Directory Notes

This section explains a few of the terms which crop up in the directories and which a non-Scot, or a person not too familiar with a period or occupation might find puzzling.

DEMPSTERS ABROAD

One thing which can be said about the "Dempsters Abroad" section is that it is as miscellaneous a list a you're likely to get. I hope to have most of the information for the section in the individual entries, but where a thing crops up a lot, or needs longer explanation then it'll be here.

DEMPSTERS IN THE CHURCH

Producing notes for the Dempster churchmen is a bit complicated, given the history of church strife in Scotland (let alone all the possibilities worldwide). Still here goes.

From the time of the reforms instituted by St Margaret in the 11th century till the reformation, Scotland was a Roman Catholic country. A few remanants of the Columban, Celtic church persisted for a little while, but faded as the Celtic priests died out. For 500 years, therfore, the churchmen of Scotland were catholic, and any Dempster mentioned in the list who was in office before 1560 can be assumed to be a Roman Catholic unless it's noted otherwise. Apart from the obvious offices of Bishop, Archbishop and Cardinal, there are various styles by which catholic priests were known (Vicar, Rector &c) which depended on the living which they held or (Chantor) which depended on offices held in a cathedral chapter. Those necessary will be added to these notes when the situation arises. One thing to note is the medieval designation of many priests as "Sir". Though today the designation Sir John Smith would denote someone who had been knighted, in earlier periods it was not always the case. A person with the designation "Sir" (in Scots "Schir") is most likely to be a priest. A knight would be additionally described as such. Thus "Schir John Smith" is most probably a priest, "Schir John Smith, Knycht" has received the accolade of knighthood.

From 1560 onwards, things get more complicated. 1560 is the date usually given for the start of the reformation in Scotland, though of course things were not that clear cut. Any cleric whose career started after that date can be assumed to be a minister of the Church of Scotland unless another denomination is stated at the start of the entry. Of course, that doesn't explain everything, since there have been a great many splits and reunions in the Scottish church since 1560, mainly to do with church government. I'm no expert in church history, but this is a very rough guide.

The reformed church set up by John Knox was a sort of half-way house between episcopalianism (rule by bishops) and presbyterianism (rule by committee). It was easier to keep the old power structures of the church even though worship had changed. This was changed by the triumph of the more radical part of the church and the office of bishop was in eclipse by 1592, only to be reinvigorated by James VI in 1610.

Part of the reason for the civil war in Scotland - which started earlier than in England - was due to Charles I attitude to the church. James VI had pursued a cautious policy, and the bishops appointed in 1610 had survived without too much difficulty, but Charles I wished to revise the form of worship as well. The opposition to this expressed by the National Covenant of 1638 and the triumph of the Covenanters (and of Cromwell) led to the reintroduction of Presbyterianism.

After the restoration of King Charles II, things were changed. In 1662 Episcopalianism was introduced, and 300 ministers were deposed for refusing to bow to the new order. This political decisiom was overturned in 1690 after the accession of William III and over 600 ministers were deposed on this occasion, not, in the main for a refusal to accept the new form of church government, but because they refused to accept William III's overthow of James VII.

The next major change was the "Disruption" of 1843 which concerned the rights of a patron to select the candidates for the position of minister. The refusal of congregations to accept the continuation of this system led to the split off of the Free Church.

The twentieth century has seen a mixture of consolidation and split. the majority of the Free Church rejoined the Church of Scotland in the 1920s, but a minority refused, and has split more than once.

DEMPSTERS UNDER ARMS

The military world is full of the most arcane technical terms and this short section is not going to be able to cover all of them. Instead, what I've decided to do is to list just a few of those which actually appear.

Rank

The table below tries to cover the various ranks according to the British system, from most junior to most senior. It is not comprehensive. The Royal Navy and Royal Air Force in particular often use a series of trade based designations which do not make it plain the exact underlying rank. In the Army, many regiments have other terms for a private soldier - trooper in the cavalry, guardsman in the guards regiments, sapper in the engineers, gunner in the artillery, rifleman in the various rifle regiments and fusilier in the fusilier regiments. Similarly, NCOs and warrant officers can have alternative designations, an artillery corporal is a bombadier, and Scottish regiments can have Pipe Sergeants and Pipe Majors in addition to the more usual ranks.

Officer ranks are simpler, and the most probably alternative name that will crop up is the use of the terms Cornet or Ensign for 2nd Lieutenants of cavalry regiments. One other point here is that the commander of a ship is always its captain, even though he may well hold a lesser rank than Captain, Royal Navy.

Awards & Medals

Various members of the family have won awards and medals. Covering all the possible campaign medals which could have been awarded to all the Dempsters listed would be too time consuming, so only the non-campaign awards are listed. One thing to note is that the government of John Major revised the military award system, abolishing the system by which officers received crosses and other ranks received medals, by abolishing the medals and opening up award of the crosses to all ranks.

	Congressional Medal of Honor This American decoration was instituted in 1861, the inspiration of Senator James W. Grimes (Chairman of the Senate Naval Committee) and Gideon Wells (Secretary of the Navy) as a way to inspire sailors to improve their work. A bill was introduced by Grimes and approved by President Lincoln, providing for the preparation of 200 Medals of Honor "to be awarded upon such petty officers, seamen, landsmen and marines as shall most distinguish themselves by their gallantry in action". Three versions of the medal exist. The Navy version - illustrated - retains the original simple star shape, also used by the Marine Corps and Coastguard. The Army and the Air Force have versions which also incorporate a wreath and which were designed in 1904 and 1963 respectively.
	Distinguished Service Order (DSO) This British Order was instituted in 1886 as an award for distinguished services by officers of all services. It consists of a silver gilt and white enamel cross containing with a central crown within a laurel wreath. Some early DSOs were issued in gold and enamel. The reverse contains the royal cypher. Though holders are officially Companions of the Distinguished Service Order, it is worn as a medal from a red ribbon with blue edges rather than as a neck badge. In the Major government's reform of the honours system, the award was opened to all ranks.
	Military Cross (MC) This British gallantry award was instituted on 28th December 1914 for issue to junior army officers (Majors and below) and Warrant Officers. It consists of a silver cross with the Imperial Crown at the end of each arm and the royal cypher in the centre. It hangs from a ribbon of equal vertical striped of white, purple, white. Over 40,000 were awarded 1914-1918 and a further 11,000 were awarded 1939-1945. Before the establishment of the Distingushed Flying Cross, it was awarded to officers of the RFC and RAF for service in the air, and was open to members of the Navy and Aif Force for gallantry on land. In the Major government's reform of the honours system, the award was opened to all ranks.
	Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) This British gallantry medal was instituted in December 1854 for other ranks only. Other than the VC it was the most senior gallantry award open to other ranks, and was awarded sporadically. 770 for the Crimean War, 10 for the Indian Mutiny, 2,050 for the Boer War, about 25,000 during World War I and less than 1,900 during World War II. It consists of a plain silver medal hanging by scrollwork from a ribbon of equal stripes red, blue, red, with the words "For Distingushed Conduct In The Field" on the reverse. It was abolished in the Major government's reform of the honours system, when the DSO and other officers awards were opened to all ranks.
	Military Medal (MM) This British gallantry medal was instituted in March 1916 for issue to NCOs and men of the army for individual or associated acts of bravery, it was extended to women in June 1916. It was designed to be junior to the DCM and over 120,000 were awarded 1914-1918 whilst another 16,000 were awarded 1939-1945. It consists of a plain silver medal hanging by scrollwork from a blue ribbon with a white centre on which are two narrow red stripes. The reverse contains the crowned royal cypher and the words "For Bravery In The Field" all within a wreath. It was abolished in the Major government's reform of the honours system, when the MC was opened to all ranks.
	Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM) Instituted in June 1918 at the same time as the other RAF awards (Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Force Cross and Air Force Medal), for acts of valour by air crew NCOs and men whilst flying in active operations against an enemy. Less than 200 were awarded up till 1939, and about 6,700 were awarded 1939-1945. The medal consisted of a rather large silver oval hanging by narrow wings from a ribbon consisting of narrow blue and white diagonal stripes (horizontal stripes till July 1919). On the reverse of the medal is a representation of Athena Nike seated upon a biplane with an eagle on her arm. It was abolished in the Major government's reform of the honours system, when the DFC was opened to all ranks.

© James Dempster 1998