Memorial details

Memorial type
Trophy / Relic
District
Inverness
Town
Inverness
County
Highland
Country
Scotland
Commemoration
First World War (1914-1918)
Ceremony
  • Presented
    Date: 20 October 1921
    Attended by:
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
77761

Support IWM

Donate with Just Giving

Any gift we receive makes a vital contribution to our ongoing work, from conserving our collection to supporting our public programme.

Make a Donation
Current location

Outside the castle
Inverness Castle
Castle Street
Inverness
Inverness
Highland
IV2 3EG
Scotland

OS Grid Ref: Undefined
Denomination: Undefined

View location on Google Maps
Previous locations
  • Track to Clan Cameron Museum through gate signposted to the left from the B8005.
    Clan Cameron Museum
    Achnacarry
    Spean Bridge
    Lochaber
    Highland
    PH34 4EJ
    Scotland

    OS Grid Ref: NN 17577 87736
    Denomination: Undefined
Description
Two WW1 artillery pieces on display outside the museum.
Inscription
CAPTURED BY THE / 5TH. SERVICE BATTALION / Q. O. CAMERON HIGHLANDERS / AT FOSSE VIII-LEZ-BETHUNE / BATTLE OF LOOS 25TH SEP. 1915 / PRESENTED BY THE BATTALION / TO THE COUNTY OF INVERNESS / 20TH. OCT. 1921
Inscription legible?
yes
Commemorations
  • First World War (1914-1918)
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
Components
  • Trophy / Relic
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Steel
  • Plaque
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Metal
Condition
History
2017- Guns due to be refurbished
Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Reference
  • Am Baile www.ambaile.org.uk/detail/en/11350/1/EN11350-german-and-russian-field-guns-at.htm On the left of this photograph is a German field gun captured by Cameron Highlanders during World War I; on the right is a Russian cannon captured during the siege of Sebastopol during the Crimean War. The German gun was captured at the Battle of Loos on 25 September 1915 by 5th Battalion Cameron Highlanders. At the time of writing (2017) it can be seen outside the Clan Cameron Museum at Achnacarry. The Russian gun was one of a pair which was given to the town in August 1857. Following the Treaty of Paris, Britain’s share of the spoils from the Siege of Sebastopol was brought to the Royal Armoury at Woolwich and from there around 300 were distributed to towns and cities which desired them (the rest were melted down). An application was made on behalf of Inverness by the MP for Inverness-shire, Henry James Baillie and, in August 1857, the barrels of two slightly damaged 45 pound cannons arrived at Thornbush Quay. In 1861, the carriages on which the guns were originally sited were replaced with purpose-built cast-iron carriages that can be seen in this photograph. They were made by the Rose Street Foundry. In 1941, the guns were sold to a scrap metal merchant from Elgin. The following are extracts from Inverness-shire County Council Records: Chairman's Committee of the Inverness County Council , 12 Dec 1939. (CI/3/1/60 p311) " CASTLE GROUNDS - GUN; The Committee noted and approved the action taken to secure the position of a gun on the castle grounds, which, by reason of disrepair, had become a menace to the safety of people frequenting the grounds. Noted" Chairman's Committee of the Inverness County Council , 15 Oct 1940. (CI/3/1/61 p177) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT CASTLE; With regard to the old guns in the castle Grounds the Clerk submitted a report on their history by Mr. Murdoch Mackintosh, sheriff-clerk. It was agreed to recommend that meantime no action be taken for their disposal as scrap but that the field gun captured at Loos by the 5th battalion Cameron Highlanders be transferred inside the building and the other German field piece meantime in the entrance hall to the Court-House transferred to the outside" Chairman's Committee of the Inverness County Council , 4 March 1941. (CI/3/1/62 p400) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT THE CASTLE; Referring to the minute of 15 Oct 1940, submitted letter of 24 January by the Town Clerk enclosing copy of a letter from the Director of Scrap Supplies, Ministry of Supply, regarding the old guns at the Castle constituting a quantity of potential scrap iron and steel. Submitted also letter of 15 Feb from the same Department addressed to the County Clerk in similar terms, to which a reply had been sent pointing out that the two old artillery guns are relics of the Crimea war. Submitted further letter of 25 Feb by the Ministry of Supply stating that they do not propose that these two guns should be requisitioned for the national effort meantime. The Committee resolved to recommend that the guns at the castle be handed over to the Ministry of Supply with the exception of the following;- a) Field gun captured by the 5th Battalion Q. O. Cameron Highlanders b) Bronze field piece captured by the 7 Battn. Q. O. Cameron Highlanders County Council of Inverness-shire, 6 March 1941 (CI/3/1/62 p443) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT THE CASTLE; That the guns at the castle be handed over to the Ministry of Supply with the exception of the following;- a) Field gun captured by the 5th Battalion Q. O. Cameron Highlanders b) Bronze field piece captured by the 7 Battn. Q. O. Cameron Highlanders Finance Committee of Inverness County Council, 12 June 1941. (CI/3/1/63 p32) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT THE CASTLE; Reference Chairman's Minutes 4 match (p.400) authorising disposal of guns at the Castle, reported that the three guns in question had been sold to Messrs. Williamson & Co., Elgin, for the sum of £25. Approved." Chairman's Committee of the Inverness County Council , 6 October 1941. (CI/3/1/63 p152) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT THE CASTLE; Reference Minute of 12 June, reported that by an unfortunate error the 7th Battalion gun belonging to the Cameron Highlanders had been taken away by the scrap metal merchants instead of the gun captured by the 1st battalion and that the mistake had been discovered too late to be rectified. Reported also that expression of regret had been sent by Locheil and the County Clerk to Col. Norman MacLeod, through whose good offices the gun had been placed in the custody of the County Council and that he had now suggested that the price received for the gun should be paid over to the Comforts Fund for the Camerons. The Committee unanimously agreed to recommend that the sum referred to should be credited to the Comforts Fund and with regard to the two guns now remaining that they should be placed in the entrance to the County Buildings." Inverness County Council, 16 October 1941. (CI/3/1/63 p195) "SCRAP - OLD GUNS AT THE CASTLE; That the sum received for the 7th Battalion gun, disposed of in error, be credited to the Cameron Comforts Fund and that the two guns now remaining be placed in the entrance to the County Buildings."
  • Clan Cameron Museum www.clancameronmuseum.co.uk/exhibits.html

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.

This information is made available under a Creative Commons BY-NC licence.

This means you may reuse it for non-commercial purposes only and must attribute it to us using the following statement:

© WMR-77761

For queries, please contact [email protected].