british war memorials · introduction

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use the down arrow to view option Introduction Contents Chap01-Early Memorials Chap02-The Great War Chap03-Overseas Memorials of the Great War Chap04-The Second World War Chap05-Post-Second World War Chap06-Royal Navy Memorials Chap07-Royal Air Force Memorials Chap07-Victoria Cross and George Cross Memorials Chap07-Biographies of Notable Figures

This book examines Britain's war memorials, commencing with the white marble statuary erected in Britain's cathedrals in the 19th century to commemorate great commanders, through to the utilisation of bronze casting techniques to commemorate significant military figures and regiments.

“ And having each one given his body to the Commonwealth they receive in stead thereof a most remarkable sepulchre, not that wherein they are buried so much as that other wherein their glory is laid up on all occasions, both of word and deed, to be remembered for evermore”

A thousand war memorials would be erected in Britain to commemorate the fallen of the Boer War and the memorialisation process would be given added impetus by the magnitude of the nation's losses in the Great War. In the period between the Armistice and the General Strike of 1926, both in UK and overseas, many thousands of war memorials would be erected by communities, the Imperial War Graves Commission, schools, universities, government departments, businesses, clubs, municipal authorities, regiments, formations of the armed forces, or in some exceptional cases by the entire nation to commemorate a particular individual. Some communities erected no memorial at all and the reasons why are examined here.

As will be seen in this study, the forms employed after the Great War were limited only by the ingenuity of the individuals and organising committees concerned. They would include: literal statuary in stone and bronze, memorial chapels, church furnishing, ornamental fountains, plaques, Celtic crosses, Crosses of Sacrifice, social facilities, cenotaphs, obelisks, screen walls, clock towers, brasses, steam locomotives, musical instruments, stained glass windows, cottage hospitals, retirement homes, rolls of honour and books of remembrance. After the Second World War, bombed out churches, aircraft, utilitarian modes of commemoration and boulders would all appear, alongside that curious phenomenon the war memorial bus stop.

Seperate chapters examine the forms employed by the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and those commemorating recipients of the Victoria Cross and George Cross. The United Kingdom National Inventory of War Memorials at the Imperial War Museum currently calculate that there are as many as 70,000 war memorials in the UK alone and the process goes on to the present day, with memorials still being erected to the fallen of a number of conflicts.

Through a representative range of examples, this book explores the military history, background, politics, ritual, financing and organisations associated with the memorialisation process. It also includes 54 brief biographies of the personalities, architects and sculptors intimately involved with the story.

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