Burn's Night - some of Southampton's connections with Scotland

Steamship Sheildhall

If you search on TripAdvisor, the No 1 ‘Thing to See and Do’ in Southampton is Steamship Shieldhall.

This former sludge ship – today a passenger vessel with a full programme of summer sailings – was constructed in the Lobnitz Shipyard in Renfrew, Glasgow, on the banks of the River Clyde, in 1955.

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She carried treated sludge down to the ‘Dumping Grounds’ south of Garroch Head off the Isle of Bute until 1977, when she was sold to Southern Water.

Based in Southampton, Shieldhall continued a sludge disposal role, collecting treated waste from depots at Millbrook, Woolston and Marchwood, the dumping grounds being east of Bembridge on the Isle of Wight.

Shieldhall was withdrawn due to rising costs in 1985 and was to be sold for scrap, but a team of heritage-minded enthusiasts saw value in her twin Scotch boilers and triple expansion steam engines and helped raise £20k to save the steamship.

Today visitors have access to the engine room, boiler room and bridge on all of Shieldhall’s sailings, where it is possible to see at close quarters Shieldhall’s working Scottish machinery and instrumentation.

With steam as the motive force, Shieldhall is a very stable vessel, meaning she is very popular for outings with families and photographers.

Today Shieldhall is a member of the National Historic Fleet.

Shieldhall’s 2023 summer programme commences on June 16 and continues through to mid-September.

Dr David Livingstone

Dr David Livingstone was born in Blantyre, Scotland on March 19, 1813, a famous physician, Congregationalist and explorer.

His missionary travels, search for the source of the Nile and famous disappearance – leading to the well-known line delivered by Henry Morton Stanley, ‘Dr Livingstone, I presume? – took place against the backdrop of the ‘Scramble for Africa.’

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Livingstone died in the village of Chipundu – in present-day Zambia – in May 1873, his body was transported back to England, arriving in Southampton in April 1874.

A funeral procession took place along the High Street, Bernard Street and Oxford Street to the Terminus, witnessed by thousands of people.

A special train then conveyed Livingstone’s body to London, where it laid in state in the Royal Geographic Headquarters prior to interment at Westminster Abbey.

It was said that every balcony along the mile-long route from Southampton’s Royal Pier to the station was crammed with spectators and that all shops were closed or semi-closed with drawn blinds in salute.

The Southampton Times recorded that “Southampton did quite as much honour to itself as it did to the memory of Dr Livingstone by the reception which it gave to his remains”.

Saints

Southampton FC has had four Scottish Managers, Graeme Souness, Gordon Strachan, Paul Sturrock and George Burley

Many people think that one of Saints’ most successful managers, Lawrie McMenemy – with whom Saints won the FA Cup in 1976 – is Scottish, but McMenemy was born in Gateshead.

Well-known Scottish footballers who have played for Saints include current squad members Che Adams and Stuart Armstrong, and defenders Danny Fox and Paul Telfer.

Scot Jim McCalliog supplied the iconic long-range pass to Bobby Stokes who then scored the winning goal in the 1976 FA Cup.

The Drummonds

The Drummonds are a well-known local family and have lived on the shores of the Solent for some 250 years, managing the Cadland Estate.

The Drummonds Scottish connections are said to pass back to Maurice, a Hungarian and the first of the Drummonds, who is reputed to have arrived in Scotland in 1068.

Maurice was the captain of the ships that brought ‘Saint’ Margaret - the sister of Edgar Atheling – to Scotland. She would later marry Malcolm Canmore, who had killed MacBeth and restored his family to the throne of Scotland.

The popular Gang Warily Recreation Centre near Blackfield and Fawley is named after the Drummond Clan motto which translates as ‘Go Carefully.’

Good advice if you’re going out to enjoy some ‘Neeps and Tatties’ on Burns Night!

Nigel Philpott is a tour guide with SeeSouthampton.co.uk .

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