Plans to honour 'birthplace' of Europe's commandos

A charity has unveiled plans for a £7.4m heritage centre honouring the birthplace of many of Europe's commando and special forces units.

Thousands of soldiers from the UK and its allies, including Norway, Poland, France and Belgium, trained in commando warfare in Lochaber during World War Two.

The area's role in the war is recalled by the Commando Memorial, which was unveiled near Spean Bridge, north of Fort William, in 1952.

The newly-formed International Commando Heritage Trust has proposed building a "discrete" centre near the monument.

Commando warfare often involves small teams carrying out raids or reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines.

Lochaber was ideal for the training due to its challenging mountain terrain.

During World War Two, large areas were also controlled by the military, meaning exercises could be carried out in secret.

Achnacarry Castle, which is about 15 miles (24km) north east of Fort William and is the ancestral home of the chiefs of Clan Cameron, was a commando basic training centre.

Live ammunition and captured weapons were used in some of the exercises.

Retired Col Barry Barnwell, of the new trust, said the site was the ancestral birthplace of all commando and special forces units, and that training standards established in Lochaber were still used today in the UK military.

He told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme: "Almost every modern day commando or special forces around the world, particularly our allied nations and ourselves, can trace their heritage back to training in Scotland, particularly at Achnacarry."

The trust is gathering support for its plans among politicians, senior military staff and local communities.

The Commando Association and Royal Marines Association have offered their backing to the project.

Discussions are also taking place with potential funding partners.

In early 1942, Achnacarry Castle and its estate became the UK's original Commando Basic Training Centre. Today the centre is based in Devon.

By the time it closed in 1946, about 26,000 commandos from the UK, US and across Europe completed their training at Achnacarry.

In the past, a small exhibition dedicated to the commandos was run by volunteers at the Spean Bridge Hotel.

An estimated 100,000 people visit the Commando Memorial every year.