The personal and political: Inside Alex Salmond's memorial service

Craig and Charlie Reid of The Proclaimers belted out their nationalist anthem Cap in Hand as the great and the good - including former prime minister Gordon Brown, a strong defender of the union - looked on in St Giles' Cathedral in central Edinburgh.

"I can't understand why we let someone else rule our land, cap in hand,” the brothers sang, their powerful voices filling the huge, historic space with ease. Off to the side, near to where much of the media was sitting, a woman waved a saltire flag.

Mr Salmond's memorial service was a potent mix of the personal and political. Some 500 people filed into St Giles' on Saturday, St Andrew’s Day, to pay tribute to a man who shaped modern Scotland.

Moira, his widow, was joined by his sisters Margaret Still and Gail Hendry, as well as his brother Bob. High-profile political attendees included First Minister John Swinney and his deputy, Kate Forbes.

Mr Swinney was booed by some of the crowd outside on the Royal Mile as he arrived and departed, with shouts of "traitor" and "shame on you". It is probably just as well his predecessor, Nicola Sturgeon, whose spectacular falling out with Mr Salmond left a rift in the nationalist movement, was absent. She was attending the funeral of Scottish comedian Janey Godley in Glasgow, but would not have been welcome here anyway.

During the service, Duncan Hamilton KC, a former SNP MSP and legal counsel to Mr Salmond, wondered "how different Scotland might be today" if the former first minister had not resigned in the aftermath of the independence referendum, a move which paved the way for Ms Sturgeon.

"This was a man who – right to the end - never stopped thinking, probing, challenging," Mr Hamilton said. "He made strategic mistakes, of course. The most obvious was resigning as First Minister in 2014. I think that if there is one thing in his political career he would have changed, it would have been that."

Kenny MacAskill, the acting leader of the Alba Party and a former justice secretary, told the memorial service Mr Salmond had “restored pride” in Scotland. Those who shared his dream “must conclude that journey on his behalf”, he said, adding: “When we leave this memorial, we do so not with our heads hung low but with our heads held high. A tear in an eye, but fire in our soul; cherishing his memory, revering his achievements, seeking justice for his name and pledging to deliver his dream.”

To lengthy applause, he concluded: “Farewell my friend. You said, ‘The dream shall never die.’ But we shall overcome. Your dream shall be delivered.”

Christina Hendry, Mr Salmond’s niece, spoke movingly of the family man behind the politician. “To the world, he was a political giant, a strong leader, a fearless campaigner,” she said. “To us he was a dearly loved husband, brother and uncle.”

Mr Salmond, who was born in Linlithgow in 1954, grew up in a “football household”, she said. “He continued to support football throughout his life and we were recently reminded of the story where, the night before his Higher History exam, Uncle Alex travelled to Wolverhampton to watch Hearts in the second leg of the final of the 1971 Texaco Cup.

“Hearts won the game but lost the final on aggregate. Uncle Alex studied on the bus, just making it back in time for his exam but still managed to get an A. Funnily enough, I do not recall hearing this story until I was well past the exam stage of my life.”

Mr Salmond was “the top man in Scotland”, she said, but always made time for his family.

“My sister, Karen, was born the day after Margaret Thatcher’s resignation in 1990, but my mum still remembers Uncle Alex and Auntie Moira visiting the new baby,” Ms Hendry told the service. “He, of course, ignored the hospital visiting times and walked in saying, ‘This is the first time that the Tories caused labour to gain another vote for the SNP’.”

Mr Hamilton recalled the former first minister’s masterful negotiations in 2012 to secure an independence referendum. “By the end of it, I’m not sure David Cameron knew his own name,” he joked. “Alex, meantime, had secured everything he wanted.”

As well as humour and fond memories, there were moments of great beauty. The singer-songwriter Dougie MacLean performed his classic ballad Caledonia, while fiddler Alasdair Fraser played three pieces - one of which, The Referendum, was dedicated to Mr Salmond by the composer - accompanied by Natalie Haas on cello. The singer Sheena Wellington led mourners in a rendition of Robert Burns’ classic A Man’s A Man For A’ That.

Readings came from David Davis, the Tory MP, and Fergus Ewing, the veteran SNP MSP.

Other prominent politicians in attendance included former Labour first minister Henry McLeish; Baroness Laing, a former deputy speaker of the House of Commons; SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn; former SNP MP Joanna Cherry; former SNP minister Michael Russell; Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar; and Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay. Alison Johnstone, the presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament, was also present, alongside her predecessors Lord Steel and Sir George Reid. Those from outside politics included the actor and entertainer Elaine C Smith, former Hearts footballer Michael Stewart and Sir Brian Souter, the transport tycoon.

Rev Dr George Whyte, interim moderator at St Giles’ Cathedral, led the service. “On this 30th of November, with the Saltires hung on the pillars, we gather not to beatify a saint but to remember a human being,” he said.

Outside, crowds gathered with flags and banners. As the mourners trickled out of St Giles’, they chanted “Alex, Alex” and “The dream shall never die”.