LANARK LANIMER DAY
An ancient celebration held within the Royal Burgh of Lanark on the Thursday between the Sixth and Twelfth days of June annually since the year 1140.
 

Lanimer Week - Sunday

The parade from the Kirkin' o' the Cornet - 1967

Club Preseident, the late Walter Elliot, with ex-Lord Cornet John Glaister, ex-Provost Thomas Russell, and Town Officer Willie Davie - 1954

Tradition is not only the foundation of the Lanimer Festival, it is the driving force which keeps the Lanimers the grandest spectacle of all Scotland's march-riding events. Tradition itself, however, is only preserved by progressive adjustment with the times.

Lanimer week began traditionally on the Monday evening but in 1951 the comparatively recently formed Lord Cornets' Club took one of their first steps to promote the aims and objects of the Club. It was then proposed that the fitting introduction to this week of all weeks in Lanark's calendar should be by official attendance at church and the Kirkin' of the Lord Cornet Elect and the renewed dedication of the Burgh Standard was thus instituted.

Now as then the Club invites the Provost, Magistrates and Councillors and members of the Lanimer Committee to join with them at this service and the only note of regret in these times is the somewhat poor response of the Lanimer Committee members to participate in this commendable commencement to a week for which they themselves do such admirable work. All assemble at the Memorial Hall at 10.45 a.m. and those with experience keep an eye on Willie Davie, the worthy Town Officer who for twenty-five years has, with the halberd of his office, led the Town Council on parade, has rung punctilliously that ancient bell which has for twice three centuries hung and carried out in his inimitable way the multifarious duties of his office - an eye for the traditional pan drop ritually dispensed by Willie before the parade to St. Nicholas Parish Church, preceded and with lilting pace promoted by New Lanark Pipe Band under the leadership of Pipe Major Stoddart who in turn has done excellent work in instructing and maintaining a first class band for the benefit of the community.

At the service itself the lessons are read by the President of the Lord Cornets' Club and the current Lord Cornet (if you watch carefully you may see them going in for a rehearsal the day before) and invariably the Club Chaplain, the Reverend R. Russell Brown has delivered an inspiring sermon to the assembled congregation. At the close the official party is escorted to the County Buildings in Hope Street where the thanks of the Club are expressed by the President to all who have participated and everyone leaves appreciating that this important feature in the civic life of the town has again begun on a proper footing - and all go their respective ways to prepare further for the hectic week ahead.

Who features at the centre of this first day's activities? The Lord Cornet and the Lord Cornets' Club are the principals but the remarkable feature is that although the office of Standard Bearer has been in force for hundreds of years this Club was only established twenty years ago. Its formation was inspired in 1949 by Ex-Provost J. M. Stoddart to maintain and develop the historical basis of the whole Lanimer Celebrations. He himself was the first President and he has been followed by many worthy successors, including in 1954 the late Col. Walter Elliot who was Standard Bearer in 1919 when he brought a colourful party of Scots Greys to support him in his riding of the marches. The present membership of the Club is made up of 28 surviving Standard Bearers with the Provost and Chaplain as Honorary Members and they must constitute what is probably the most exclusive club in the whole Country.

The members have diligently upheld the objects of the Club to maintain interest in the riding of the marches, to guide and advise the Lord Cornet Elect to invite and entertain visiting Standard Bearers to the Lanimers, and to raise funds towards these ends. In their activities they have promoted an annual dinner which in November each year keeps the citizens in mind of the great festival coming round again the following year and as they go forward to celebrate their Twenty First Dinner this year they can reflect that they have again performed a commendable civic service as the Lord Cornets' Club Dinner is acknowledged to be one of the outstanding events in the winter's social calendar. The Club may be remembered, however, not least of all for the institution of the church service as the opening feature on the Sunday of Lanark's Lanimer Week.

G.S.