WAR MEMORIALS

War Memorials are buildings, monuments, statues or other edifice to remember a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in war.

Historic usage of War Memorials:
For most of human history war memorials were erected to commemorate great victories. Remembering the dead was a secondary concern. Indeed in Napoleon's day the dead were shoveled into mass, unmarked graves. The Arc de Triomphe in Paris or Nelson's Column in London contain no names of those killed. By the end of the nineteenth century it was common for regiments in the British Army to erect monuments to their comrades who had died in small Imperial Wars and these memorials would list their names. By the early twentieth century some towns and cities in the United Kingdom raised the funds to commemorate the men from their communities who had fought and died in the Second Anglo-Boer War. However it was after the great losses of the First World War that commemoration took center stage and most communities erected a war memorial listing those men and women who had gone to war and not returned.

Modern usage of War Memorials:
In modern times the main intent of war memorials is not to glorify war, but to honour those who have died. Using modern technology an international project is currently archiving all war graves and memorials to create a virtual memorial.

World War I War Memorials:
During the First World War, many nations saw massive devastation and loss of life. In response, most cities in the countries involved in the conflict erected memorials, and the memorials in smaller villages and towns often listed the names of each local soldier who had been killed. Massive monuments commemorating thousands of dead with no identified war grave, such as the Menin Gate at Ypres and the Thiepval memorial on the Somme, were also constructed.

Imperial Germany and the Great War, 1914-1918

World War II and later War Memorials:
In many cases, the World War I memorials were later extended to also show the names of locals who died in the Second World War. Since that time memorials to the dead in other conflicts such as the Second World War and the Vietnam War have also noted individual contributions, at least in the West. In the Soviet Union, China, Japan and other nations, memorials remained communalistic with long lists of names being far rarer.

Types of War Memorials:
A war memorial can be an entire building, often containing a museum, or just a simple plaque. Many war memorials take the form of a monument or statue, and serve as a meeting place for Memorial Day services. As such, they are often found near the centre of town, or contained in a park or plaza to allow easy public access. Many war memorials bear plaques listing the names of those that died in battle. Sometimes these lists can be very long. Some war memorials are dedicated to a specific battle, while others are more general in nature and bear inscriptions listing various theatres of war. Many war memorials have epitaphs relating to the unit, battle or war they commemorate. For example an epitaph which adorns numerous memorials in Commonwealth countries is "The Ode" by Laurence Binyon: They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
The Memorial Arch at the Royal Military College of Canada, which remembers ex-cadets who died on military service includes lines of Rupert Brooke's poem, The Dead: Blow out, you bugles, over the rich Dead.
There are none of these so lonely and poor of old,
but dying has made us rarer gifts than gold.
The granite slab at the Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean, which is a World War II War Memorial, which remembers ex-cadets who died on military service, includes the Bible 2 Timothy 4:6-8 (King James Version) quote, I have fought the good fight,
I have finished my course,
I have kept the faith.
The Kohima Epitaph which is on the World War II War Memorial for the Allied fallen at the Battle of Kohima says: When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
For Their Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today
The Memorial Flag of the Royal Military College of Canada consisted of a Union Jack on a backgound adorned with 1100 green maple leaves bearing name of ex-cadets who served in war. The red maple leaves in centre memorialized cadets who made the supreme sacrifice. The Memorial stairway in the administration building of Royal Military College of Canada is lined with paintings of ex-cadets who died on military service.

Many cemeteries tended by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission have an identical war memorial called the Cross of Sacrifice designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield that varies in height from 4.5 m to 9m depending on the size of the cemetery. If there are one thousand or more burials, a Commonwealth cemetery will contain a Stone of Remembrance, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens with words from Ecclesiasticus: "Their name liveth for evermore"; all the Stones of Remembrance are 3.5 m long and 1.5 m high with three steps leading up to them. Arlington National Cemetery has a Canadian Cross of Sacrifice with the names of all the citizens of the USA who lost their lives fighting in the Canadian forces during the Korean War and two World Wars.

The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in the wars of the Commonwealth of Australia. The memorial includes an extensive national military museum. The Memorial is located in Australia's capital, Canberra. It is the northern terminus of the city's ceremonial land axis, which stretches from Parliament House on Capital Hill along a line passing through the summit of the cone-shaped Mt Ainslie to the northeast. No continuous roadway links the two points, but there is a clear line of sight from the front balcony of Parliament House to the War Memorial, and from the front steps of the War Memorial back to Parliament House. The Australian War Memorial consists of four major elements: Anzac Parade, a commemorative area, a memorial building, and a sculpture garden. The commemorative area and building are currently open daily until 5pm, except on Christmas Day. The Parade and sculpture garden are open continuously.

The Menin Gate Memorial at the eastern exit of the town of Ypres (known as "Ieper" in Flemish) in Flanders, Belgium, marks the starting point for one of the main roads out of the town that led Allied soldiers to the front line during World War I. Designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield and built by the British government, the Menin Gate Memorial opened on 24 July 1927 as a monument dedicated to the missing British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the fierce battles around the Ypres Salient area who have no known grave.

The Monument to the People's Heroes, Beijing, is a ten-story obelisk that was erected as a national monument of the People's Republic of China. The Monument built in memory of the martyrs who laid down their lives for the revolutionary struggles of the Chinese people during the 19th and 20th centuries. It was built in accordance with the resolution of the First Plenary Session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference adopted on November 30, 1949.

The Arming of Europe and the Making of the First World War

Situated some 7 miles north of Albert and opened by Earl Haig on June 7, 1925, Newfoundland Memorial Park, covering 84 acres, was purchased by the Government of Newfoundland as a memorial to the armed forces of Newfoundland. Along with preserved trench lines there are a number of memorials and cemeteries contained within the park. Always a popular destination for WW1 battlefield visitors, the park was a focus of early pilgrimages by survivors of the war. On April 10, 1997, the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial was designated as a Canadian National Historic Site by the then Minister of Canadian Heritage, Sheila Copps.

Tugu Negara, literally the "National Monument" in Malay, is a sculpture that commemorates those who died in Malaysia's struggle for freedom, principally against the Japanese occupation during World War II and the Malayan Emergency , which lasted from 1948 until 1960. It is located in the Federal capital, Kuala Lumpur. The Malaysian Houses of Parliament is situated near the monument.

The Auckland War Memorial Museum (or simply the Auckland Museum) is one of New Zealand's most important national museums and war memorials. Its collections concentrate on New Zealand history, natural history, as well as military history. The museum is also one of the most iconic Auckland buildings, constructed in the neo-classicist style, and sitting on a grassed plinth (the remains of a dormant volcano) in the Auckland Domain, a large public park close to the Auckland CBD.

Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery is located in Saint Petersburg, at the Avenue of the Unvanquished, dedicated mostly to the victims of the Siege of Leningrad.

The Shot at Dawn Memorial is a British Monument located at the National Memorial Arboretum near Alrewas, in Staffordshire, England in memory of the 306 British and Commonwealth soldiers executed for cowardice and desertion during World War I.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is a national war memorial located in Washington, D.C., that honors members of the U.S. armed forces who fought in the Vietnam War and who died in service or are still unaccounted for.

The Liberty Memorial, located in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, is called a National Symbol for World War I and houses the The National World War I Museum, as designated by the United States Congress in 2004.

The U.S. National World War II Memorial is a National Memorial dedicated to Americans who served in the armed forces and as civilians during World War II. Consisting of 56 pillars and a pair of arches surrounding a plaza and fountain, it is located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on the former site of the Rainbow Pool at the eastern end of the Reflecting Pool, between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

The Complete Illustrated History of World War One: A concise reference guide to the great war that shaped the 20th century, from the State of Europe in ... Line (The Complete Illustrated History of)

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