A ROSYTH veteran who braved freezing conditions in the Arctic Convoys has been honoured with a medal from the Russian Government.

A ROSYTH veteran who braved freezing conditions in the Arctic Convoys has been honoured with a medal from the Russian Government.

Alexander Gillan (89), of Ramsey Place, was invited to a ceremony at Glasgow City Chambers last weekend to receive a commemorative medal for the 70th anniversary of the victory in the great patriotic war of 1941-1945, as well as a watch from the Russian Military Historical Society, presented by consul general of the Russian Federation, Andrey Pritsepov.

“It was great,” said Alexander. “It was fantastic, they couldn’t have done more. They were so friendly, it was like they couldn’t thank us enough.

“We had a buffet and then some straight vodka. There was plenty of vodka, plenty of drink!

“There was a concert that lasted about two hours, with music and folk songs, and at the end we all got flowers. It traditionally means you’re a friend of Russia, it’s a show of friendship.” The watch that Alexander received at the ceremony on Saturday is one of only 315 ever made, designed specially to commemorate victory during the war. Along with his medal, the gift is a way of recognising the service that Alexander provided. The Arctic Convoys, branded the “worst journey in the world” by Winston Churchill, saw sailors delivering important supplies between the Soviet Union and United Kingdom, mainly between the ports of Scotland, Iceland and northern Russia. They had to contend with extremely harsh conditions as well as the constant threat of attack from the German navy and air forces.

“I remember it was very, very cold, wet and windy,” said Alexander. “I got the medal for my service on HMS Sheffield on the Russian convoys, which was involved in the sinking of the German battleship Scharnhorst off the top coast of Norway. I later served on the HMS Labuan, which was involved in the sinking of a U-boat in the English Channel, and on the HMS Consort in the Korean War for two and a half years.” Alexander is also in line for another top Russian honour – the Medal of Ushakov – for his Arctic Convoy trips. Although he received his British Arctic Star two years ago, he still hasn’t got the Ushakov Medal due to his details being missing on the list, but he has been told he’ll be awarded the honour soon.