On Monday, 4th August 2014, Heather Humphreys TD, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, attended a number of events in both Glasgow and Belfast, to mark the centenary of the outbreak of World War One.
Glasgow
On Sunday 3rd August, a religious service, marking the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, was held at St. Mungo’s Cathedral, Glasgow.
The Prince of Wales, Prime Minister David Cameron, Alex Salmond Scotland’s First Minister, and Commonwealth Heads of Government attended the service. The Government was represented by Heather Humphreys TD, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. The service featured hymns, poetry and readings from the diaries of soldiers who fought and died in the war.
The Rev Dr Laurence Whitley told the 1,400 guests in the 12th century cathedral: “We meet because on a summer’s day like this one, one hundred years ago, the world changed. Our nations and peoples found themselves in a war the like of which had never before been experienced, and the memory of which still haunts us all”.
The religious service was followed by a procession to the cenotaph in the city’s George Square for a wreath-laying ceremony.
In the square, the Duke of Rothesay, as the Prince of Wales in known in Scotland, laid the first wreath of the cenotaph ceremony, followed by the Prime Minister and Commonwealth Representatives. Minister Humphreys laid a wreath on behalf of the Irish Government.
The pipes and drums of the Scots Guards, the band of the Parachute Regiment, and representatives of the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force were on parade.
Belfast
Following the events in Glasgow, Minister Humphreys travelled to Belfast for a number of commemorative ceremonies.
She gave a reading at a service of solemn commemoration in St. Anne’s Cathedral before attending a reception at Belfast City Hall.
Most Rev Dr Richard Clarke, Archbishop of Armagh said, inter alia, that “commemorating the outbreak of World War, one fuses sadness, pride and horror”.
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Peter Robinson and Secretary of State Theresa Villiers attended the religious service. Prince Andrew represented the Queen.
Afterwards, Minister Humphreys laid a wreath at City Hall in memory of Irish soldiers killed in the First World War before taking part in the vigil ceremony conducted at City Hall.
A cannon was fired from the wartime fortification at Grey Point Fort in Co Down to commemorate Britain’s declaration of hostilities against Germany. The location was part of a network of coastal defences which guarded the mouth of Belfast Lough during the First World War. It was decommissioned in 1956 and has been managed as a historical monument, one of several examples of defence heritage across Ireland.
Speaking in advance of the events, Minister Humphreys said that:
“As relations between the people of these islands continue to evolve, it is only right that we come together to remember those people, from across the two islands, who gave their lives in the Great War.
Whatever their background, those soldiers each made the same ultimate sacrifice. Bombs and bullets did not discriminate between British or Irish, Catholic or Protestant, Nationalist or Unionist, and they fell side by side in incomprehensible numbers. Their families and loved ones shared a common bond, as they were left to deal with their terrible losses.
It is fitting that a century later, people of all shades of political opinion and none, can come together in dignity and respect in memory of those brave men”.
Ahead of the day’s events, the Secretary of State Theresa Villiers, said: “One hundred years on from the start of the First World War and the huge scale of the conflict and the enormous loss of life is no less shocking today. “It is very important that we remember the sacrifice made by men and women from across these islands who gave so much for our freedom.”
