Regimental Christmas card

Category

Museums & Galleries Item

Item no

23268

Title

Regimental Christmas card

Description

Christmas carded printed for the troops in the Seaforth Highlanders, 1916. The card has a soft sheen and has two panels of printed watercolour pictures. The type on the front has the words SLAINTE-NA-GAEL (Scottish Gaelic for 'Health to the Gaels/Highlanders'). In the top left corner are the words IN THE FIELD. In pencil is written 'To Dad frae Johnnie, wishing you merry [...]' The rest of the writing has faded away.
The card opens from the right and opens out to show two colour illustrations. The one on the right shows three vignettes of a Scottish kilted soldier in action with rifle drawn, marching, and in action, kneeling with rifle drawn and wearing a gas mask. The picture is bordered with silhouettes of tanks, ambulances, trucks, horses and soldiers, and there are thistles in each corner.

Date

1916

Type

Paper

Location

Museum of Edinburgh

Accession number

HH3697/6/72

Sent by Sgt. John Walker to his father, William Walker in Leith.

This card is part of a collection of items relating to an Edinburgh-based man, Sergeant John Walker. In civilian life, Walker was originally from Haddington, but lived in Leith, and worked as a butcher. He and three brothers joined the army. Walker eventually joined the Seaforth Highlanders, where he was awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal. He was killed by a shell in the area around Vimy and Thelus on 15th April 1917. The collection includes several photographs with holes made by the shrapnel which killed him. A set of photograph postcards of Walker's grave and other memorials, some of which include a man in military uniform, may have been taken by Walker's brothers touring the area immediately after the Armistice.

Exhibitions with this item

Other views of this item

Related images

Related subjects

Events > Wars > Wars

Events > Wars > World wars