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War memorials have become a familiar part of towns and villages throughout the United Kingdom but are very often taken for granted. Consequently they are sometimes neglected and under threat from modern developments.
Nearly every community in the United Kingdom has a war memorial that was erected after the First World War. Usually the names of Second World War casualties were added. Some communities have memorials to the dead of earlier or later conflicts, for example, Crimean, Boer, Korean and Falkland Wars.
During the First World War approximately 750,000 British subjects died of which most were buried near where they fell or have no known graves. This left relatives at home with no place to focus their grief. During the war, local communities made lists of men and women who were serving and as news of causalities reached home, they were amended and often placed, decked with flowers, outside churches and other conspicuous places.
After the Armistice, decisions were made to build permanent memorials. The best known is the Cenotaph in Whitehall, which remains the national focus of annual commemoration. Local memorials took many forms, for example, village halls or cottage hospitals as well as the more familiar public monument. Some memorials recorded names in full with rank and unit and theatre of war, others just the name and initials with a few, gave no names at all.
Many memorials were sited outside churches or in churchyards. Sometimes the local landowners gave a piece of ground for the purpose or the memorial might be sited on common land.
War memorials can provide valuable clues for those tracing their family history. It is important to remember that information recorded on war memorials was often gathered informally and can be vague or inaccurate.
When I visit and record the details of a war memorial, every effort is made to ensure that the information is recorded correctly.
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