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BATTLEGROUND PERTHSHIRE is a concise account of the battles and minor military events that have taken place within the county of Perthshire. Comprising two thousand years of battles, raids, rebellions, sieges, riots, feuds, ambushes and skirmishes, Battleground Perthshire shines the spotlight on the military history of Scotland’s big county. Drawn from extensive primary and secondary sources: archives, eyewitness accounts and official records, it tells the fascinating stories of struggles for wealth, power, freedom and the right to self-determination. This chronicle of Perthshire’s military history stands as an important reminder of some of the events that have marked the development of the Scottish people. It will appeal both to the reader interested in the history of Scotland and to those interested in military history.

Battleground Perthshire can be bought from most bookshops in the Perthshire area: The Watermill at Aberfeldy; Sweet Words at Dunkeld; Waterstones - various stores including Perth; WHSmith - Perth and Pitlochry. And, in Perth Museum, the AK Bell Library, Gloagburn Farm Shop, the Brig Farm Shop by Bridge of Earn. Alternatively, it may be purchased for £7.00 with FREE postage and packing to any UK address {Please email for postage costs for locations outside UK}. Send cheque or postal order (payable to Tippermuir Books) to Tippermuir Books, c/o 3 Graham's Place, King Street, Perth, Perth, PH2 8HZ. It can also be bought through most of the UK online (internet) booksellers.

Spanish Thermopylae: Cypriot Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39 SPANISH THERMOPYLÆ is the story of the fifty-seven Cypriots who served in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39. It is also the story of a war that defined the lives of a generation and whose outcome decided the fate of hundreds of millions of people across the world. Drawing on recently released records from the Comintern Archive in Moscow, Spanish Thermopylae will appeal both to the reader interested in the experiences of the Cypriot volunteers, and to anyone looking for a concise history of the Spanish Civil War. 'This is the first book devoted solely to the contribution made by Cypriots to the cause of democracy and progress in the Spanish Civil War. It bears witness to the injustice committed against humanity by fascism in Spain and the inspirational sacrifices made by a small band of Cypriot volunteers. Spanish Thermopylae is a fitting tribute to them, and the International Brigades.' Demetris Christofias, President of the Republic of Cyprus 'True to the best traditions of their Greek forefathers, the heroes of the Greek War of Independence, the Cypriots rallied to the support of Spanish democracy and independence, realising that a defeat for the Spanish people would have meant world war. On the Spanish battlefields was being decided the fate of Europe and with it that of Cyprus. They recognised fascism as the greatest enemy of humanity and volunteered to help crush it... Many Cypriots lie buried in the Spanish soil fighting fascism. Cyprus is proud of her heroic sons who fell in the anti-fascist cause, but the fight is not over. We fight on until fascism is destroyed from the face of the earth.' Ezekias Papaioannou, Cypriot International Brigades volunteer and General Secretary of AKEL (1949-88) "Before many years have passed, their own countries will feel equally proud of the volunteers. That will be their best and highest reward." Juan Negrín, Prime Minister of the Spanish Republic (1937-39). It is available from www.amazon.co.uk

 

 


HISTORY

James Peeble Ewing Kennaway - Novelist & Screenwriter

Born into a well-off middle class family in Auchterarder 5 June 1928. His father a lawyer died when James Kennaway was only 12 years of age - his father had served in the Black Watch in 1914. Brought up by his mother a doctor, James Kennaway attended Cargifield School in Edinburgh until the age of 8 and then Glenalmond College. At the age of eighteen James Kennaway was called up for two years of National Service.

Although his birthplace defined him as a Scottish writer, in a similar vein to fellow Perthshire author John Buchan, James Kennaway saw himself more as a 'writer from Scotland.'

His National Service was taken with initially with the Black Watch and then with Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders and finally with the 1st Battalion of the Gordon Highlanders as a commissioned officer. From these experiences came James Kennaway's first and well-acclaimed novel, Tunes of Glory (1956) - a book that describes the class confrontation within the army. Two years earlier a short story by James Kennaway was published under the title, The Dollar Bottom in Lilliput. This book was later made into a film and in fact won an Oscar for Best Short Film.

After National Service James Kennaway went up to Trinity College, Oxford to study Politics, Philosophy and Economics (1948). Here he met his future wife, Susan Edmonds, who many years later went onto have an affair with the writer John le Carre. He was twenty-three when he wed his bride Susie (Susan) of only twenty-one - just after they both left university (1951).

James Kennaway spent his evenings and weekends writing and developing his characters as he eventually produced his first novel. Tunes of Glory is set in a dismal army barracks that the model for which James Kennaway used the Queen's Barracks in Perth. It eventually was made into a film with Alec Guinness in the lead role - James Kennaway wrote the script for the film. Success allowed James Kennaway to relocate for a short period to Hollywood, where he became a scriptwriter in the film industry.

The National Library of Scotland (Edinburgh) houses the papers of James Kennaway (these were partly gifted by the novelists' wife in 1968 and partly purchased by the library in 2007): Accs. 5540, 5696 and 12670.

Other Novels by James Kennaway:

Household Ghosts (1961) - later a stage-play

Some Gorgeous Accident (1967)

The Cost of Living Like This (1969)

Silence (published posthumously in 1972)

The Bells of Shoreditch

The Mindbenders (1962) - later a film

Other film scripts written by James Kennaway:

Violent Playground (1958)

Country Dance (called Brotherly Love in the USA) (1969/70) - starring Peter O'Toole and Susannah York

The Battle of Britain (1969)

The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)

See also:

The Kennaway Papers (edited by his wife Susan) - exposes the mercurial personality of James Kennaway and the turbulent marriage

James Kennaway died on 21 December 1968 after suffering a cardiac arrest whilst driving his car aged only 40.

In April of 2007, Tunes of Glory played at the Perth Concert Hall performed by the Middle Ground Theatre Company. "A classic tale of honour, betrayal and secret love.Set in a highland regiment barracks in the 1950s, acting Colonel Major Jock Sinclair, a charismatic, wild and stormy war hero, has worked his way up the ranks the hard way to command his beloved regiment. His command is short lived when Colonel Basil Barrow, ex-public school boy arrives. Barrow is devoted to restoring the faded glory of this undisciplined regiment. The two clash instantly. The outcome is both shocking and devastating in this sharply observed, gripping heartfelt story. James Kennaway was born in Auchterarder in 1928. Tunes of Glory was made famous by the movie starring Sir Alec Guinness and John Mills."

 

 

 

 
email: ap@alternative-perth.org