St Andrewstide Events

What a splendid day Edward organized for us on Saturday. We began with a short EGM to ratify the revised Consitution of the Society and then had a magisterial St Andrewstide lecture from the President, John Malden, Slains Pursuivant, on "The Heraldry and Funeral of Mary Queen of Scots." A scholarly talk was much enlivened by the wonderful images prepared for the talk by Beverly Bergman, who recreated in digital format the long-lost heraldic ceiling of the Great Hall of Seton Palace, and Mark Dennis, Ross Herald Extraordinary, who with his usual artistic finesse brought the engravings of the procession and hearse to life by his beautiful paintings of the coats of arms.

The weekend continued with a splendid dinner for nearly 100 people in the Royal Scots Club. The visual impact of the occasion was hugely increased by the plethora of table-banners and the Chairman's banner, impaling her arms with those of the Society. An additional treat this year was the appearance of a version of the famous Blue Blanket of Edinburgh, marking the presence of our witty and engaging "guest" speaker (although he is of course a member) Ian Robertson, Deacon Convener of the Trades of Edinburgh.

The pretty-poor snaps above were just taken on my mobile phone but thankfully Edward Mallinson has supplied me with some excellent pictures of the next day's event, the St Andrew's Day Festival at St Giles attended by the Order of the Thistle and many members of the HSS.

The Officers of Arms led the procession which included the Secretary to the Thistle, our V-P Elizabeth Roads, the Lord Lyon and Dean of the Thistle, Very Rev. Iain Torrance, Knight.