Welsh National War Memorial

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Welsh National War Memorial
Victory, The Welsh National War Memorial, Cardiff

The Welsh National War Memorial is a war memorial and is located in Cardiff , Wales . The memorial was unveiled on June 12, 1928 and is dedicated to the soldiers of the First and Second World Wars .

history

From the start, generating funds to fund the memorial proved difficult. The Mayor of Cardiff was unable to raise funds nationally, so the Cardiff-based newspaper Western Mail stepped in . She put together a small memorial committee and managed to raise local and national funds to fund the memorial.

Three artists were involved in the construction of the monument: Ninian Comper as the architect, Alfred Bertram Pegram as the sculptor and Arthur Brian Burton as the caster. The memorial was opened by the Prince of Wales, Georg von Sachsen-Coburg and Gotha , on July 12, 1928.

The Book of Remembrance is a record of fallen soldiers who, among other things, were assigned to the Welsh Regiment and who died in the First World War. The book, designed by the calligrapher Graily Hewitt, contains 35,000 names and is located in the Temple of Peace near the Welsh National Memorial, which does not itself contain the names of the fallen.

In 2012, a grant from the War Memorial Trust made it possible to carry out restorations, including disengaging loose joints and other various adjustments. Those parts of the damaged stones that could not be repaired were replaced with replacement edges. In 2018, a detailed condition survey and a report with recommendations by an architect could be carried out with a further grant.

Building description

The Welsh National War Memorial is located in Alexandra Gardens in Cathays Park , part of Cardiff city center. The monument consists of a lower courtyard, which is framed by a circular colonnade. Three bronze figures depicting a soldier, a seafarer and an aircraft pilot each lift a wreath to the statue Victory in the middle. This figure is a messenger with wings who victoriously lifts up a sword.

In the symbolic language of the memorial there are numerous features that point to classical antiquity. The pillars of the memorial are similar to those of the Acropolis in Athens. Furthermore, there are various figures whose features are attributed to the Greek goddess of victory Nike . Numerous other symbols, such as the use of poses or body shapes, can be assigned to neoclassicism .

The Welsh National War Memorial was provided with two inscriptions, which differ in language. At the entrance to the memorial it is explained in the local language, Welsh , that the monument was dedicated to the soldiers from Wales who lost their lives in the course of the First World War. Inside, on the other hand, everyone is remembered in English who fell in the First World War for the people at home and for victory.

Web links

Commons : Welsh National War Memorial  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Welsh National War Memorial . Imperial War Museums 2018, Retrieved December 14, 2018. (UK English)
  2. ^ Jenny Macleod: Britishness and commemoration: national memorials to the First World War in Britain and Ireland . In: Journal of Contemporary History . Volume 48, No. 4. Sage Publications Sage UK: London, England, October 1, 2013, pp. 651-652, doi: 10.1177 / 0022009413493940 (British English, sagepub.com [accessed December 14, 2018]).
  3. ↑ Public Monuments and Sculpture Association Welsh National War Memorial.Retrieved December 14, 2018. (British English)
  4. ^ The National Library of Wales: The Welsh National Book of Remembrance.Retrieved December 14, 2018 (British English).
  5. ↑ Gill Abousnnouga, David Machin: The language of war monuments. In: Bloomsbury Advances in Semiotics . 1st edition. Bloomsbury, London / New York October 10, 2013, ISBN 978-1-62356-333-2 , p. 103 (English, 248 p., Limited preview in Google Book Search [accessed December 15, 2018]).

Coordinates: 51 ° 29 ′ 11.7 "  N , 3 ° 10 ′ 49.5"  W.