The family of Alex Salmond have said the former Scottish first minister was "a devoted and loving husband, a fiercely loyal brother, a proud and thoughtful uncle and a faithful and trusted friend," following his death on Saturday at the age of 69.

In a statement, they said the “formidable politician” was “admired throughout the world” but was also a “loving” family man whose presence got them through their “darkest moments”.

They said life would never be the same again, but vowed to continue his work towards Scottish independence.

Mr Salmond died of a heart attack after delivering a speech in North Macedonia at the weekend. Arrangements to repatriate his body to Scotland are under way.

Books of condolence have been opened in the Scottish Parliament's garden lobby and public hall for MSPs and members of the public to leave messages.

His family - including wife Moira, sisters Margaret and Gail, his brother Bob and his nieces Christina and Karen and his nephews Mark, Neil and Ian - released a statement on Sunday evening.

It said: "Alex was a formidable politician, an amazing orator, an outstanding intellect, and admired throughout the world. He loved meeting people and hearing their stories, and showed incredible kindness to those who needed it.

"He dedicated his adult life to the cause he believed in - independence for Scotland. His vision and enthusiasm for Scotland and the Yes movement were both inspirational and contagious.

"But to us, first and foremost, he was a devoted and loving husband, a fiercely loyal brother, a proud and thoughtful uncle and a faithful and trusted friend."

They added: "In our darkest of family moments, he was always the one who got us through, making this time even more difficult, as he is not here for us to turn to. His resilience and optimism knew no bounds.

"He led us to believe in better. Without Alex, life will never be the same again. But he would want us to continue with his life’s work for independence, and for justice, and that is what we shall do."

The statement concluded with the words "the dream shall never die" - the same words used by Salmond as he stepped down following the loss of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.

Salmond had given a speech at the Academy for Cultural Diplomacy (ACD) conference in Ohrid, North Macedonia, on Friday.

He attended dinner that evening, where he discussed plans for an ACD event in Scotland next year, before appearing at the second day of the conference on Saturday.

He took part in a panel discussion, then was attending a lunch.

It was there he had a heart attack - falling backwards in his chair, and caught by a fellow delegate.

The rest of the event was cancelled as paramedics tried in vain to resuscitate him.

He had posted on X just hours before his death, signing off with the phrase: "Scotland is a country not a county".

On Monday morning, fellow former first minister, Henry McLeish, told BBC Scotland News that Salmond “broke new ground” in Scottish politics.

McLeish, 76, described Salmond as a “formidable politician and a friend”.

He told Good Morning Scotland: “Today, there are too many politicians regarding each other as political enemies [rather than] opponents."

Salmond resigned as SNP leader and first minister in 2014 following the Yes campaign’s defeat in the referendum.

McLeish described the 45% vote in support of independence as a “spectacular result” for the Yes campaign, which surprised those at Westminster.

“He was within a few hundred thousand votes from Scotland exiting the union,” McLeish said.

McLeish said Salmond saw devolution as a "stepping stone" to independence, and praied his pragmatism.

He continued: "He supported devolution, but I think he took a very pragmatic approach and I think that is what has been missing [since] he left office in 2014."

Kenny MacAskill, Salmond’s long-time friend and Scotland's former justice secretary, said he had “made Scottish independence mainstream”.

MacAskill, now de-facto leader of the Alba Party, added: “His [Salmond’s] legacy is all around us, whether that is in infrastructure projects... or whether it is in the absence of tuition fees or prescription charges that has been a blessing for so many in this land."

He continued: “Alex made independence mainstream.”

David Davis, the former Conservative MP, was scheduled to have dinner with Salmond on Sunday after he returned from Ohrid.

The pair have been close friends - despite being on opposite sides of the political divide - since they entered the House of Commons in 1987.

Davis said Salmond was a “brilliant” economist and said he “admired” Salmond’s dedication to the independence cause, despite never being persuaded by his argument.

“There were times when he had an influence on my opinion, but not on the central issue of independence,” he said.

“But on other issues - we ended up on the same side on the Iraq war, for example, we co-signed a motion criticising Tony Blair for initiating the Iraq War in 2016.

“On the other side of the coin, he often supported what I did on civil liberties, rule of law, proper restriction on government. So there were quite a lot of alliances along the way.”

MPs will share their tributes to Alex Salmond in the House of Commons this afternoon.