Lone piper plays at Edinburgh Castle to mark 80th anniversary of VJ Day

South Wales Guardian

a day ago

Senior Pipe Major Peter Grant was one of six armed forces bagpipers playing simultaneously at locations in the UK and east Asia on Friday.
The pipers all played the traditional tune When The Battle's O'er, and a wreath was laid at the Japanese Garden of Peace in Hammersmith, London.
Two other UK pipers played at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire and the Cenotaph in London.
Meanwhile, the three pipers in east Asia played at the British Army camp in Kathmandu, Nepal, the Royal Gurkha Rifles Memorial in Brunei, and on board aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales, which is currently at sea in the Far East.
Other events to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day are also taking place on Friday.
A national two-minute silence will be held at noon and the Red Arrows will join historic Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft for a flypast over the commemorations at the National Memorial Arboretum.
A number of public buildings around the UK are also set to be lit up on Friday evening.
Sites in Scotland will include Stirling Castle, Scone Palace, Ness Bridge, the Kelpies, Glasgow Bridge, Hamilton Town House and Edinburgh City Chambers.
By 1945, some 365,000 British and 1.5 million Commonwealth troops had been deployed across Asia and the Pacific.
More than 90,000 British troops were casualties in the war against Japan, and nearly 30,000 died, while more than 12,000 Britons were among the 190,000 Commonwealth troops held as prisoners of war by the Japanese.
Of the Allied forces, the US suffered the greatest losses, with more than 100,000 killed in action.
In an audio message released at 7.30am on Friday, the King paid tribute to the 'courage and camaraderie' of those who fought in the Pacific and Far East in what he said was 'humanity's darkest hour'.
He also acknowledged the hardships suffered by 'innocent civilian populations of occupied territories'.
'Their experience reminds us that war's true cost extends beyond battlefields, touching every aspect of life – a tragedy all too vividly demonstrated by conflicts around the world today,' he said.
'On this landmark anniversary, we should also pause to acknowledge that in the war's final act, an immense price was paid by the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki – a price we pray no nation need ever pay again.'
He added: 'But in recalling so much suffering, we must not lose sight of how great was the cause and how sweet the victory.'