Black Isle soldier brought in from the cold as name added to roll of honour – 100 years late
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A BLACK Isle soldier killed in World War I has had his name added to the national war dead Roll of Honour more than 100 years late thanks to detective work by a former policeman from Arbroath.
Patrick Anderson was researching the war memorial at Avoch Church and noticed that Corporal David Bain MacLeman, Scots Guards, was listed on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission index but not on the Scottish National War Memorial at Edinburgh Castle.
Mr Anderson said: "I started to research him fully so that I could forward a file to the Trustees of the Scottish National War Memorial and I managed to find his birth certificate in Scotland.
"He was born on June 6, 1887 at Bog of Afterflow, Avoch to Alexander McLeman and Catherine MacLemman or MacLeman and then I found that a David Bain McLennan was on the 1911 census in Egypt serving as a private with the 1st Battalion Scots Guards but that the spelling of his name had changed.
"He joined the regiment in 1906 and was posted to Egypt during 1911 but then he left the Army in 1913 and worked as a River Tweed water bailiff before joining the Northumberland County Constabulary on March 1914 aged 26. He had just married Elizabeth Miller from Galashiels using the spelling of 'MacLennan' in his marriage certificate.
"He was recalled to his battalion in August 1914 and went with the 1st Battalion Scots Guards as a private to France on August 23, 1914.
Mr Anderson added: "It would appear that on September 14 there began the heaviest fighting the 1st Scots Guards had yet experienced and their losses were really serious. They had four officers and 16 other ranks killed plus two officers wounded and 86 other ranks wounded and 12 other ranks missing so that this may be Pte DB Maclennan as he is listed on the memorial at La Ferte -Sous-Jouarrre Memorial, Seine -et- Marne, to the missing in France.
"Sadly he has no war grave, and his service record dis not survive either due to WW2 London enemy bombing of the army record office or weeding of files over the years."
"I recently received a communication from Lt Colonel Roger Binks, keeper of the Rolls at the Scottish National War Memorial informing me that the casualty Guardsman 6657 David Bain MacLennan, 1st Battalion Scots Guards would be added to the Roll of Honour at the castle with his birthplace shown as Avoch. They will use his birth spelling of MacLeman on the roll of honour.
"I am so pleased that the Scottish National War Memorial have accepted him as a casualty of the Great War of 1914-1918 and he is in from the cold and now recorded with his colleagues who fell in he war to end all wars."
