Tuesday 4 October 2022 01:57 PM Scottish nationalist who helped to steal the Stone of Destiny from Westminster ... trends now
A Scottish nationalist who rose to fame after helping to steal the Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey has died aged 97.
Ian Hamilton helped to swipe the treasured symbol of monarchy from underneath King Edward I's Coronation Chair on Christmas Day in 1950.
Until then, the stone had been in London since 1296, when it was seized from Scotland by Edward's forces.
Tributes poured in for Mr Hamilton, a lawyer, after his death was announced today, with Scottish First Minister calling him a 'legend of the independence movement' and one of the 'liberators' of the Stone of Destiny.
A Scottish nationalist who rose to fame after helping to steal the Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey has died aged 97. Ian Hamilton (pictured in 2008 and right as a student) helped to swipe the treasured symbol of monarchy from underneath King Edward I's Coronation Chair on Christmas Day in 1950
From when it was seized from Scotland in 1296, the Stone of Destiny stayed in Westminster Abbey for more than 650 years - bar a period when it was moved for safe keeping during the Second World War.
Mr Hamilton stole the stone along with engineering students Gavin Vernon and Alan Stuart and science teacher Kay Matheson.
The thieves were all involved in the nationalist Scottish Covenant Association, a movement that wanted Scotland to be independent of the UK.
The activists broke into the Abbey through a side door and prised the stone out from under the Coronation Chair.
However, they then dropped the 24 stone (152kg) stone and it broke in two when it hit the floor.
The robbers used Mr Hamilton's raincoat to drag the larger chunk of the stone to a waiting car, then placed the smaller piece in another.
The Stone of Destiny is seen under King Edward I's Coronation Chair in the 1970s, after it had been found and returned to Westminster Abbey
The stone was found in April 1951 at Arbroath Abbey in Scotland, having been placed on the altar and draped in the Saltire. Above: The stone after its discovery
The stone is seen being removed from Arbroath Abbey by police officers after being found
The historic Stone of Destiny will be moved from Edinburgh Castle for the coronation of King Charles III
When the stone was found to be missing, the police embarked on one of the biggest manhunts in British history.
For the first time in 400 years, the border between England and Scotland was closed as the police imposed roadblocks.
The two parts of the stone were initially hidden separately - one was in the Midlands and another was