'˜Courage' of people of Clydebank hailed on Blitz anniversary

The West Dunbartonshire town was devastated by two nights of bombing on March 13 and 14, 1941. A total of 528 civilians were killed, at least 617 were seriously injured and tens of thousands of people were left homeless. The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland led the first service to commemorate the air raids on Clydebank to be held at the Palace of Westminster. The Right Rev Dr Angus Morrison was invited to mark the anniversary by MP Martin Docherty-Hughes. The SNP politician grew up in the town, where services to commemorate the blitz were held over the weekend. In his sermon, which he delivered at the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft, Dr Morrison said: “The suffering, resilience and courage of the people of Clydebank have not always been adequately acknowledged and it is appropriate and right that we do so here today and in this capital city of our nation which itself endured the experience of destruction from the skies. “It is a tragedy still being relived to this day in the lives of hundreds of survivors both in Scotland and scattered around the world who remain haunted by what they had to pass through in 1941. • READ MORE: Two nights when Hell came to Clydebank “The suffering and the destruction unleashed on Clydebank were unspeakable. But as in this city of London, as elsewhere, during the blitz, the Luftwaffe utterly failed in its aim of destroying the spirit of the people.” Mr Docherty-Hughes said: “The Clydebank blitz was a tragedy on a huge scale and a great many of the men, women and children who survived drew strength from their faith to help them cope with such a catastrophic loss and horrific trauma.” Scottish heritage: for stories on Scotland’s people, places and history >>