129-510: The Usher Hall ( Scottish Gaelic : Talla Usher ) is a concert hall in the West End of Edinburgh , Scotland. The hall is owned and managed by the City of Edinburgh Council , and has hosted concerts and events since its construction in 1914. The venue can hold approximately 2,200 people in its recently restored auditorium, which is well loved by performers due to its acoustics. In March 1972,
258-456: A spoiler effect in splitting the left-wing vote and allowing Conservative candidates to win. Despite this, the organisation gained support among many Labour and Conservative politicians who agreed with his corporatist economic policy, and among these were Aneurin Bevan and Harold Macmillan . Mosley's corporatism was complemented by Keynesianism , with Robert Skidelsky stating, "Keynesianism
387-576: A "talk-shop" into a "workshop." In 1992, the then UK prime minister, John Major , examined Mosley's ideas in order to find an unorthodox solution to the aftermath of the 1990–91 economic recession . Dissatisfied with the Labour Party, Mosley and six other Labour MPs (two of whom resigned after one day) founded the New Party . Its early parliamentary contests, in the 1931 Ashton-under-Lyne by-election and subsequent by-elections, arguably had
516-442: A 19% fall in bilingual speakers between the 1911 and 1921 Censuses. Michelle MacLeod of Aberdeen University has said that there was no other period with such a high fall in the number of monolingual Gaelic speakers: "Gaelic speakers became increasingly the exception from that point forward with bilingualism replacing monolingualism as the norm for Gaelic speakers." The Linguistic Survey of Scotland (1949–1997) surveyed both
645-586: A Conservative challenge in the 1922 and 1923 general elections . According to Lady Mosley's autobiography, The Liberal Westminster Gazette wrote that Mosley was "the most polished literary speaker in the Commons, words flow from him in graceful epigrammatic phrases that have a sting in them for the government and the Conservatives. To listen to him is an education in the English language, also in
774-571: A Labour candidate. He therefore decided to oppose Neville Chamberlain in Birmingham Ladywood . Mosley campaigned aggressively in Ladywood, and accused Chamberlain of being a "landlords' hireling". The outraged Chamberlain demanded that Mosley retract the claim "as a gentleman". Mosley, whom Stanley Baldwin described as "a cad and a wrong 'un", refused to withdraw the allegation. Mosley was noted for bringing excitement and energy to
903-564: A Pictish substrate. In 1018, after the conquest of Lothian (theretofore part of England and inhabited predominantly by speakers of Northumbrian Old English ) by the Kingdom of Scotland , Gaelic reached its social, cultural, political, and geographic zenith. Colloquial speech in Scotland had been developing independently of that in Ireland since the eighth century. For the first time,
1032-531: A by-election in 1926 and served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in the Labour government of 1929–1931 . In 1928, he succeeded his father as the sixth Mosley baronet , a title in his family for over a century. Some considered Mosley a rising star and possible future prime minister. He resigned in 1930 over discord with the government's unemployment policies. He chose not to defend his Smethwick constituency at
1161-524: A central feature of court life there. The semi-independent Lordship of the Isles in the Hebrides and western coastal mainland remained thoroughly Gaelic since the language's recovery there in the 12th century, providing a political foundation for cultural prestige down to the end of the 15th century. By the mid-14th century what eventually came to be called Scots (at that time termed Inglis ) emerged as
1290-823: A challenge to revitalization efforts which occur outside the home. Positive engagements between language learners and native speakers of Gaelic through mentorship has proven to be productive in socializing new learners into fluency. In the 2022 census, 3,551 people claimed Gaelic as their 'main language.' Of these, 1,761 (49.6%) were in Na h-Eileanan Siar, 682 (19.2%) were in Highland, 369 were in Glasgow City and 120 were in City of Edinburgh; no other council area had as many as 80 such respondents. Gaelic has long suffered from its lack of use in educational and administrative contexts and
1419-575: A clergyman and an intimate friend of the "Indian Saint", as Mosley described him. They met in Kadda , where Gandhi was quick to invite him to a private conference in which Gandhi was chairman. Mosley later called Gandhi a "sympathetic personality of subtle intelligence". Cynthia died of peritonitis in 1933, after which Mosley married his mistress Diana Guinness , née Mitford (1910–2003). They married in secret in Nazi Germany on 6 October 1936 in
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#17327723169691548-768: A deal in 1937 with Francis Beaumont , heir to the Seigneurage of Sark , to set up a privately owned radio station on Sark . By the end of the First World War , Mosley had decided to go into politics as a Conservative member of parliament, as he had no university education or practical experience because of the war. He was 21 years old. He was driven by, and in parliament spoke of, a passionate conviction to avoid any future war, and this seemingly motivated his career. Largely because of his family background and war service, local Conservative and Labour associations preferred Mosley in several constituencies—a vacancy near
1677-551: A dialect known as Canadian Gaelic has been spoken in Canada since the 18th century. In the 2021 census , 2,170 Canadian residents claimed knowledge of Scottish Gaelic, a decline from 3,980 speakers in the 2016 census . There exists a particular concentration of speakers in Nova Scotia , with historic communities in other parts of Canada having largely disappeared. Scottish Gaelic is classed as an indigenous language under
1806-489: A full range of language skills: speaking, understanding, reading and writing Gaelic. 40.2% of Scotland's Gaelic speakers said that they used Gaelic at home. To put this in context, the most common language spoken at home in Scotland after English and Scots is Polish, with about 1.1% of the population, or 54,000 people. The 2011 UK Census showed a total of 57,375 Gaelic speakers in Scotland (1.1% of population over three years old), of whom only 32,400 could also read and write
1935-586: A language ideology at odds with revitalization efforts on behalf of new speakers, state policies (such as the Gaelic Language Act), and family members reclaiming their lost mother tongue. New learners of Gaelic often have a positive affective stance to their language learning, and connect this learning journey towards Gaelic language revitalization. The mismatch of these language ideologies, and differences in affective stance, has led to fewer speaking opportunities for adult language learners and therefore
2064-805: A national centre for Gaelic Language and Culture, based in Sleat , on the Isle of Skye . This institution is the only source for higher education which is conducted entirely in Scottish Gaelic. They offer courses for Gaelic learners from beginners into fluency. They also offer regular bachelors and graduate programs delivered entirely in Gaelic. Concerns have been raised around the fluency achieved by learners within these language programs because they are disconnected from vernacular speech communities. In regard to language revitalization planning efforts, many feel that
2193-503: A point of speaking in the House of Commons without notes. Mosley was an early supporter of the economist John Maynard Keynes . The economic historian Robert Skidelsky described Mosley as "a disciple of Keynes in the 1920s". Mosley was at this time falling out with the Conservatives over their Irish policy, and condemned the operations of the Black and Tans against civilians during
2322-549: A process of Gaelicisation (which may have begun generations earlier) was clearly under way during the reigns of Caustantín and his successors. By a certain point, probably during the 11th century, all the inhabitants of Alba had become fully Gaelicised Scots, and Pictish identity was forgotten. Bilingualism in Pictish and Gaelic, prior to the former's extinction, led to the presence of Pictish loanwords in Gaelic and syntactic influence which could be considered to constitute
2451-610: A proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 65% (the highest value is in Barvas , Lewis , with 64.1%). In addition, no civil parish on mainland Scotland has a proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 20% (the highest is in Ardnamurchan , Highland , with 19.3%). Out of a total of 871 civil parishes in Scotland, the proportion of Gaelic speakers exceeds 50% in seven parishes, 25% in 14 parishes, and 10% in 35 parishes. Decline in traditional areas has recently been balanced by growth in
2580-536: A situation where new learners struggle to find opportunities to speak Gaelic with fluent speakers. Affect is the way people feel about something, or the emotional response to a particular situation or experience. For Gaelic speakers, there is a conditioned and socialized negative affect through a long history of negative Scottish media portrayal and public disrespect, state mandated restrictions on Gaelic usage, and highland clearances . This negative affect towards speaking openly with non-native Gaelic speakers has led to
2709-447: A storm of applause towards the platform—who could doubt that here was one of those root-and-branch men who have been thrown up from time to time in the religious, political and business story of England. First that gripping audience is arrested, then stirred and finally, as we have said, swept off its feet by a tornado of peroration yelled at the defiant high pitch of a tremendous voice. After his election failure in 1931, Mosley went on
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#17327723169692838-462: A study tour of the "new movements" of Italy's Benito Mussolini and other fascists, and returned convinced, particularly by Fascist Italy 's economic programme, that it was the way forward for Britain. He was determined to unite the existing fascist movements and created the British Union of Fascists (BUF) in 1932. The BUF was protectionist , strongly anti-communist and nationalistic to
2967-625: A translation of the New Testament. In 1798, four tracts in Gaelic were published by the Society for Propagating the Gospel at Home, with 5,000 copies of each printed. Other publications followed, with a full Gaelic Bible in 1801. The influential and effective Gaelic Schools Society was founded in 1811. Their purpose was to teach Gaels to read the Bible in their own language. In the first quarter of
3096-490: Is a significant step forward for the recognition of Gaelic both at home and abroad and I look forward to addressing the council in Gaelic very soon. Seeing Gaelic spoken in such a forum raises the profile of the language as we drive forward our commitment to creating a new generation of Gaelic speakers in Scotland." Bilingual road signs, street names, business and advertisement signage (in both Gaelic and English) are gradually being introduced throughout Gaelic-speaking regions in
3225-559: Is an event of capital importance in domestic politics... We feel that Sir Oswald has acted rightly—as he has certainly acted courageously—in declining to share any longer in the responsibility for inertia." In October he attempted to persuade the Labour Party Conference to accept the Memorandum, but was defeated again. The Mosley Memorandum won the support of the economist John Maynard Keynes , who stated that "it
3354-411: Is no evidence that Gaelic was ever widely spoken. Many historians mark the reign of King Malcolm Canmore ( Malcolm III ) between 1058 and 1093 as the beginning of Gaelic's eclipse in Scotland. His wife Margaret of Wessex spoke no Gaelic, gave her children Anglo-Saxon rather than Gaelic names, and brought many English bishops, priests, and monastics to Scotland. When Malcolm and Margaret died in 1093,
3483-613: Is very great". Among Mosley's supporters at this time included John Strachey , the novelist Henry Williamson , military theorist J. F. C. Fuller , and the future " Lord Haw Haw ", William Joyce . Mosley had found problems with disruption of New Party meetings, and instituted a corps of black-uniformed paramilitary stewards, the Fascist Defence Force , nicknamed "Blackshirts", like the Italian fascist Voluntary Militia for National Security they were emulating. The party
3612-493: Is what it amounts to. ... [The] manifesto offers us a starting point for thought and action. ... It will shock—it must do so—the many good citizens of this country...who have laissez-faire in their craniums, their consciences, and their bones ... But how anyone professing and calling himself a socialist can keep away from the manifesto is a more obscure matter." According to Lady Mosley's autobiography, thirty years later, in 1961, Richard Crossman wrote: "this brilliant memorandum
3741-474: The 1929 general election he was appointed only to the post of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster , a position without portfolio and outside the Cabinet. He was given responsibility for solving the unemployment problem, but found that his radical proposals were blocked either by Lord Privy Seal James Henry Thomas or by the cabinet. Realising the economic uncertainty that was facing the nation because of
3870-669: The 1931 general election , instead unsuccessfully standing in Stoke-on-Trent . Mosley's New Party became the British Union of Fascists (BUF) in 1932. As leader, he publicly espoused antisemitism and sought alliances with other fascist leaders such as Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler . Fascist violence under Mosley's leadership culminated in the 1936 Battle of Cable Street , during which anti-fascist demonstrators including trade unionists , liberals , socialists , communists , anarchists , and British Jews prevented
3999-837: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages , which the UK Government has ratified, and the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 established a language-development body, Bòrd na Gàidhlig . The Scottish Parliament is considering a Scottish Languages Bill which proposes to give the Gaelic and Scots languages official status in Scotland. Aside from "Scottish Gaelic", the language may also be referred to simply as "Gaelic", pronounced / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / GAL -ik in English . However, "Gaelic" / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik also refers to
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4128-641: The Eurovision Song Contest was held at the Hall and compèred by Moira Shearer . It was also the venue of Eurovision Young Musicians in August 2018. A major feature of the Usher Hall is the organ. It was built in 1913 by Norman & Beard of Norwich at a cost of around £4000, and was designed to be the focal point of the Hall, both visually and musically. The significance of the organ to
4257-566: The Eurovision Song Contest was held at the Hall and compèred by Moira Shearer . This marked the first time that the Eurovision Song Contest had been held in Scotland. It was also the venue of Eurovision Young Musicians in August 2018. In 1986, the Commonwealth Games was hosted by Edinburgh, with the Usher Hall providing the venue for the boxing tournament. The Hall is flanked by The Royal Lyceum Theatre to
4386-486: The First World War , Mosley was one of the youngest members of Parliament, representing Harrow from 1918 , first as a Conservative , then an independent, and finally joining the Labour Party . At the 1924 general election he stood in Birmingham Ladywood against the future prime minister, Neville Chamberlain , coming within 100 votes of defeating him. Mosley returned to parliament as Labour MP for Smethwick at
4515-658: The Indo-European language family ) native to the Gaels of Scotland . As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as both Irish and Manx , developed out of Old Irish . It became a distinct spoken language sometime in the 13th century in the Middle Irish period, although a common literary language was shared by the Gaels of both Ireland and Scotland until well into the 17th century. Most of modern Scotland
4644-566: The Irish War of Independence . He was secretary of the Peace with Ireland Council. As secretary of the council, he proposed sending a commission to Ireland to examine on-the-spot reprisals by the Black and Tans. In late 1920, he crossed the floor to sit as an independent MP on the opposition side of the House of Commons. Having built up a following in his constituency, he retained it against
4773-555: The Outer Hebrides , accommodation ethics exist amongst native or local Gaelic speakers when engaging with new learners or non-locals. Accommodation ethics, or ethics of accommodation, is a social practice where local or native speakers of Gaelic shift to speaking English when in the presence of non-Gaelic speakers out of a sense of courtesy or politeness. This accommodation ethic persists even in situations where new learners attempt to speak Gaelic with native speakers. This creates
4902-688: The Scottish Lowlands . Between the 2001 and 2011 censuses, the number of Gaelic speakers rose in nineteen of the country's 32 council areas. The largest absolute gains were in Aberdeenshire (+526), North Lanarkshire (+305), the Aberdeen City council area (+216), and East Ayrshire (+208). The largest relative gains were in Aberdeenshire (+0.19%), East Ayrshire (+0.18%), Moray (+0.16%), and Orkney (+0.13%). In 2018,
5031-786: The significant increase in pupils in Gaelic-medium education since that time is unknown. Gaelic Medium Education is one of the primary ways that the Scottish Government is addressing Gaelic language shift. Along with the Bòrd na Gàidhlig policies, preschool and daycare environments are also being used to create more opportunities for intergenerational language transmission in the Outer Hebrides. However, revitalization efforts are not unified within Scotland or Nova Scotia, Canada. One can attend Sabhal Mòr Ostaig ,
5160-562: The 1920s and at the start of the 1930s. Mosley appears in a list of names of Fabians from Fabian News and the Fabian Society Annual Report 1929–31 . He was Kingsway Hall lecturer in 1924 and Livingstone Hall lecturer in 1931. Mosley then made a bold bid for political advancement within the Labour Party. He was close to Ramsay MacDonald and hoped for one of the Great Offices of State , but when Labour won
5289-485: The 1930s. He argues that trying to "challenge the 50-year-old system of free trade ... exposes industry in the home market to the chaos of world conditions, such as price fluctuation, dumping, and the competition of sweated labour, which result in the lowering of wages and industrial decay." In a newspaper feature, Mosley was described as "a strange blend of J.M. Keynes and Major Douglas of credit fame". From July 1930, he began to demand that government must be turned from
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5418-601: The 19th century, the SSPCK (despite their anti-Gaelic attitude in prior years) and the British and Foreign Bible Society distributed 60,000 Gaelic Bibles and 80,000 New Testaments. It is estimated that this overall schooling and publishing effort gave about 300,000 people in the Highlands some basic literacy. Very few European languages have made the transition to a modern literary language without an early modern translation of
5547-404: The 2011 Census. The 2011 total population figure comes from table KS101SC. The numbers of Gaelic speakers relate to the numbers aged 3 and over, and the percentages are calculated using those and the number of the total population aged 3 and over. Across the whole of Scotland, the 2011 census showed that 25,000 people (0.49% of the population) used Gaelic at home. Of these, 63.3% said that they had
5676-407: The 4th–5th centuries CE, by settlers from Ireland who founded the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata on Scotland's west coast in present-day Argyll . An alternative view has been voiced by archaeologist Ewan Campbell , who has argued that the putative migration or takeover is not reflected in archaeological or placename data (as pointed out earlier by Leslie Alcock ). Campbell has also questioned
5805-471: The Arts Council withdrew its support. Mired in controversy, the project collapsed. In 1998 the City of Edinburgh announced it had put aside £9 million to start the refurbishment again. In 2002 plans for a second phase of refurbishment were announced with plans to raise the further £11 million required. In 2007 work on the second phase began, which provided improved facilities and public spaces, including
5934-652: The BUF from marching through London's East End . Mosley subsequently held a series of rallies around London, and the BUF increased its membership there. In May 1940, after the outbreak of the Second World War , Mosley was imprisoned and the BUF was banned. He was released in 1943 and, politically disgraced by his association with the enemy, moved abroad in 1951, spending most of the remainder of his life in Paris and two residences in Ireland. He stood for Parliament during
6063-515: The BUF tried to march through an area with a high proportion of Jewish residents. Violence, now called the Battle of Cable Street , resulted between protesters trying to block the march and police trying to force it through. Sir Philip Game , the police commissioner , stopped the march from proceeding and the BUF abandoned it. Mosley continued to organise marches policed by the Blackshirts, and
6192-565: The BUF, the paper was so vitriolic in its condemnation of European fascism that Nazi Germany added the paper's directors to a hit list in the event of a successful Operation Sea Lion . The Mail continued to support the BUF until the Olympia rally in June 1934. John Gunther described Mosley in 1940 as "strikingly handsome. He is probably the best orator in England. His personal magnetism
6321-510: The Berlin home of Germany's Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels . Adolf Hitler was their guest of honour. Mosley spent large amounts of his private fortune on the British Union of Fascists (BUF) and tried to establish it on a firm financial footing by various means including an attempt to negotiate, through Diana, with Hitler for permission to broadcast commercial radio to Britain from Germany. Mosley reportedly made
6450-569: The Bible; the lack of a well known translation may have contributed to the decline of Scottish Gaelic. Counterintuitively, access to schooling in Gaelic increased knowledge of English. In 1829, the Gaelic Schools Society reported that parents were unconcerned about their children learning Gaelic, but were anxious to have them taught English. The SSPCK also found Highlanders to have significant prejudice against Gaelic. T. M. Devine attributes this to an association between English and
6579-664: The Birmingham Proposals; they continued to form the basis of Mosley's economics until the end of his political career. Mosley was critical of Winston Churchill 's policy as Chancellor of the Exchequer . After Churchill returned Britain to the Gold Standard , Mosley claimed that "faced with the alternative of saying goodbye to the gold standard, and therefore to his own employment, and goodbye to other people's employment, Mr. Churchill characteristically selected
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#17327723169696708-645: The Blackshirt employees redundant, some of whom then defected from the party with William Joyce . In October 1937 in Liverpool , he was knocked unconscious by two stones thrown by crowd members after he delivered a fascist salute to 8,000 people from the top of a van in Walton . As the European situation moved towards war, the BUF began to nominate parliamentary by-election candidates and launched campaigns on
6837-428: The City ceremonies have taken place at the hall over the years, with the most recent being for film star and Scottish icon Sean Connery in 1991. On 13 April 1996 hours after a concert, a large piece of plaster fell 130 feet from the roof into the auditorium. Only three chairs were damaged, but this event was just one example of the state of disrepair into which the Hall was falling. Vital repairs were necessary to make
6966-773: The Duke and Duchess of Brabant (later King Leopold III and Queen Astrid of Belgium). During this marriage, he began an extended affair with his wife's younger sister, Lady Alexandra Metcalfe , and a separate affair with their stepmother, Grace Curzon, Marchioness Curzon of Kedleston , the American-born second wife and widow of Lord Curzon of Kedleston. He succeeded to the Mosley baronetcy of Ancoats upon his father's death in 1928. Among his many travels, Mosley travelled to British India accompanied by Lady Cynthia in 1924. His father-in-law's past as Viceroy of India allowed for
7095-498: The EU's institutions. The Scottish government had to pay for the translation from Gaelic to other European languages . The deal was received positively in Scotland; Secretary of State for Scotland Jim Murphy said the move was a strong sign of the UK government's support for Gaelic. He said; "Allowing Gaelic speakers to communicate with European institutions in their mother tongue is a progressive step forward and one which should be welcomed". Culture Minister Mike Russell said; "this
7224-484: The Forth–Clyde line and along the northeastern coastal plain as far north as Moray. Norman French completely displaced Gaelic at court. The establishment of royal burghs throughout the same area, particularly under David I , attracted large numbers of foreigners speaking Old English. This was the beginning of Gaelic's status as a predominantly rural language in Scotland. Clan chiefs in the northern and western parts of Scotland continued to support Gaelic bards who remained
7353-415: The Gaelic Act falls so far short of the status accorded to Welsh that one would be foolish or naïve to believe that any substantial change will occur in the fortunes of the language as a result of Bòrd na Gàidhlig 's efforts. On 10 December 2008, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the Scottish Human Rights Commission had the UDHR translated into Gaelic for
7482-582: The Gaelic aristocracy rejected their anglicised sons and instead backed Malcolm's brother Domnall Bán ( Donald III ). Donald had spent 17 years in Gaelic Ireland and his power base was in the thoroughly Gaelic west of Scotland. He was the last Scottish monarch to be buried on Iona , the traditional burial place of the Gaelic Kings of Dàl Riada and the Kingdom of Alba. However, during the reigns of Malcolm Canmore's sons, Edgar, Alexander I and David I (their successive reigns lasting 1097–1153), Anglo-Norman names and practices spread throughout Scotland south of
7611-442: The Highland and Island region. In 1616, the Privy Council proclaimed that schools teaching in English should be established. Gaelic was seen, at this time, as one of the causes of the instability of the region. It was also associated with Catholicism. The Society in Scotland for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge (SSPCK) was founded in 1709. They met in 1716, immediately after the failed Jacobite rising of 1715 , to consider
7740-416: The Highlands and Islands, including Argyll. In many cases, this has simply meant re-adopting the traditional spelling of a name (such as Ràtagan or Loch Ailleart rather than the anglicised forms Ratagan or Lochailort respectively). Some monolingual Gaelic road signs, particularly direction signs, are used on the Outer Hebrides , where a majority of the population can have a working knowledge of
7869-426: The Inner Hebridean dialects of Tiree and Islay, and even a few native speakers from Western Highland areas including Wester Ross , northwest Sutherland , Lochaber and Argyll . Dialects on both sides of the Straits of Moyle (the North Channel ) linking Scottish Gaelic with Irish are now extinct, though native speakers were still to be found on the Mull of Kintyre , on Rathlin and in North East Ireland as late as
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#17327723169697998-410: The Irish language ( Gaeilge ) and the Manx language ( Gaelg ). Scottish Gaelic is distinct from Scots , the Middle English -derived language which had come to be spoken in most of the Lowlands of Scotland by the early modern era . Prior to the 15th century, this language was known as Inglis ("English") by its own speakers, with Gaelic being called Scottis ("Scottish"). Beginning in
8127-402: The Republican movement in Spain in the 1930s and sexcentenary celebrations of the foundation of the City of Edinburgh in 1929. The end to political rallies in the Usher Hall came after a serious incident in 1934, when Sir Oswald Mosley came to speak. Between five and six thousand people protested outside, and several people were injured. In 1986 the Commonwealth Games came to Edinburgh with
8256-422: The U.S. mercantile heiress Mary Leiter . Lord Curzon had to be persuaded that Mosley was a suitable husband, as he suspected Mosley was largely motivated by social advancement in Conservative Party politics and Cynthia's inheritance. The 1920 wedding took place in the Chapel Royal in St James's Palace in London. The hundreds of guests included King George V and Queen Mary , as well as foreign royalty such as
8385-428: The UK Government as Welsh . With the advent of devolution , however, Scottish matters have begun to receive greater attention, and it achieved a degree of official recognition when the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act was enacted by the Scottish Parliament on 21 April 2005. The key provisions of the Act are: After its creation, Bòrd na Gàidhlig required a Gaelic Language Plan from the Scottish Government. This plan
8514-445: The Usher Hall is demonstrated by the existence of the Usher Hall Organ Trust, who helped raise funds to restore the organ. It had fallen into disuse due to poor reliability caused by a lack of adequate moisture and temperature control, leading to it not being played for several years. The restoration work was carried out by Harrison and Harrison of Durham, and took three years to complete, with the organ being reinstalled in 2002. The organ
8643-438: The Usher Hall providing the venue for the boxing tournament. The extensive basement rooms of the Usher Hall made the building ideal for use as an air-raid shelter and the venue was equipped for use during the Second World War . However, there are no records of it being used as such, but painted signs on internal doors, such as "No Dogs" indicate that preparations were made. As a platform for international classical musicians,
8772-453: The Usher Hall was £134,000. Andrew Usher died before building work was started. The Usher Hall has been used for a variety of events, including politics, religion, charity fundraisers and sport, as well as music. In 1914 Prime Minister H. H. Asquith gave a speech entitled the War , using the occasion to recruit from the all-male audience. At various times the musical and the political overlapped, on occasions such as fundraising concerts for
8901-581: The Western Isles (−1,745), Argyll & Bute (−694), and Highland (−634). The drop in Stornoway , the largest parish in the Western Isles by population, was especially acute, from 57.5% of the population in 1991 to 43.4% in 2011. The only parish outside the Western Isles over 40% Gaelic-speaking is Kilmuir in Northern Skye at 46%. The islands in the Inner Hebrides with significant percentages of Gaelic speakers are Tiree (38.3%), Raasay (30.4%), Skye (29.4%), Lismore (26.9%), Colonsay (20.2%), and Islay (19.0%). Today, no civil parish in Scotland has
9030-589: The Western Isles. The Scottish Qualifications Authority offer two streams of Gaelic examination across all levels of the syllabus: Gaelic for learners (equivalent to the modern foreign languages syllabus) and Gaelic for native speakers (equivalent to the English syllabus). An Comunn Gàidhealach performs assessment of spoken Gaelic, resulting in the issue of a Bronze Card, Silver Card or Gold Card. Syllabus details are available on An Comunn's website. These are not widely recognised as qualifications, but are required for those taking part in certain competitions at
9159-448: The acquaintance of various personalities along the journey. They travelled by ship and stopped briefly in Cairo . Having initially arrived in Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka ), the journey then continued through mainland India . They spent these initial days in the government house of Ceylon, followed by Madras and then Calcutta , where the governor at the time was Lord Lytton . Mosley met Mahatma Gandhi through C. F. Andrews ,
9288-522: The age and reliability of the medieval historical sources speaking of a conquest. Instead, he has inferred that Argyll formed part of a common Q-Celtic -speaking area with Ireland, connected rather than divided by the sea, since the Iron Age. These arguments have been opposed by some scholars defending the early dating of the traditional accounts and arguing for other interpretations of the archaeological evidence. Regardless of how it came to be spoken in
9417-511: The annual mods . In October 2009, a new agreement allowed Scottish Gaelic to be formally used between Scottish Government ministers and European Union officials. The deal was signed by Britain's representative to the EU, Sir Kim Darroch , and the Scottish government . This did not give Scottish Gaelic official status in the EU but gave it the right to be a means of formal communications in
9546-630: The art of delicate but deadly repartee. He has human sympathies, courage and brains." By 1924, he was growing increasingly attracted to the Labour Party , which had just formed a government, and in March he joined it. He immediately joined the Independent Labour Party (ILP) as well and allied himself with the left. When the government fell in October, Mosley had to choose a new seat, as he believed that Harrow would not re-elect him as
9675-603: The bill be strengthened, a revised bill was published; the main alteration was that the guidance of the Bòrd is now statutory (rather than advisory). In the committee stages in the Scottish Parliament, there was much debate over whether Gaelic should be given 'equal validity' with English. Due to executive concerns about resourcing implications if this wording was used, the Education Committee settled on
9804-471: The building wind-proof, watertight and safe. Relying heavily on Lottery and Arts Council funding, the City of Edinburgh embarked on a £25 million scheme to both make the hall safe and improve its function - including making the auditorium suitable for Promenade-type events and building new catering and ticketing facilities. Unfortunately, late into the design phase, the Lottery Fund application failed and
9933-503: The campaign. Leslie Hore-Belisha , then a Liberal Party politician who later became a senior Conservative, recorded his impressions of Mosley as a platform orator at this time, claiming that his "dark, aquiline, flashing: tall, thin, assured; defiance in his eye, contempt in his forward chin". Together, Oswald and Cynthia Mosley proved an alluring couple, and many members of the working class in Birmingham succumbed to their charm for, as
10062-625: The census of pupils in Scotland showed 520 students in publicly funded schools had Gaelic as the main language at home, an increase of 5% from 497 in 2014. During the same period, Gaelic medium education in Scotland has grown, with 4,343 pupils (6.3 per 1000) being educated in a Gaelic-immersion environment in 2018, up from 3,583 pupils (5.3 per 1000) in 2014. Data collected in 2007–2008 indicated that even among pupils enrolled in Gaelic medium schools, 81% of primary students and 74% of secondary students report using English more often than Gaelic when speaking with their mothers at home. The effect on this of
10191-568: The cities and professors of Celtic from universities who sought to preserve the language. The Education (Scotland) Act 1872 provided universal education in Scotland, but completely ignored Gaelic in its plans. The mechanism for supporting Gaelic through the Education Codes issued by the Scottish Education Department were steadily used to overcome this omission, with many concessions in place by 1918. However,
10320-555: The concept of 'equal respect'. It is not clear what the legal force of this wording is. The Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament unanimously, with support from all sectors of the Scottish political spectrum, on 21 April 2005. Under the provisions of the Act, it will ultimately fall to BnG to secure the status of the Gaelic language as an official language of Scotland. Some commentators, such as Éamonn Ó Gribín (2006) argue that
10449-472: The construction of a new glass wing. The work was completed in 2010 at a total cost of £40 million. [REDACTED] Media related to Usher Hall at Wikimedia Commons Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / , GAL -ik ; endonym : Gàidhlig [ˈkaːlɪkʲ] ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic , is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of
10578-532: The death of its domestic industry, Mosley put forward a scheme in the "Mosley Memorandum" that called for high tariffs to protect British industries from international finance and transform the British Empire into an autarkic trading bloc, for state nationalisation of main industries, for higher school-leaving ages and pensions to reduce the labour surplus, and for a programme of public works to solve interwar poverty and unemployment . Furthermore,
10707-499: The dialect of the Scottish Gaelic language, and also mixed use of English and Gaelic across the Highlands and Islands. Dialects of Lowland Gaelic have been defunct since the 18th century. Gaelic in the Eastern and Southern Scottish Highlands, although alive until the mid-20th century, is now largely defunct. Although modern Scottish Gaelic is dominated by the dialects of the Outer Hebrides and Isle of Skye, there remain some speakers of
10836-582: The entire region of modern-day Scotland was called Scotia in Latin, and Gaelic was the lingua Scotica . In southern Scotland , Gaelic was strong in Galloway , adjoining areas to the north and west, West Lothian , and parts of western Midlothian . It was spoken to a lesser degree in north Ayrshire , Renfrewshire , the Clyde Valley and eastern Dumfriesshire . In south-eastern Scotland, there
10965-540: The ever-increasing globalisation of the world, and thus looked to a modern solution to fix a modern problem. But it was rejected by the Cabinet and by the Parliamentary Labour Party , and in May 1930 Mosley resigned from his ministerial position. At the time, according to Lady Mosley's autobiography, the weekly Liberal -leaning paper The Nation and Athenaeum wrote: "The resignation of Sir Oswald Mosley
11094-506: The family estates seemed to be the best prospect. He was unexpectedly selected for Harrow first. In the general election of 1918 he faced no serious opposition and was elected easily. He was the youngest member of the House of Commons to take his seat, although Joseph Sweeney , an abstentionist Sinn Féin member, was younger. He soon distinguished himself as an orator and political player, one marked by extreme self-confidence, and made
11223-527: The family); a barony was created for Tonman Mosley , brother of the 4th baronet, but also became extinct. After Mosley's parents separated, he was raised by his mother, who went to live at Betton Hall near Market Drayton , and his paternal grandfather, Sir Oswald Mosley, 4th Baronet . Within the family and among intimate friends, he was always called "Tom". He lived for many years at his grandparents' stately home, Apedale Hall in Staffordshire , and
11352-582: The first time I openly and publicly challenge the Jewish interests of this country, commanding commerce, commanding the Press, commanding the cinema, dominating the City of London, killing industry with their sweat-shops. These great interests are not intimidating, and will not intimidate, the Fascist movement of the modern age." The party was unable to fight the 1935 general election . In October 1936, Mosley and
11481-560: The first time. However, given there are no longer any monolingual Gaelic speakers, following an appeal in the court case of Taylor v Haughney (1982), involving the status of Gaelic in judicial proceedings, the High Court ruled against a general right to use Gaelic in court proceedings. While the goal of the Gaelic Language Act was to aid in revitalization efforts through government mandated official language status,
11610-613: The government was sufficiently concerned to pass the Public Order Act 1936 , which, amongst other things, banned political uniforms and quasi-military style organisations and came into effect on 1 January 1937. In the London County Council elections in 1937, the BUF stood in three wards in East London (some former New Party seats), its strongest areas, polling up to a quarter of the vote. Mosley made most of
11739-798: The hall hosted the Vienna Philharmonic , under Bruno Walter , at the first festival in 1947. It is also the Edinburgh home of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra , who play regularly during their season. The Scottish Chamber Orchestra , Scottish Fiddle Orchestra, National Youth Orchestra of Scotland and local organisations, such as the Edinburgh Royal Choral Union and the Kevock Choir, also regularly appear. In March 1972,
11868-518: The historian Martin Pugh described, "a link with powerful, wealthy and glamorous men and women appealed strongly to those who endured humdrum and deprived lives". It took several re-counts before Chamberlain was declared the winner by 77 votes and Mosley blamed poor weather for the result. His period outside Parliament was used to develop a new economic policy for the ILP, which eventually became known as
11997-479: The initiatives must come from within Gaelic speaking communities, be led by Gaelic speakers, and be designed to serve and increase fluency within the vernacular communities as the first and most viable resistance to total language shift from Gaelic to English. Currently, language policies are focused on creating new language speakers through education, instead of focused on how to strengthen intergenerational transmission within existing Gaelic speaking communities. In
12126-553: The injury had fully healed and at the Battle of Loos (1915) passed out at his post from pain. He spent the remainder of the war at desk jobs in the Ministry of Munitions and in the Foreign Office . On 11 May 1920, he married Lady Cynthia "Cimmie" Curzon (1898–1933), second daughter of the 1st Earl Curzon of Kedleston (1859–1925), Viceroy of India 1899–1905, Foreign Secretary 1919–1924, and Lord Curzon's first wife,
12255-408: The language under age 20 did not decrease between the 2001 and 2011 censuses. In the 2022 census of Scotland , it was found that 2.5% of the Scottish population had some skills in Gaelic, or 130,161 persons. Of these, 69,701 people reported speaking the language, with a further 46,404 people reporting that they understood the language, but did not speak, read, or write in it. Outside of Scotland,
12384-502: The language. Compared with the 2001 Census, there has been a diminution of about 1300 people. This is the smallest drop between censuses since the Gaelic-language question was first asked in 1881. The Scottish government's language minister and Bòrd na Gàidhlig took this as evidence that Gaelic's long decline has slowed. The main stronghold of the language continues to be the Outer Hebrides ( Na h-Eileanan Siar ), where
12513-534: The language. These omit the English translation entirely. Bilingual railway station signs are now more frequent than they used to be. Practically all the stations in the Highland area use both English and Gaelic, and the use of bilingual station signs has become more frequent in the Lowlands of Scotland, including areas where Gaelic has not been spoken for a long time. Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980),
12642-532: The late 15th century, it became increasingly common for such speakers to refer to Scottish Gaelic as Erse ("Irish") and the Lowland vernacular as Scottis . Today, Scottish Gaelic is recognised as a separate language from Irish, so the word Erse in reference to Scottish Gaelic is no longer used. Based on medieval traditional accounts and the apparent evidence from linguistic geography, Gaelic has been commonly believed to have been brought to Scotland, in
12771-679: The latter course". In 1926, the Labour-held seat of Smethwick fell vacant, and Mosley returned to parliament after winning the resulting by-election on 21 December. Mosley felt the campaign was dominated by Conservative attacks on him for being too rich, including claims that he was covering up his wealth. In 1927, he mocked the British Fascists as "black-shirted buffoons, making a cheap imitation of ice-cream sellers". The ILP elected him to Labour's National Executive Committee . Mosley and Cynthia were committed Fabians in
12900-459: The members of Highland school boards tended to have anti-Gaelic attitudes and served as an obstacle to Gaelic education in the late 19th and early 20th century. Loss of life due to World War I and the 1919 sinking of the HMY Iolaire , combined with emigration, resulted in the 1910s seeing unprecedented damage to the use of Scottish Gaelic, with a 46% fall in monolingual speakers and
13029-520: The memorandum laid out the foundations of the corporate state which intended to combine businesses, workers and the government into one body as a way to "Obliterate class conflict and make the British economy healthy again". Mosley published this memorandum because of his dissatisfaction with the laissez-faire attitudes held by both Labour and the Conservative party, and their passivity towards
13158-734: The mid-20th century. Records of their speech show that Irish and Scottish Gaelic existed in a dialect chain with no clear language boundary. Some features of moribund dialects have been preserved in Nova Scotia, including the pronunciation of the broad or velarised l ( l̪ˠ ) as [w] , as in the Lochaber dialect. The Endangered Languages Project lists Gaelic's status as "threatened", with "20,000 to 30,000 active users". UNESCO classifies Gaelic as " definitely endangered ". The 1755–2001 figures are census data quoted by MacAulay. The 2011 Gaelic speakers figures come from table KS206SC of
13287-532: The modern era. Some of this was driven by policy decisions by government or other organisations, while some originated from social changes. In the last quarter of the 20th century, efforts began to encourage use of the language. The Statutes of Iona , enacted by James VI in 1609, was one piece of legislation that addressed, among other things, the Gaelic language. It required the heirs of clan chiefs to be educated in lowland, Protestant, English-speaking schools. James VI took several such measures to impose his rule on
13416-695: The official language of government and law. Scotland's emergent nationalism in the era following the conclusion of the Wars of Scottish Independence was organized using Scots as well. For example, the nation's great patriotic literature including John Barbour's The Brus (1375) and Blind Harry's The Wallace (before 1488) was written in Scots, not Gaelic. By the end of the 15th century, English/Scots speakers referred to Gaelic instead as 'Yrisch' or 'Erse', i.e. Irish and their own language as 'Scottis'. A steady shift away from Scottish Gaelic continued into and through
13545-459: The outcome of the act is distanced from the actual minority language communities. It helps to create visibility of the minority language in civil structures, but does not impact or address the lived experiences of the Gaelic speaker communities wherein the revitalization efforts may have a higher return of new Gaelic speakers. Efforts are being made to concentrate resources, language planning, and revitalization efforts towards vernacular communities in
13674-586: The outside of the building with two large figures representing Inspiration and Achievement, as well as another three figures by Crossland McClure depicting the Soul of Music , Music of the Sea and Music of the Woods . The finished building was officially opened on 16 March 1914 with a concert featuring music by Handel , Bach , Wagner , Beethoven and the Scottish composer Hamish MacCunn . The final cost of building
13803-560: The overall proportion of speakers is 52.2%. Important pockets of the language also exist in the Highlands (5.4%) and in Argyll and Bute (4.0%) and Inverness (4.9%). The locality with the largest absolute number is Glasgow with 5,878 such persons, who make up over 10% of all of Scotland's Gaelic speakers. Gaelic continues to decline in its traditional heartland. Between 2001 and 2011, the absolute number of Gaelic speakers fell sharply in
13932-628: The point of advocating authoritarianism. He claimed that the UK Labour Party was pursuing policies of "international socialism", while fascism's aim was "national socialism". It claimed membership as high as 50,000, and had the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror among its earliest supporters. The Mirror piece was a guest article by the Daily Mail owner Viscount Rothermere and an apparent one-off; despite these briefly warm words for
14061-787: The post-war era but received very little support. During this period he was an advocate of Pan-European nationalism , developing the Europe a Nation ideology, and was an early proponent of Holocaust denial conspiracy theories. Mosley was born on 16 November 1896 at 47 Hill Street , Mayfair , London. He was the eldest of the three sons of Sir Oswald Mosley, 5th Baronet (1873–1928), and Katharine Maud Edwards-Heathcote (1873–1948), daughter of Captain Justinian Edwards-Heathcote , of Apedale Hall , Staffordshire . He had two younger brothers: Edward Heathcote Mosley (1899–1980) and John Arthur Noel Mosley (1901–1973). His father
14190-466: The prosperity of employment: the Highland economy relied greatly on seasonal migrant workers travelling outside the Gàidhealtachd . In 1863, an observer sympathetic to Gaelic stated that "knowledge of English is indispensable to any poor islander who wishes to learn a trade or to earn his bread beyond the limits of his native Isle". Generally, rather than Gaelic speakers, it was Celtic societies in
14319-460: The reform and civilisation of the Highlands, which they sought to achieve by teaching English and the Protestant religion. Initially, their teaching was entirely in English, but soon the impracticality of educating Gaelic-speaking children in this way gave rise to a modest concession: in 1723, teachers were allowed to translate English words in the Bible into Gaelic to aid comprehension, but there
14448-587: The region, Gaelic in Scotland was mostly confined to Dál Riata until the eighth century, when it began expanding into Pictish areas north of the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. During the reign of Caustantín mac Áeda (Constantine II, 900–943), outsiders began to refer to the region as the kingdom of Alba rather than as the kingdom of the Picts. However, though the Pictish language did not disappear suddenly,
14577-502: The requirement that the hall be simple but dignified. The winning bid (one of 130 entries) came from Stockdale Harrison & Howard H Thomson of Leicester . The design was partly a backlash against Victorian Gothic , with a return to classical features owing much to the Beaux-Arts style . On 19 July 1911, George V and Queen Mary laid two memorial stones, an event attended by over a thousand people. Its curved walls, unusual for
14706-538: The seats they held and won none. As the New Party gradually became more radical and authoritarian , many previous supporters defected from it. According to Lady Mosley's autobiography, shortly after the 1931 election Mosley was described by The Manchester Guardian : When Sir Oswald Mosley sat down after his Free Trade Hall speech in Manchester and the audience, stirred as an audience rarely is, rose and swept
14835-416: The south and The Traverse Theatre to the north. Historic Environment Scotland has registered the Hall with Category A listed building status. The construction of the hall was funded by Andrew Usher , a whisky distiller and blender, who donated £100,000 to the city specifically to fund a new concert hall. The choice of site caused early delays but in 1910 an architectural competition was announced with
14964-677: The time, were made possible by developments in reinforced concrete . The dome was designed to reflect the curvature of the walls, not to give a domed interior (which would have been acoustically disastrous). The interior of the hall is adorned with decorative plaster panels by the Edinburgh sculptor Harry Gamley . The figures depicted in these panels show figures from the world of music, as well as famous Scots. These include: Sir Walter Scott , Robert Burns , Allan Ramsay , R L Stevenson , Johann Sebastian Bach , George Frideric Handel , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Johannes Brahms , Edvard Grieg and Anton Rubinstein . Harry Gamley's work also features on
15093-414: Was a British aristocrat and politician who rose to fame during the 1920s and 1930s when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism . He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Harrow from 1918 to 1924 and for Smethwick from 1926 to 1931. He founded the British Union of Fascists (BUF) in 1932 and led it until its forced disbandment in 1940. After military service during
15222-696: Was a third cousin to the 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne , father of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother . The progenitor, and earliest-attested ancestor, of the Mosley family was Ernald de Mosley ( fl. 12th century), Lord of the Manor of Moseley, Staffordshire, during the reign of King John . The family were prominent landholders in Staffordshire and seated at Rolleston Hall , near Burton upon Trent . Three baronetcies were created, two of which are now extinct (see Mosley baronets for further history of
15351-408: Was a very able document and illuminating". Keynes also wrote, "I like the spirit which informs the document. A scheme of national economic planning to achieve a right, or at least a better, balance of our industries between the old and the new, between agriculture and manufacture, between home development and foreign investment; and wide executive powers to carry out the details of such a scheme. That
15480-400: Was a whole generation ahead of Labour thinking." As his book, The Greater Britain , focused on the issues of free trade, the criticisms against globalisation that he formulated can be found in critiques of contemporary globalisation. He warns nations that buying cheaper goods from other nations may seem appealing but ultimately ravage domestic industry and lead to large unemployment, as seen in
15609-399: Was accepted in 2008, and some of its main commitments were: identity (signs, corporate identity); communications (reception, telephone, mailings, public meetings, complaint procedures); publications (PR and media, websites); staffing (language learning, training, recruitment). Following a consultation period, in which the government received many submissions, the majority of which asked that
15738-591: Was commissioned into the British cavalry unit the 16th The Queen's Lancers and fought in France on the Western Front . He transferred to the Royal Flying Corps as a pilot and air observer , but while demonstrating in front of his mother and sister he crashed, which left him with a permanent limp, as well as a reputation for being brave and somewhat reckless. He returned to the trenches before
15867-490: Was educated at West Downs School and Winchester College . Mosley was a fencing champion in his school days; he won titles in both foil and sabre , and retained an enthusiasm for the sport throughout his life. In January 1914, Mosley entered the Royal Military College, Sandhurst , but was expelled in June for a "riotous act of retaliation" against a fellow student. During the First World War , he
15996-797: Was frequently involved in violent confrontations and riots, particularly with communist and Jewish groups and especially in London. At a large Mosley rally at Olympia on 7 June 1934, his bodyguards' violence caused bad publicity. This and the Night of the Long Knives in Germany led to the loss of most of the BUF's mass support. Nevertheless, Mosley continued espousing anti-Semitism . At one of his New Party meetings in Leicester in April 1935, he said, "For
16125-620: Was his great contribution to fascism." It also gained the endorsement of the Daily Mail newspaper, headed at the time by Harold Harmsworth (later created 1st Viscount Rothermere). The New Party increasingly inclined to fascist policies, but Mosley was denied the opportunity to get his party established when during the Great Depression the 1931 general election was suddenly called—the party's candidates, including Mosley himself running in Stoke which had been held by his wife, lost
16254-554: Was long suppressed. The UK government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Gaelic. Gaelic, along with Irish and Welsh, is designated under Part III of the Charter, which requires the UK Government to take a range of concrete measures in the fields of education, justice, public administration, broadcasting and culture. It has not received the same degree of official recognition from
16383-510: Was no further permitted use. Other less prominent schools worked in the Highlands at the same time, also teaching in English. This process of anglicisation paused when evangelical preachers arrived in the Highlands, convinced that people should be able to read religious texts in their own language. The first well known translation of the Bible into Scottish Gaelic was made in 1767, when James Stuart of Killin and Dugald Buchanan of Rannoch produced
16512-404: Was once Gaelic-speaking, as evidenced especially by Gaelic-language place names. In the 2011 census of Scotland , 57,375 people (1.1% of the Scottish population aged over three years old) reported being able to speak Gaelic, 1,275 fewer than in 2001. The highest percentages of Gaelic speakers were in the Outer Hebrides . Nevertheless, there is a language revival , and the number of speakers of
16641-617: Was re-inaugurated on 7 June 2003 in a celebratory concert recital by Gillian Weir . Still owned and managed by the City of Edinburgh Council , the Usher Hall is still in constant use. As well as being one of the main venues for the Edinburgh International Festival , other events have been held, such as the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony and the Colin O'Riordan Memorial Concert . Freedom of
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