Silly Little Country

The Lone Piper of D-Day

Just an incredible story.

The pipes were damaged by shrapnel later that day, but remained playable. Millin was surprised not to have been shot, and he mentioned this to some Germans who had been taken prisoner.
They said that they had not shot at him because they thought he had gone off his head.

It's easy to forget the great diversity that persists in large countries:

The War Office had banned pipers from leading soldiers into battle after losses in the Great War had proved too great. “Ah, but that’s the English War Office,” Lovat told Millin. “You and I are both Scottish and that doesn’t apply.” On D-Day, Millin was the only piper.

h/t Tim Worstall

posted by Alan Adamson @ 6:59 AM