NAZI insignia removed from WW2 monument in the Scottish Borders after public outrage.

 WW2 NAZI insignia has been removed from a monument in the Scottish Borders following acts of public 'vandalism' and hostility.

The monument, which stands outside a former POW chapel at Hallmuir near Lockerbie recently received "a total facelift" following anger in the local community and at least one act of vandalism which resulted in a man being arrested and taken to court. 

Public ire appears to have been directed at the presence on the monument of the regimental insignia of the 14^th Waffen SS Galician Division.

The SS Galician Division (or Galizien, historians use both spellings) was made up of Ukrainian speaking volunteers during WW2 and has long been linked with documented cases of atrocities against civilians on the Eastern Front during WW2.

For more information on how around 450 former members of the SS Galician came to the Lockerbie area at the end of WW2, the site at Hallmuir - a former POW camp - and details of some of the atrocities associated with the regiment, including eye witness statements, please refer to my blog from December 2023 here: http://www.jimithepiper.co.uk/2023/12/waffen-ss-ww2-memorial-standing-proud.html

A follow-up blog with more info from January 2025 may also be of interest. Read it here: http://www.jimithepiper.co.uk/2025/01/waffen-ss-memorial-in-scotland.html

The picture below is from Dec 2023. It shows the controversial monument with the SS NAZI insignia still on it. (on the right)

In August this year a new monument was officially unveiled - same stone, different make up. The SS Galician regimental badge and other symbols were now gone and a Ukrainian trident with the words "Glory to Ukraine, Glory to the Heroes" in Ukrainian had been carved on the stone instead.

 In an article in the Dumfries and Galloway Standard dated August 21, a man called Peter Kormylo described as "a Dumfries based academic and retired head-teacher who is the official archivist of the Friends of the Ukrainian Chapel" committee said: "the stone we unveiled symbolises Ukrainian fortitude and tenacity" adding it emphasised the ongoing duty to preserve historical memory for future generations".

Mr Kormylo speaking at the unveiling of the new stone

No mention was made in the article of the stone's previous incarnation, or, indeed, previous incarnations! Photographs posted online and dated to 2013/14 clearly show a completely different monument with zero Waffen SS symbolism (more on this later)

In April 2026 my attention was drawn to a post on the Facebook page of 'Ukrainian POW Chapel Lockerbie'. Entitled 'a word from Chairman Ellen. It read as follows:

I was very busy with work, family and musical commitments  for all of April. However, by mid-May I finally found the time to make the 180 miles (290KM) round trip from my home near Edinburgh down to Lockerbie. Upon arrival it became clear that the SS Galician insignia had been removed from the monument,  possibly forcibly. 

The remainder of May and the first weeks of June were again very busy for myself.  Fortunately, by the end of June I had just enough time spare to begin my investigations again.

In the first week of September a second email to the Procurator Fiscal's office in Dumfries proved fruitful. I was very grateful. PFs are very busy and important people after all.  The reply stated:

Pled guilty and sentence deferred for one year for good behaviour? I'm no legal expert but my understanding is that a sentence deferred for one year for good behaviour usually results in an admonishment or less severe sentence, so long as an individual has demonstrated good behaviour and positive life choices.....

I headed down to Lockerbie once more on September 21, primarily to check out the new monument but also to chat to a couple of contacts in the local community. Hopefully to add more details to the story, perhaps more information or even a name for the individual who had been arrested.

"His name was Boris and he was German" said my first contact, a local businessman who asked not to be named. "He was aged between 65 and 70, stood well over six feet tall and was a bit of a tinker or gentleman of the road as folk used to say.

"He drove a clapped out motor loaded to the gunnels with junk and had a trailer hitched too. He claimed not to speak much English but I tell you he wasnae daft. Camped out for two or three weeks at the site before being arrested, and that was in March mind when the nichts are still gui' cold".

My contact revealed that when members of  the 'Friends of Ukraine' first confronted 'Boris' on the day of his arrest, Boris began "singing Russian songs in Russian at them. Mad!"

After pleading guilty in Dumfries court, Boris returned to the site at Hallmuir to pick up his stuff and eventually moved on.

"I've no idea where he is now" added my contact. "Hopefully he's keeping out of trouble and behaving himself like the Sheriff advised him. Who knows where he came from? He said a few things about the south coast of England so maybe he's headed back doon there."

The incident involving Boris was by no means the first time Police had been called upon to intervene in a dispute over the monument, according to my contact.

"There was another one, a guy from Greta, aged early 60s I'd say. He had a bad opinion of public money being granted to the committee for improvement work on the chapel when there was a big stone with SS insignia standing right outside and when there were many more deserving things locally, he said, which the money should be spent on.

"He made utterances about burning the place down and stood outside Tescos supermarket down the road in Lockerbie handing out leaflets which detailed his complaints. He was an angry man and the police were asked to have a word."

Photographs taken by myself during various to the monument also indicate that the stone was targeted with graffiti at some point. Pics dated November 2024 show fading but still visible 'SS' and 'Nazis' written beside the SS-Galician insignia with what looks like black marker pen or a sharpy. The 'SS' is above and 'Nazis' is to the right in this pic.

As stated earlier, the memorial stone has undergone several facelifts since atleast 2013. Here's a pic I found online of what it looked like then.

There appears to be zero Waffen SS insignia on the memorial. Instead we have the Cross of St Andrew (Scotland's National flag) on one right, a Ukrainian Trident on the left, a Christian Cross in the background which is no longer there and in the centre of the stone a plaque which stated:

This next photo found on line and dated to 2020 shows the plaque still there but the St Andrew's Cross removed and replaced with the Nazi SS Galician insignia.

 

My second contact in the Lockerbie area, an individual with close ties to at least one member of the 'Lockerbie Friends Of  Ukraine' management committee said there had been disagreements and "some quite big fall oots" over what the stone looked like "certainly in recent years".

He added: "As with any committee there are always disagreements and sometimes heated discussions. Some folk want to do it one way. Other folk another. The bigger, shouty ones sometimes win. This time though the stone may have been finally done right for good. The committee can kick on and finish improvements to the site's visitor hub. The chapel is all done. The monument might remain like it is now for good or it might change again. Who knows?"

Above pic is of the chapel is from my visit on September 21. The next pic is one found on the internet, dated Spring of this year which seems to show Ukrainian refugees, mainly women and children currently living in the Lockerbie area, attending a mass in the chapel. A priest of the Greek Orthodox faith travelled down from Glasgow to conduct proceedings especially.

I sincerely hope the former POW chapel site has a bright future without the presence of Waffen SS insignia outside and I wish it all the best from the bottom of my heart, truly. 

The Ukrainian refugees have been busy planting flowers outside and the ladies have launched a support hub for people whose lives have been affected by war.  This operates from the 'visitor hut' next door to the chapel.  A chess club has also started there, meeting monthly with new members welcome.

A potentially offensive sign which once stood outside the chapel and perhaps glorified the men of the 14th Waffen SS Galician Division is now gone, replaced instead by this simple but effective note in the chapel door window:

Worth checking out if you're down Lockerbie way perhaps, certainly for those of us with an interest in history, WW2 and 20th Century history in particular. Chapel services seem to be be conducted fairly regularly. 

The management committee also hold 'open weekends' when members are on hand to chat and show around visitors. The site is signposted and located quite close to the  M74 motorway so not too hard to find.

Committee members also run a Facebook page called 'Ukrainian POW Chapel Lockerbie' where up to date info about events are posted. Worth having a look before planning a visit perhaps.

That's me done, for now. Meantime, if you happen to chance upon a tall German called Boris aged 65-70, on his travels with a "clapped out motor loaded to the gunnels with  junk" and a trailer attached, remind him to behave himself! 

Slainte Mhor!