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Single Person record details
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Back
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Person Code
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NA8932
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Corporate Name
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Saltire Society
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Dates
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1936-
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Epithet
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cultural society
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Activity
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The Saltire Society was formed in 1936 in Glasgow with the aim of strengthening and preservation of Scottish culture and tradition. The originator was Dewar Gibb, Professor of Scots law at Glasgow University. The society was initially called the Saltoun Society, after Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1655-1716), Scottish patriot, but the name was rejected on the grounds that it would not mean much to most people. A diagonal cross such as St Andrew's is, in heraldic terms, a saltire, and it was this expression that supplied the society's new name. Through its exclusively charitable activities it seeks to increase public awareness, encourage creativitiy and to strengthen cultural links abroad. The society is financed by membership subscriptions, donations, legacies, grants and sponsorship. Based in Edinburgh, the society has numerous branches throughout Scotland, England and as far afield as Vancouver. Its range of activities has included the mounting of exhibitions, publication of Scottish literature and music as well as its own journals - 'The Saltire Review' from 1954-1961, the 'The New Saltire' from 1961 to the mid 1960's, and 'The Scottish Review' from 1975 - sponsorship of the Housing Design Award, the Scottish Book of the Year competition, and competitions aimed at children, and participation in campaigns to ensure the conservation of historic buildings. The society is still active.
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Notes
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www.saltire-society.demon.co.uk; see 'To Foster and Enrich: The First Fifty Years of the Saltire Society' by George Bruce, (Edinburgh, 1986).
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Associated records
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