Wolf of the Highlands
QUESTION Why was a locomotive called the Wolf Of Badenoch?
THE locomotive was given the nickname of Alexander Stewart, a Scottish royal who was notorious for running amok in the Highlands in the 14th century.
The illegitimate fourth son of the future Robert II of Scotland was made 1st Earl of Buchan in 1382, giving him the authority of the Scottish crown in the Highlands.
He abused his power, imprisoning and murdering his opponents and pillaging the countryside.
He blamed his wife for their childless union as he is thought to have had up to 40 illegitimate children. When he tried to end the marriage, he was excommunicated by the Bishop of Moray.
His terrible response earned him the nickname Wolf of Badenoch — he sacked the town of Forres, destroying Elgin Cathedral in 1390.
The name was revived 500 years later. Steam locomotive engineer Sir Nigel Gresley designed the P2 class of locomotives with a 2-8-2 wheel arrangement to haul heavy trains north of Edinburgh.
Only six were built in the 1930s, with the last, No. 2006, named Wolf of Badenoch. This was appropriate as the line to Inverness goes through Elgin and Forres. In 1944, the locomotive was converted
into a A2\2 class 4-6-2 Pacific. It was scrapped in 1960.
Tim Mickleburgh, Grimsby, Lincs.
QUESTION Where were the first shots of World War II fired?
THE Battle of Westerplatte was the first action in the German invasion of Poland. It occurred on a peninsula in the harbour of the Free City of Danzig, now Gdansk.
At 4.45am on September 1, 1939, the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein opened fire with its 15 in guns on the Polish fort guarding Gdansk harbour — the first shots of World War II.
That summer it had become clear that the Nazis intended to incorporate Danzig into the Third Reich. The SchleswigHolstein dropped anchor across from Westerplatte on August 25, 1939, on a purported goodwill visit.
The 182-man Polish garrison, armed with only a few mortars and an old French cannon, held out for seven days against a German land, air and sea assault. After
the war, Westerplatte became a symbol of Polish resistance.
Neil Oliver, Warwick.
QUESTION Did Wedgwood have any major European competitors in its heyday?
THE previous answer referred to the royal ceramics house of Meissen in Germany, but not Austria’s Augarten Porzellan, which is Europe’s second oldest porcelain maker.
Founded by Emperor Charles VI in 1718, it was based in Vienna. Its trademark is the coat of arms of the extinct Babenberger dynasty.
Shut down in 1864, it was re-opened in 1923. The 1928/29 Opus dinner service is still in production.
E. Felix Schondorfer, Stoke Poges, Bucks.
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