US $4 THE CLAN WALLACE SOCIETY THE THE GUARDIANGUARDIAN A Quarterly Publication of the Clan Wallace Society WINTER 2015 ESTABLISHED IN 1966. VOL 49, NUMBER 4 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE FÀILTE ! North America, On behalf of Ian Francis Wallace of but all over the that Ilk, 35th Chief of Clan Wallace; world. We enjoy Acting Chief Andrew R. Wallace, meeting people Younger of that Ilk; and the Presi- and sharing our dent and the Board of Directors, we Scottish heritage welcome the four individuals listed and have never below to the fellowship ranks of the looked back. Clan Wallace Society. Several years Annual Membership ago we bought Paporn Wallace an RV with the Redmond WA primary purpose Renee Howell of traveling ac- Puyallup WA Our president-elect for 2016, Russ Harper of Lewisville, NC. ross the counry attending various Jeremy Wallace Hope everyone had a wonderful Scottish Games and Celtic events. Sterrett AL Thanksgiving with family, friends and The past couple of years we have Jane Thomas loved ones. attended 20 events a year. Starting Lilbum GA on the second weekend of January For those of you that don’t recognize when we travel to Marathon in the 50th Anniversary. Look for details on the face, let me introduce myself. I Florida Keys for the Florida Keys that in the newsletter and on the am Russ Harper the President elect. Celtic Festival, and in 2015 finishing website as well. My Paternal great grandparents both in Texas at the Salado Scottish Clan emigrated from Scotland and met As I take on the responsibility of be- Gathering and Scottish Games in here in the United States. As a small ing your President, I want to ask you mid-November. Salado Texas is child I remember my great- for your help. There are lots of dif- where Clan Wallace Society was grandmother Wallace. ferent things that we can use your founded and where we will be talents on. So if you would like to My wife, Marcia, and I first got gathering in large numbers to cele- help make the Society grow, we started with Clan Wallace about fif- brate our 50th Anniversary next No- need all your help and support. So teen years ago after attending sev- vember 11th – 13th. We spent a please speak up. (I don’t want to eral Games and being made to feel week after the Games traveling the come up with a list that may impede so welcome at the Wallace tent. We areas around Salado researching you from offering your assistance; if started convening for Clan Wallace places to see and things to do to add you have a talent and a desire, let us at the Grandfather Mountain High- to the Gathering plans. Watch for know.) land games in our home state of articles in the newsletter and on the North Carolina partly for the parking website for information about what On behalf of the Board of Directors, space that came with the convening we have planned. Please also check I want to wish you all “Nollaig package. Over the years we have with the conveners at your local chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ùr.” visited 48 of the 50 states, while at- games for updates. Here’s hoping Pro Libertate, tending Scottish/Celtic events in 16 that you can join us in Salado, we states, two Canadian Provinces, and know you won’t be disappointed. Scotland. We can honestly say we We are also starting an exciting new Russ Harper have friends from all over not only Fund raiser this year in honor of our President-Elect, Clan Wallace Society PAGE 2 THE GUARDIAN WINTER 2015 CONTACTS FLOWERSFLOWERS OFOF THETHE FORESTFOREST PRESIDENT & contractor for 16 years. He served his DIRECTOR OF community as the Scoutmaster of CONVENERS' AFFAIRS Troop 577 in Clifton, VA, for five years, as a dedicated lacrosse, cross Russ Harper country and rugby dad for as long as Lewisville, NC 27023-9547 his boys played, and more recently as [email protected] a member of the Clifton Lions Club. EXECUTIVE V.P. In addition to his wife, Jim is survived by sons CPT Brian Bierwirth, USA Karen Wallace (Artillery) and 1LT Scott Bierwirth, Macon, GA 31210-2304 USA (Infantry). Also father, 1LT Wil- [email protected] liam R. Bierwirth, USA (Ret.), brothers James G. Bierwirth CPT William R. Bierwirth II, USA (Ret.) SECRETARY November 22, 1954 - August 16, 2015 and former Director of the Clan Wal- lace Society, Roy C. Bierwirth, COL Randy Dedrickson LTC James G. Bierwirth, US Army USA (Ret.), and 1LT Bruce W. Bier- Trenton, SC 29847 (Ret.), passed away unexpectedly on wirth USA, all veteran Armor officers. [email protected] August 16, 2015. JB (also known to Jim will be deeply missed by his family some as Jim) was a dedicated profes- and friends. Jim “rode the perilous sional who served as a US Army Offi- TREASURER trail ahead". “Forge the thunderbolt!” Lawrence Slight cer for over 21 years and as a defense St. Augustine, FL 32084-9547 [email protected] CANADACANADA REMEMBERSREMEMBERS CONTENT EDITOR Flags of Remembrance 300 people turned out. The Red Deer Legion Pipe Band played during the R. Wayne Jones By Debbie and John T. Wallace ceremonies. Ranson, WV 25438-5621 On October 17, 2015, the organization [email protected] We sponsored Deb’s uncle Fred Saw- Veterans Voices of Canada held an chuk. He was a Private and served in event east of Sylvan Lake, Alberta on LAYOUT EDITOR the United Kingdom and Continental Highway 11, to pay tribute to all vet- Europe from 1942 to 1946. After Tom E.S. Wallace erans from the Boer War to the pre- which he came home to the Edmonton Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia sent. One hundred and sixteen (116) area and started his family. Uncle [email protected] flags were raised to represent the Fred lived to be in his late eighties. 116,000 Canadian soldiers who died in MEMBERSHIP CHAIR wars since 1900. This was the second Another event participant was Rudy year for this one-day event and about Deutsch, 92 years young, veteran of Charles M. Wallace World War II. 4634 N. Beechwood DR Macon, GA 31210-2304 Tel: 478-471-7489 [email protected] WEBMASTER Appointment Pending [email protected] www. Left: Members of Veterans' Voices of Canada and the public watch 116 Maple Leaf Flags clanwallace.org erected in Sylvan Lake, Alberta. Right: John & Debbie’s sponsorship sign. PAGE 3 THE GUARDIAN WINTER 2015 WILL CHRISTMAS ECLIPSE HOGMANAY IN SCOTLAND? notoriously known in some parts of Scotland." Into the 20th century, Christmas in Scotland was traditionally observed very quietly, because the Church of Scotland – a Presbyterian church – for various reasons never placed much emphasis on the Christmas festival. Christmas Day only became a public holiday in 1958, and Boxing Day in 1974. The New Year's Eve festivity, Hogmanay, was by far the largest cele- bration in Scotland. The gift-giving, public holidays and feasting associated with mid-winter were traditionally held between the 11th of December and 6 January. However, since the 1980s, the fading of the Church's influence The spectacle of Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh to welcome the New Year. and the increased influences from the Prior to the Reformation of 1560, ate auditors constrain their servants to rest of the UK and elsewhere, Christ- Christmas in Scotland, then called Yule yoke their plough on Yule day, in con- mas and its related festivities are now (alternative spellings include Yhoill, tempt of Christ's nativity. Which our nearly on a par with Hogmanay and Yuil, Ȝule and Ȝoull), was celebrated in Lord has not left unpunished, for their "Ne'erday". The capital city of Edin- a similar fashion to the rest of Catholic oxen ran wud, and brak their necks burgh now has a traditional German Europe. It was recorded that in 1545, and lamed some ploughmen, which is Christmas market from late November a few months before his murder, Car- until Christmas Eve. dinal Beaton had "passed over the Christmasse dayes with games and feasting.” However, the Reformation WALLACE’S LINEAGE CONTESTED transformed attitudes to traditional Christian feasting days, including By Bob Wallace Christmas, and led in practice to the Late in the 15th century, somewhere abolition of festival days and other in the 1470s, a book was published church holidays; the Kirk and the state detailing the life and deeds of Sir Wil- being closely linked in Scotland during liam Wallace. A minstrel named Blind the Late Middle Ages and the Early Harry is said to be the author, he tell- Modern period. A 1640 Act of the Par- liament of Scotland abolished the "Yule ing readers that he had access to a vacation and all observation thereof in diary allegedly maintained by Wal- time coming." lace's personal chaplain, John Blair. In Harry's book we are told that Wil- Antiquary Robert Jamieson (1772 - liam's father's name was Malcolm. 1844), a contemporary and colleague This has been given as fact for well of Sir Walter Scott, recorded the opin- over 500 years. ion of an English Clergyman regarding In 1999, someone thought, finally, to the post-Reformation suppression of examine the seal on the Lubeck Letter Christmas: written to the Hanseatic League fol- lowing the 1297 Battle of Stirling "The ministers of Scotland, in con- Bridge. Both Andrew Murray and Wil- tempt of the holy-day observed by liam Wallace sent a letter with thier England, cause their wives and ser- seals attached, telling of Scotland vants to spin in open sight of the peo- once again being open for business.