US Presidents’ Day celebrations in Scotland emphasise the historic bond between the two countries – Angus Robertson

Abraham Lincoln is the only US President to have a memorial in Scotland

Scotland’s second-ever US Presidents’ Day celebrations have just taken place in the shadow of the statue of Abraham Lincoln in Calton Hill cemetery.

The inaugural event in Edinburgh last year was the first official Presidents’ Day commemoration held outside the United States. Following its success in Scotland, this year the White House Historical Association has arranged 22 ceremonies to take place in 13 countries across the world.

Lincoln’s statue is the first of any American president in Europe and still the sole statue of a US president in Scotland. It is also believed to be the only memorial to the Civil War outside the USA.

Stewart McLaurin, president of the White House Historical Association and a Global Scot, came across the Lincoln statue on a previous trip to Edinburgh and thought up the idea for holding ceremonies across the globe, beginning with Scotland. It was fantastic to have Stewart here this year to say a few words.

As with last year, it was a great honour to speak at the event and lay a wreath on behalf of the Scottish Government together with US Consul General Jack Hillmeyer, Lord Provost Robert Aldridge and the US-born City of Edinburgh Council’s culture and communities vice-convener, Councillor Amy McNeese-Mechan.

From the Scottish signatories of the United States Declaration of Independence to the book of Burns poetry that was omnipresent on Abraham Lincoln’s bedside table, the links between Scotland and the United States have always been strong and, as this week’s ceremony shows, shall continue to grow.

Angus Robertson is the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Central and Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary