Kintyre youngsters commemorate the battle of Arras

EXACTLY 100 years since the battle of Arras started in 1917, two Campbeltown teenagers will join a commemoration in the French town.

S3 history students Ruairidh Wallace and Abdullah Abdul Kareem, both 14, start their once-in-a-lifetime trip today with 72 other pupils, representing every Scottish education authority, to remember the 18,000 Scots who fell in the battle, which began on April 9.

Organised by WW100 Scotland, the young Scots will be joined by a matching number of French and Canadian students, at a memorial service, in the Faubourg d’Amiens Commonwealth war graves cemetery in Arras.

There they will lay a wreath on behalf of the nations that fought together and place poppy crosses on graves.

In addition to the 9.30am service, which will be led by the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland will conduct a beating of the retreat in the Place des Heroes at 7.45pm.

The Battle of Arras, from April 9 to May 15, 1917, was part of a planned offensive by British and French forces. It had the highest concentration of Scottish troops fighting in a single battle during World War One.

Forty-four of the 120 battalions that made up the 10 British assault divisions were Scottish.

The average daily casualty rate was 4,076 soldiers, which was higher than that at the Somme or the third battle of Ypres.

Cabinet secretary for culture, tourism and external affairs Fiona Hyslop said: ‘The casualties had a devastating impact on those back home at the time, and resonate to this day in our collective memory.

‘I am heartened that our young people will attend this commemoration – helping to ensure future generations will not forget the horrors and grief associated with war.’