Motherwell church pilgrimage to retrace final footsteps of WW1 soldier

Church members are embarking on an emotional pilgrimage to Belgium to retrace the final footsteps of a young soldier killed during the last days of the First World War.

The group from Motherwell South Parish Church will pay their respects to Sergeant James Robertson Cowan on Armistice Day at Vichte Military Cemetery where he is buried.

The fifth of seven children born to George and Rachel Cowan in the North Lanarkshire town in 1893, he enlisted after the First World War broke out in 1914.

He initially served with the Lanarkshire Yeomanry, a regiment of the British Army, which later amalgamated with the Ayrshire Yeomanry to form the 12th Battalion Royal Scots Fusiliers.

It is hard to imagine the horrors of war that James, known as Jerry to his friends and family, would have witnessed during three years of active service in Gallipoli, Egypt and France.

The Royal Scots Fusiliers later shipped out to Belgium and took part in the Allied offensive near Audenarde, the final advance in Flanders on 31 October 1918.

It was during this fateful battle at Tiegem, 11 days before the Armistice was signed on 11 November 1918 to bring First World War fighting to an end, that James, along with thousands of other soldiers, was killed.

He left behind a devastated family and a fiancée called Nan Johnston and his name is commemorated on three war memorials in Motherwell.

Local church members have brought the story of "one of our own" to life in a new book and in a 10-minute film, which will be unveiled during a service on Remembrance Sunday.

James's story came to the attention of pilgrimage leader, Rev Alan Gibson, in the most remarkable way in 2023.

He discovered that the soldier is buried next to his great uncle, Daniel Gibson, who also served with the Royal Scots Fusiliers and died in the same battle on the same day.

"In 2009, I visited my great uncle's grave at Vichte, the first member of my family to do so," said the minister of Motherwell South Parish Church.

"Due to the advent of genealogical information being available online, I was able to easily research his story unlike earlier generations.

"He and his brother Archie, my grandfather, both served and Archie survived the war and came home.

"They were from Saltcoats and initially served with the Ayrshire Yeomanry and later the Royal Scots Fusiliers.

Service

"Over the years I have kept in touch with people in Belgium who are passionate about telling the stories behind the names of the men buried at Vichte.

"Around three years ago, one of them advised that I should research the name of the man buried next to my great uncle, saying ‘you should know him, he is from Dalzell parish'.

"I was completely taken aback, and thought ‘wow, this is incredible - what are the chances that that somebody from my parish died on the same day as my great uncle and is buried right next to him?'

"James Cowan was not a famous general or a politician.

"He was a young man who grew up on the Dalzell Estate, later lived in Miller Street, went to Dalziel High School, was a member of the local Boys' Brigade and followed his father into the local steel industry at the age of 14.

"Like so many other Scots, he left his community to serve his country.

"His name is on war memorials in Motherwell, but no one knew who he was or what his story was.

"Slowly we have pieced together that story, and behind the name was a son, a brother, a fiancé, a steelworker and a young man whose future was taken from him.

"More than a century later, 40 people from the town he called home will travel to Belgium and stand beside his grave and remember him.

"We will also walk in his footsteps and visit the area where he spent the final days of his life.

"I think there will be something incredibly powerful about people from Motherwell standing in those same places 108 years later."

Sergeant Thomas Caldwell of nearby Carluke in South Lanarkshire also served with Royal Scots Fusiliers and fought alongside James Cowan and Daniel Gibson in the same battle.

Unlike them he survived and he was awarded the Victoria Cross for an act of extraordinary bravery which saw him storm an enemy position in a farmhouse and capture 18 German soldiers.

The group from Motherwell South Parish Church are travelling to Belgium on Monday.

The people of Vichte are preparing a special welcome for the visitors and a pipe band is taking part in the commemorations, bringing a distinct Scottish presence to the village where James has rested for more than a century.

The group will attend the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres on Tuesday evening.

The following day on Armistice Day itself, they will gather at James's grave, which promises to be a very poignant moment for Alan who will also reflect on his great uncle's ultimate sacrifice.

After the service, the group will be the guests of honour at a reception hosted by the regional mayor at a nearby castle.