Lament for the Iolaire

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Composed by Donald MacLeod

The account of this tune given in Donald MacLeod's Collection of Piobaireachd book 1 is as follows.

"The Iolaire disaster, when so many of her sons were lost, will ever be remembered in the Island of Lewis. On New Year's Day,1919, the ship, taking some hundreds of servicemen home after World War 1 struck the rocky Beasts of Holm. Survivors were pitifully few.

This was a terrible time for the people of the island. Hardly a household but lost either a close or distant relative. There are many instances of superhuman effort and gallantry shining through the bleak darkness of disaster, with self discipline remaining to the end.

Every man was a hero."

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Donald Macleod'...