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1940 in Scotland

{{Short description|none}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2015}}

{{Use British English|date=January 2015}}

{{Year in Scotland| 1940 }}

Events from the year 1940 in Scotland.

Incumbents

{{further|Politics of Scotland|Order of precedence in Scotland}}

=Law officers=

=Judiciary=

Events

  • 1 January – the Marriage (Scotland) Act 1939 outlawed "irregular" marriages ("marriage by declaration" or "handfasting") from this date, ending the practice of "anvil marriage" at Gretna Green.{{cite web |title=Anvil Weddings Outlawed |url=http://www.gretnagreen.com/anvil-weddings-outlawed-a749 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916175011/http://www.gretnagreen.com/anvil-weddings-outlawed-a749 |url-status=dead |archive-date=16 September 2012 |work=Gretna Green since 1754 |publisher=Gretna Green Ltd |access-date=2014-05-08 }}
  • 17 January – World War II: {{GS|U-25|1936|6}} sank SS Polzella and the neutral Norwegian ship Enid 10 miles north of Shetland.
  • 26 January – World War II: Requisitioned {{RMS|Durham Castle}}, while being towed to Scapa Flow, was sunk by a mine probably laid by German submarine U-57 off the entrance to Cromarty Firth.{{Cite web|date=2018-12-10|title=Durham Castle|url=https://www.scottishshipwrecks.com/durham-castle/|access-date=2025-01-01|website=Scottish Shipwrecks}}
  • 9 February – World War II: A German aircraft was forced down on North Berwick Law.
  • February – The last mounted charge by a British cavalry regiment was made when the Royal Scots Greys were called to quell Arab rioters in Mandatory Palestine.{{cite book|first=Charles|last=Grant|title=Royal Scots Greys|location=Reading|publisher=Osprey|year=1972|isbn=0850450594|page=33}}
  • 3–9 March – {{RMS|Queen Elizabeth}} made her maiden voyage on delivery from Clydebank to New York.
  • 11 March – World War II: Scotland north and west of the Great Glen and Inverness became a restricted area.
  • 16 March – World War II: First civilian casualty of bombing in the UK, on Orkney.{{cite book|first=Peter|last=Doyle|title=ARP and Civil Defence in the Second World War|location=Oxford|publisher=Shire Publications|year=2010|isbn=978-0-7478-0765-0|page=9}}
  • 10 April – World War II: the {{ship|German cruiser|Königsberg}} was sunk at Bergen by British Fleet Air Arm Blackburn Skua dive bombers flying from RNAS Hatston in Orkney.
  • 30 April – {{ship|French destroyer|Maillé Brézé|1931|6}} was sunk by accidental explosion off Greenock.
  • May – construction of Churchill Barriers on Orkney began.
  • 9 May – Guy Lloyd won the East Renfrewshire by-election for the Unionist Party.
  • 29 May – World War II: Requisitioned Clyde steamers Queen-Empress, Duchess of Fife, Oriole (called Eagle on the Clyde), Marmion and Waverley took part in the Dunkirk evacuation; Waverley was lost.{{cite journal|first=A. J.|last=Mullay|title=Clyde Steamers to the Rescue at Dunkirk|journal=History Scotland|date=May–June 2010|pages=50–54|volume=10|issue=3}}
  • 12 June – World War II: More than 10,000 soldiers of the 51st (Highland) Division under General Victor Fortune surrendered to General Erwin Rommel at Saint-Valery-en-Caux.{{cite web|title=Surrender at St. Valéry|url=http://51hd.co.uk/history/valery_1940|publisher=51st Highland Division|access-date=2014-07-17}}
  • 16 June – World War II: The troopships {{RMS|Andes|1939|2}}, {{RMS|Aquitania||2}}, {{RMS|Empress of Britain|1931|2}}, {{RMS|Empress of Canada|1922|2}}, {{RMS|Mauretania|1938|2}} and {{RMS|Queen Mary||2}} steamed in convoy into the River Clyde and anchored off Gourock with the first large contingent of Australian and New Zealand troops.{{cite book |title= Across the Sea to War: Australian and New Zealand Troop Convoys |volume=1 |first=Peter |last=Plowman |year=2003 |isbn=9781877058066 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FHG2TTT0XdQC&q=%22Queen+Mary%22+%22Aquitania%22+%22Empress+of+Canada%22+%22Empress+of+Britain%22+June+1940&pg=PA143}}
  • 24 June–1 July – World War II: Operation Fish – Royal Navy cruiser {{HMS|Emerald|D66|6}} sailed from Greenock in convoy to Halifax, Nova Scotia, carrying a large part of the gold reserves of the United Kingdom and securities for safe keeping in Canada. Another convoy set sail on 5 July from the Clyde, including HMS Batory,{{cite book|last=Draper|first=Alfred|title=Operation Fish: The Fight to Save the Gold of Britain, France and Norway from the Nazis|year=1979|publisher=General Publishing|location=Don Mills|isbn=9780773600683}} carrying cargo worth $1.7 billion, the largest movement of wealth in history.{{cite book|last=Breuer|first=William B.|author-link=William Breuer|title=Top Secret Tales of World War II|year=2008|publisher=Book Sales|isbn=9780785819516|page=62}}
  • 1 July – World War II: First Luftwaffe daylight bombing raid on mainland Britain at Bank Row, Wick: 15 civilians, 8 of them children, killed.{{cite web|url=http://www.caithness.org/history/bankrowbombing/bankrowbombing.htm|title=The Bank Row Bombing|year=1989|website=Cathness.Org|access-date=2020-06-27}}
  • 19 July – World War II: First Luftwaffe daylight raid on Glasgow; little damage was caused.{{cite web|title=Notable Dates in History |url=http://www.scotsindependent.org/dates1-g.htm |work=The Flag in the Wind |publisher=The Scots Independent |access-date=2014-07-17 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140523225830/http://www.scotsindependent.org/dates1-g.htm |archive-date=23 May 2014 }}
  • 20 July – World War II: A Luftwaffe bomb largely destroyed the stand at King's Park F.C.'s Forthbank Park in Stirling, leading to the demise of the club.
  • 16 September – World War II: British liner SS Aska was bombed by a German aircraft south of Gigha whilst carrying French troops from Gambia; 12 crew died but 75 survivors were picked up by trawlers.
  • 18 September – World War II: Royal Navy heavy cruiser HMS Sussex is hit by bombs in Glasgow while undergoing mechanical repairs and is kept out of service until August 1942.
  • November – World War II: Building of No. 1 Military Port at Faslane on the Gare Loch{{cite web |title=Gare Loch, Faslane |url= http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/90282/details/gare+loch+faslane+royal+navy+clyde+submarine+base/ |work=Canmore |publisher=Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland |access-date=2014-11-14}} and No. 2 Military Port at Cairnryan began.{{cite book |first=Richard |last=Holme |title=Cairnryan Military Port, 1940–1996 |place=Wigtown |publisher=GC |year=1997 |isbn=978-1872350226}} Garelochhead Training Area is also established this year.
  • Kilquhanity School near Castle Douglas was founded by John Aitkenhead.

Births

Deaths

The arts

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

{{Years in Scotland}}

Category:Years of the 20th century in Scotland

Scotland

Category:1940s in Scotland