THE ROYAL ceremony proved to be the culmination of a lot of hard work for a key figure behind the memorial to the late Queen Mother at her childhood home.

David Bowes-Lyon, a cousin of the much-loved matriarch, led the campaign to secure the gates and a national tribute in Edinburgh as chairman of the Queen Mother’s Memorial Fund for Scotland.

It got under way in 2003 and within 18 months reached its £1 million target thanks to support from home and abroad.

He recalls the donations arriving, of all sizes and from people of all walks of life.

“We received 50p postal orders and cheques for £5 or £10, but you need a lot of them to get to £1 million,” said Mr Bowes-Lyon.

“However, it is fair to say the general public in Scotland and further afield were amazingly generous.

“You never know what is going to happen with fund-raising, but what did become evident was the huge amount of warmth people had for the Queen Mother.”

People who gave what they could afford have been remembered for all time as their names have been listed in a beautifully crafted book of donors great and small.

It was given the royal seal of approval during yesterday’s special visit as the book was signed by the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Rothesay and will remain at the castle.

Mr Bowes-Lyon revealed just how deeply involved Prince Charles became in the Queen Mother’s memorial garden at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, which opened two years ago, and the Glamis masterpiece.

“I asked Prince Charles to become the patron and he readily agreed to that because he was obviously very fond of his grandmother,” he explained.

“He was very supportive and very helpful and it was he who suggested the designer, architect Lachlan Stewart.”

Mr Bowes-Lyon, chairman of the trustees of Strathmore Estates, said Prince Charles supported the vision of memorials which could be easily accessed by the public.

He continued, “For instance, if we put a statue of the Queen Mother in the grounds of the castle, it would not necessarily be available for people to see all the time. That was a major consideration.”

Mr Bowes-Lyon said the memorial gates finish a project mooted hundreds of years ago.

When the castle was remodelled between 1798 and 1801 and its west wing rebuilt, there were plans for the drive to emerge into the village of Glamis. But it did not materialise and the plans gathered dust.

“We have now completed something which was started such a long time ago.”

The Queen Mother’s Memorial Fund for Scotland and Strathmore Estates have invested around £350,000 between them on the gates and associated work on the new entrance, which got under way early last year.

Mr Bowes-Lyon added, “The gates are impressive, but without being overawing.

“This is an entrance to a castle with lots of history behind it and we hope we have added something to it.”