Our beautiful Cathedral

[Rosaboobie]

Our cathedral on mainland Orkney, St Magnus Cathedral, looks impressive at the best of times but it has been adorned with a myriad of ceramic poppies to commemorate the 100th anniversary of The Battle of Jutland. Here on Sanday, we have the wreck of the B98 which was the lead vessel in the second flotilla.



I have included some reference links if you are interested.

St Magnus Cathedral - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Magnus_Cathedral

The Battle of Jutland - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jutland

Shipwreck on Sanday - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... 220179.jpg

[Diat60]

Very impressive picture, Rosa! Those poppies are amazing. We've been talking about the Battle of Jutland here because Brian's Uncle Percy was in it. According to Wikipedia, your wreck is of a German battle cruiser and is dated 1919. Since Jutland took in 1916, we're curious how it landed up on Sanday in 1919. Any further information?

[mbday630]

that cathedral is beautiful!

Do you live close to the lighthouse? I was at the doctor's office yesterday and he had a calendar with a beautiful picture of a lighthouse and some houses and farmland and stuff by it - and so I got a closer look at it said it was the lighthouse on sanday island. It was beautiful too.

[Rosaboobie]

You mean our lighthouse with the unique black and white stripes, mbday? What a coincidence you saw a photo of it - yes I do live quite close but i have never been inside it. The road has been closed for some time due to sea erosion.

No, Diat, I dont have any more information on this Destroyer, but I will do some research.

EDIT: I found this link, Diat http://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and ... exhibition

[Diat60]

Thought you might be interested in this:

[Kickaha]

Thanks for that picture RB! So many places I haven't been to, including many parts of these Isles we live in!

[Rosaboobie]

Same here, Kickaha - there are so many beautiful places in the British Isles I have never been to.

Why cant I see your photo properly, Diat - when I click on it, nothing happens for me

[Diat60]

These are all embroidered on silk and came with silk envelopes.

[Rosaboobie]

Oh, how beautiful, Diat.

That was a really interesting point that you brought up about the B98 Destroyer having sunk in 1919, i.e. after the war, and after much research this is what I have found, Diat.

Laying in Lopness Bay on Sanday, the remains of a ship can be seen. This is a German Destroyer B98 from World War I. The German Fleet was interned in Scapa Flow at the end of the First World War and on 21 June 1919, orders were given by the German High Command to scuttle the whole fleet. Some remnants of the fleet were shared amongst the allies, one of these being the B98, which had operated as a mailboat. As it was being towed away, the B98 broke her tow and went aground in the Bay of Lopness. Much of the wreck was cut up for scrap in the 1940's and one of its guns is now on display at the Maritime Museum in Lyness, Orkney.

[draclvr]

This is all so interesting... I've spend many hours reading about Orkney history.

[Rosaboobie]

I thought Jersey was an island full of history - what with the German Occupation during WW2 through which my Mum lived through it all (she was just 17 when the war started) - but Orkney is steeped in history just everywhere you go, even on Sanday. And at low tide you can really see the wreck of this Destroyer so well.

[Val]

What beautiful cards and envelopes Diat. Exquisite - so pleased your family kept them over the years. Have never been to Scotland, but I find Europe generally magical. All so seeped in history.

[LadyKestrel]

The cathedral is gorgeous, RB. Where did all the ceramic poppies come from and how do they stay in place? The info about the destroyer is very interesting, too. My late husband was a font of history trivia and would have added this to his collection.

Diat,
The detail work on those silk cards and envelopes is lovely.

[Rosaboobie]

LadyK - I hated history at school but as the years go by, I devour all history with a passion and cant get enough of it.

I copied this from the Orkney Islands web site:-

The installation was originally at HM Tower of London in 2014 where 888,246 poppies were displayed, one to honour every death in the British and Colonial forces of the First World War.

Weeping Window is the cascade of poppies that was seen pouring out of a high window down to the grass below. In Orkney, the poppies will cascade from the western end of the Cathedral.

UK Government Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said: "A wide-ranging cultural programme will help to ensure that every citizen across the UK will be able to reflect on the events of 100 years ago and honour those who made such huge sacrifices.

“These artistic works will complement the commemorative events this year to mark the centenaries of the Battles of Jutland and the Somme. I am especially pleased that we are bringing the iconic Weeping Window poppies sculpture to Orkney as a poignant tribute to the many men who served during the Battle of Jutland - and the wider war at sea."

Alistair Buchan, Orkney Islands Council’s Chief Executive, said: “The spectacular poppies installation has a huge impact on those who experience it as a powerful reminder of enormous loss of life during the First World War.

“This is the year that Orkney will host the UK’s national commemoration of the Battle of Jutland. I can think of no more apt a setting for the Weeping Window sculpture than the Cathedral, which will be at the heart of those commemorations.

“I am delighted that Orkney will provide the first opportunity for people to see the poppies in Scotland. They will reflect Orkney’s close links with the War and the contribution of our forbearers to the war effort, and they will help ensure that those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their countries are never forgotten.”

Jenny Waldman, Director of 14-18 NOW, said: “We are delighted to be able to bring Poppies: Weeping Window to Orkney. This is the furthest the poppies have travelled and it presents a wonderful opportunity for even more people to experience these iconic sculptures.”

Jutland was the most significant naval engagement of the First World War, with over 100,000 sailors involved on 250 ships. More than 6,000 Royal Navy and 2,500 German sailors lost their lives.

The commemorative events include a morning service on 31 May at St Magnus Cathedral, followed by a ceremony and time for reflection at the Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery in Hoy, where over 400 Commonwealth servicemen and German sailors from the First World War are buried. Some were as young as 16 years old.

During the course of the following week a full commemorative programme of events will take place across Orkney, This will culminate on the 5 June with an event to commemorate the loss of 737 men, including the Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener, when HMS Hampshire was sunk by a mine west of Orkney off Marwick Head.

[Diat60]

It must have been a tremendous job to transport them and set them up again. But worth every effort! They are truly spectacular.