the entrance pillars to the gardens in front of the Art Gallery. Here the ceremony took place from a temporary platform, the purple cloth which screened the Wall of Honour, in the centre of which stands the memorial stone, which also bears a tribute to those who fought, falling at the touch of a button pressed about a hundred yards away. The effect was impressive. The wall, which is the town's memorial, erected by public subscription, forms a balcony in front of the Art Gallery and Museum. At opposite ends of it are the dates "1914 " and " 1918." Between these dates are the tablets bearing the names of the fallen. The memorial stone bears designs in relief, and projects above the level of the wall. The ceremony was remarkable for the number of men and women who fainted, whistles blowing every few minutes for ambulance men and nurses. The reason for this was perhaps the lengthy wait which the crowd had before the ceremony commenced, every available space being occupied long before the proceedings were timed to start. The day, though fine, was not particularly hot. It was a busy Saturday for Kirkcaldy, for the unveiling of the memorial synchronised with the conference of the British Legion in the town, with the second opening of the Raith House fete, and with important tennis and bowling meetings. For two hours all the shops in Kirkcaldy were closed. Naval, military, and Air Force detachments and members of semi-military organisations lined the streets or were present at the ceremony. The British Legion delegates attended with Lord Glentanar at their head, and, like the relatives of the fallen, who occupied a special station near the platform, laid a wreath at the foot of the memorial. For fully half an hour the crowds filed past in procession. WAR-TIME AIRS. The Provost and members of the Town Council, in their new robes of office, with their guests, marched to the ceremony, headed by a band playing war-time airs. A massed choir, under the Corporation organist, Mr James Gray, led the choral parts of the service. A special prayer was given by the Rev. Dr Fairweather, while the prayer of dedication was delivered by the Rev. Dr Campbell, minister of Kirkcaldy Parish Church. Black Watch pipers played a lament after the dedication, and buglers sounded "The Last Post," after which a two-minutes' silence was observed, followed by the "Reveille." The proceedings concluded with the singing of the National Anthem. A tree was afterwards planted by Lord Wester Wemyss. Among those on the platform were Sir Ralph Anstruther, Sir Robert C. Lockhart, Sheriff Dudley Stuart, Sheriff Fleming, Colonel St Clair Oswald, Mr T. Kennedy, M.P., and Mr W. L. Macindoe, Town-Clerk. A body of ex-Service men marched from Port Brae. Provost Kilgour said that he felt that Kirkcaldy had realised to the full one of its finest dreams. They had waited long, but he claimed that the result had justified the waiting. By the erection of the Gallery and Wall of Dedication and the laying out of the grounds they had enhanced, in no small measure, the beauty of their town and increased the pride of those who wore striving for her welfare. For many future generations it was hoped that the Museum and Art Gallery would be a centre of inspiration and knowledge, while the grounds would, he trusted, be preserved as a place of beauty for all time. That was all to the good, but was quite subsidiary to the main object in view. The primary object was a war memorial. Inscribed on the Wall of Dedication were the names of nearly 1000 citizens. LORD WESTER WEMYSS'S SPEECH. Lord Wester Wemyss, who was in naval uniform, said that the unveiling of a war memorial was a ceremony which could not help but profoundly move all those who assisted in it, for it recalled those four blood-stained years of war. The people of Kirkcaldy, in raising the memorial, were giving tangible expression to their desire to do honour to the memory of those of their fellow-citizens who had died, and, in doing so, they were also paying a tribute to that great virtue – performance of duty. The time was not far distant when their places would be taken by those to whom the Great War would no longer be an experience and remembrance, but a period of past history, and they must embue their children and grandchildren with their feelings, for thus would be created one more of those noble traditions which had helped to make this country. And while they were honouring the dead they should not forget the living, some of whom had lost their all, who through shattered health were unable to earn their living. They owed them a deep debt of gratitude which was difficult to pay, but he could not help thinking that if everybody there would form the resolution never to let the opportunity pass of showing them sympathy, it would, indeed, be a worthy coping stone to the monument to their dead comrades. The years which followed the war had been a time when pledges had been unredeemed and hopes unfulfilled – a time of universal difficulty, which had not been made any easier by the mental revolution, through which the whole world was passing. Standards which had served them for generations were being swept aside. Moral foundations which they had ever looked upon as sound were showing signs of quivering, and in that atmosphere moral forces had been let loose which were too dimly, if at all, understood, and of which no man could conceive the end, and which no man had yet learned how to govern, much less how to control. They entered the war with high ideals, convinced of the justice of their cause, and believing that victory would bring them peace and security, but experience had taught them that a victory in arms, although it was an essential step in that direction, was not, in itself, sufficient to gain their ends, and they found themselves still fighting, not against the enemy of the other day, but against a combination of hostile circumstances, which, in their way, were as dangerous as ever were German bombs or shells. NATION'S FUTURE DESTINY. There was the reaction which naturally enough set in after four years of unprecedented strain and stress – a reaction which helped rather to sap our energies and to undermine our self-confidence. The trade on which our welfare so greatly depended had been entirely dislocated by the worldwide upheaval. Many remedies had been proposed and many attempts made, but so far with little success, and there was a real danger that we might turn towards schemes which in truth were impracticable, illusory, and idealistic. Ideals were great things, but unless they were based on realities they were like a Will-o'-the-Wisp, and would lead those who were seeking safety into danger. They had to ask themselves whether their ideals were based on realities, for on the correct answer to that question lay, in a great degree, their future destiny.
  • The Dundee Advertiser 5 July 1920 reports that Kirkcaldy Town Council has given "a handsome memorial parchment" to the relatives of each of the 900 inhabitants who died in the war.
  • The Courier 18 September 2010 for plans for the post war plaque
  • Images of the WW2 wall and plaques- warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=2805&mforum=warmemscot
  • Image of the Palestine/Malaya/Northern Ireland/Afghanistan Plaque- which is at the end of the WW2 plaques wall-warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=8822&mforum=warmemscot
  • Carter Postcard Collection
  • Scottish War Memorials Project, for a full set of images: warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=735&mforum=warmemscot
  • Scottish Screen Archive ssa.nls.uk/film/1728/76860944

This record comprises all information held by IWM’s War Memorials Register for this memorial. Where we hold a names list for the memorial, this information will be displayed on the memorial record. Please check back as we are adding more names to the database.

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