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Scottish Regiment's history on parade

A new exhibition, For Valour - The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) 100 years of Service in Peace and War, has opened in time for Remembrance Day at the Royal B.C. Museum.
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The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) parades in front of Victoria City Hall as part of its 100th anniversary celebrations in October. An exhibit now on at the Royal B.C. Museum celebrates the regiment.

A new exhibition, For Valour - The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) 100 years of Service in Peace and War, has opened in time for Remembrance Day at the Royal B.C. Museum.

The exhibition tells stories of the local regiment in its centennial year.

The regiment fought to retake Vimy during the First World War and stormed the beaches of Normandy in the Second World War.

Members were also on the ground to keep the peace in Bosnia/Kosovo and, most recently, Afghanistan.

"This is a joint production, a partnership between the regiment and our museum," said Tim Willis, director of exhibitions and visitor experience for the museum.

"We're really pleased to honour a century of service, from the earliest days to recent UN peacekeeping and NATO operations."

The exhibit features photographs, letters, memorabilia and artifacts, including effects from the regiment's mascot - a St. Bernard dog named Wallace - and personal vignettes of daily regimental life.

Also on display are the bagpipes and Victoria Cross awarded to Pte. James Richardson, a 20-year-old piper for the 16th Battalion who died in battle in October of 1916.

The bagpipes were initially thought to have been lost forever in the mud of the Somme.

But they were rediscovered at a school in Scotland and repatriated to Victoria in 2006.

The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) is the only infantry regiment of Canada's militia or army reserve based on Vancouver Island.

Regular admission to the museum applies. The exhibit runs until Dec. 2.

For more information, go to royalbcmuseum.bc.ca.