Goin' to a Kirkin'

[macwilkin]

Sorry to be pedantic, but...

The information about the Rev. Peter Marshall who was originally from Coatbridge about 5 miles from my home town of Uddingston is fine but the rest of what these Montreat Caledonian Society people say is romantic nonsense 'Brigadoonerie' which as a bone fide Scottish Historian I feel a moral obligation to debunk.

A) The Hanoverians were not English monarchs and neither was the Parliament at Westminster which met from 1707. The House of Hanover were originally German and indirectly descended from James VI and I's (House of Stuart) granddaughter, Sophia. They were therefore more Scots by heritage than English. George I came to the throne in 1714, so the House of Hanover were always legally and constitutionally British monarchs.

B) Presbyterians were as a religious body whether Church of Scotland, or Erskinite seceeders opposed to Jacobitism.

Well said, Peter. Contrary to the myth that many diaspora organizations present here in North America and in other parts of the world, the Kirkin' service is a "Scottish-American" church parade that Rev. Marshall started during WWII to raise funds for war relief, specifically the relocation of urban children to the Highlands during the Blitz. It is similar to a regimental church parade for some societies. I have been researching the Kirkin' service for over a decade now, and the majority of sources, primary and secondary, seem to confirm Marshall as the originator of the service.

T.