The Bruce family has been at the centre of national events in Scotland for over 700 years. Without doubt King Robert the Bruce’s victory over an army led by King Edward II of England, at Bannockburn on 23rd June 1314, is the most notable. Although Robert’s military success was outstanding, he had to endure a further 14 years of war …
VE Day 75th anniversary: The Bruce family and world war (Part 3)
Section Officer Constance Babington-Smith MBE (WAAF/RAF): discovering the Nazis’ weapons of mass destruction Constance Babington-Smith (1912-2000), a grand-daughter of Victor Bruce 9th Earl of Elgin, joined the WAAF in 1939 as an Assistant Section Officer. In 1941 she was posted to the Photographic Reconnaissance Unit (PRU) at RAF Medmenham, where she was later joined by her brother Bernard. The unit …
VE Day 75th anniversary: The Bruce family and world war (Part 2)
Flight Lieutenant Robert Bruce DFC and Bar (RCAF): hunting the V-1 Flying Bomb Born at Inverkeilor in Angus, Robert Bruce (1915-2012) was a great-nephew of Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin, (grandfather of Constance Babington-Smith). A gifted musician, Robert entered the war as a conscientious objector working with the Friends Ambulance Service during the London Blitz. He was eventually persuaded …
VE Day 75th anniversary: The Bruce family and world war (Part 1)
Andrew Bruce (11th Earl of Elgin) and the Normandy break-out, July/August 1944. Although aged only fifteen when Britain declared war, 96 year old Andrew Bruce ( 11th Earl of Elgin) is one of the few surviving witnesses to the first air battle fought over the British mainland – the Battle of the Forth – which occurred on 16th October 1939. …
Broomhall House and the world’s most prominent motoring icon (Part Two)
Above: The Bruce family’s 1923 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Returning from a workshop in Monktonhall where it spent the winter, the Bruce family’s 1923 Silver Ghost is now sporting a pair of very smart period headlamps. This Rolls-Royce fixed head coupe has been kept at Broomhall for over fifty years. Although its body is French – built by the master coachworks, …