A FORFAR Academy pupil gave a stirring reading of a poem she wrote after visiting the war graves of German and British soldiers in France and Belgium, at the annual Festival of Remembrance in Dundee on Saturday night.

Gillian Higgins (16) was a special guest at the Caird Hall event organised by the Angus and Perthshire branch of the Royal British Legion.

Emotions were running high as representatives of each of the country’s armed forces marched in during the muster. Among them were members of the company of HMS Blyth, currently docked in the city, and representatives of the Merchant Navy.

The hundreds who attended heard stunning performances by the Band of HM Royal Marines Scotland and The Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association.

However Gillian’s composition, All Gave Some But Some Gave All, drew a huge round of applause.

The articulate young girl said the words she had written formed a poem of remembrance and reconciliation. In it she explored her own feelings of the contrast between the “beauty” of the British military cemetery, Tyne Cot, and the “morbidity” of the German cemetery, Langemarck.

The Band of the Royal Marines Scotland gave a recital on the theme of the Battle of Trafalgar, fittingly during its 200th anniversary year.

At the conclusion of the festival the Rev Neil Gardner, Angus and Perthshire area chaplain, the Rt Rev Dr John Mantle, Bishop of Brechin, and the Rt Rev Vincent Logan, Roman Catholic Bishop of Dunkeld, conducted the service of remembrance.

Mr John Taylor, an Angus and Perthshire area council member, and Mr Donald Farquharson of the Burma Star Association, spoke in memory of those who fought for freedom and those who gave their lives.

Festival spokesman Major Alasdair Maclean said the attendance looked to have broken the record set last year. “It was a very gratifying turnout,” he said.

* Earlier in the day, Dundee city centre fell silent as veterans and civic leaders attended the cross-laying ceremony to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in conflicts around the world.

At the garden of remembrance by City Churches, veterans formed up along with Lord Provost John Letford, MPs and MSPs, representatives of the police and fire service, the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force, and other civic associations in front of the plaque honouring the dead.

The Lord Provost laid a wreath on behalf of the city council. Other local dignitaries planted wooden crosses in the garden before veterans came forward to salute their fallen comrades.

The eight standard-bearers lowered the banners of the veterans’ organisations, the Last Post sounded and a two-minute silence was held.

Victor Herd, chairman of the City of Dundee Combined Ex-Services Association, gave the Lawrence Binyon Ode To The Fallen, “They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old.”

The parade was dismissed and the pipes and standards once again raised high to lead the procession back to City Chambers.

Mr Letford said, “This is always a nice event, a fitting tribute to people from the city who have died in combat. It is vital that we remember these people who sacrificed so much to give us the freedom we enjoy today.

“It is also encouraging that school pupils in the city are taking more of an interest in the first and second world wars, as people who served in the war are not going to be here forever and we need young people to carry on the tradition.

“I think the recent Iraq war has made young people realise the tragedy of losing lives in a conflict. This is not a day where war is glorified but a chance for the people of Dundee to remember the city’s dead.”

Mr Fred Potter (85), a former leading seaman, said, “It was a very moving ceremony.”

On Friday there will be a short ceremony to commemorate Armistice Day outside the main door of the Caird Hall at 11 am.

At 10.30 am on Sunday the Remembrance Day Parade and Service will march from Dundee High School to Dundee Parish Church (St Mary’s).