The Commonwealth War Graves Commission has become synonymous with commemoration of war dead. The commission was founded by Sir Fabian Ware whose moral and political leanings helped shape the guiding principles of the organisation, most notably that of ‘equality in death’. He was a passionate believer in social reform, believing strongly that collectivism i.e. putting … Continue reading The Power of Words – CWGC epitaphs of the Great War

I'm looking forward to being back in France and Belgium next week, for the first time in around 18 months! Although I'll be working, I hope to find some time in the early morning and evenings to visit some sites and wander some paths that I've not seen in many months, to reconnect with the … Continue reading ‘Nostalgia – that’s the autumn, dreaming through September’

The 21st May 2021 sees the beginning of the CWGC's first #WarGravesWeek as well the anniversary of the formation of the Imperial War Graves Commission by Royal Charter in 1917. To mark this occasion I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what the CWGC means to me and how it forms an integral … Continue reading The Sound of Silence

Next month will mark a year since I last set foot on the battlefields of the Western Front, a place I had visited pretty much monthly in the years preceding COVID 19. To say I miss it is an understatement. I recently read a quote from an Aboriginal Elder of Uluru, Bob Randall who said:   … Continue reading ‘Maybe you had to leave in order to really miss a place’

The run up to Armistice Day is truly the season of duff military history, so on that theme, I thought I'd share some of my top equine myths of the First World War... Update 2025: I still am no closer to nailing down a total figure of horse deaths during the war nor have I … Continue reading Straight from the horse’s mouth

I am not religious, and by this, I mean that I do not believe in a God, or that any kind of one divine power has an influence over our lives. I believe that God is a construct of man; that Theology is a very human attempt to grapple with the complexities of life, to … Continue reading ‘Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens’

As the First World War ended, so too did the British Army's requirement for the hundreds of thousands of horses and mules that served within its ranks. With no war, the war horse in his many roles, was made redundant. After the Armistice, the challenge of what to do with these now obsolete animals on … Continue reading From War Horse to Veteran

The horse looms large in our popular memory of the Great War. This is perhaps based more on myth than fact; drawing upon romantic symbolism of the horse that goes back long before 1914, and a raft of more general Great War mythology, but the horse's part in the story is represented nonetheless. Yet whilst … Continue reading ‘A stupid mule is still smarter than a good horse, or a bad man’

With ancestors from South Africa, England, the Arabian Peninsula, Scotland and France, The Waler, although not an official breed, is a type of horse unlike any other. With the speed of a Thoroughbred, endurance of an Arab, intelligence of a Percheron and hardiness of a Timor Pony; the Waler's contribution in the Great War has … Continue reading The Legendary Waler

If you look up to the night sky this week, you may be lucky enough to catch The Lyrid Meteor shower. The Lyrids are one of the oldest recorded meteor showers known to man, first noted in 687 B.C in China as stars 'falling like rain', they have fascinated people for generations. Yet this spectacular … Continue reading ‘An army stands behind her, Lyra’