A bronze plaque, at the entrance to the Cameronian Museum at Low Parks, Hamilton, honours the men of all the constituent regiments of the 52nd Lowland Division who gave their lives in the Liberation of Beveland and Walcheren in 1944, and proclaims “THE DUTCH DON”T FORGET”.
The plaque was presented in 1994 by Jon Borstein. a member the Dutch resistance movement. on the 50th anniversary of the Divsion’s landing at Baarland after the crossing of the Scheldt Estuary.
The plaque, mounted on an impressive granite plinth, was unveiled at a ceremony attended by former soldiers of the 6th & 7th Battalions of the Cameronians. A Motherwell man, Tommy Mackie who was a young sergeant at the time commented “Now that all the refurbishment work at the Museum has been completed, we’re delighted that it is being given pride of place in a small garden near the entrance”.
A more ephemeral manifestation of this same heartfelt gratitude was the related biennial visit by members of the ex-156 Brigade Association to South Beveland and Walcheren in the Province of Zeeland in the south of The Netherlands hosted by Dutch families; and the return visits by Dutch friends in the intervening years.
Of these visits Tommy said “ We were invited back to Walcheren and Beveland in 1989 and given a real VIP welcome. Since then we’ve been invited every second year and stay with local people in their homes. They’re the greatest people under the sun and they have never forgotten what we did for them”
The visit in 2004 was special, though given the passage of time the numbers in the party had reduced.
Fourteen members and families of the Ex-156 Brigade Association visited the town of Borssele during the first week of November 2004 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Liberation. The Brigade , as part of the 52nd Lowland Division, had played a key part in the assault.
The party included Mrs Glenys Grant and her husband, Smith. Glenys was the visits co-ordinator.and Tommy Mackie was on the organising committee, as were Messrs A. Adam and J. Kelly.
The visitation party also included Dutch, Scottish, Canadian, French and English dignitaries – reflecting the nations involved in the Liberation effort.
A reciprocal visit to Scotland took place in April 2005. It included services of thanksgiving at the Cameronian Cairn near Castle Dangerous, Douglas, and at the 52nd Division memorial at Hamilton Museum.
The visits continued until, at least, 1994.
Sadly, Jim Marler died in 1995. Jim Marler’s family presented his medals to Low Waters Museum for inclusion in its Cameronian collection.
The ex-156 Brigade Association formal visits ended soon after.