CIVILIAN WAR DEAD OF THE GREAT WAR

[Julie Tyrell]

Hi all

Could I ask anyone visiting this forum to look at the Downing Street on-line petition & if agreeable to please sign it.

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/CIVILWARDEAD/

I feel very strongly about these poor souls not being commemorated by their countries.

I hope this does not affend anyone,

Julie

[ChristineR]

The Commonwealth War Graves web site says this....

"We also commemorate more than 67,000 Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action during the Second World War. Their names are listed on a roll of honour, housed near St George’s Chapel in Westminster Abbey, London. "

These can also be found named in their online database, along with the name of the cemetery or memorial on which their names are recorded.

So they are not actually completely forgotten as the petition seems to suggest.

ChristineR

[Alex Ewen-French]

So they are not actually completely forgotten as the petition seems to suggest.

What does the petition actually say? - the link's been removed which makes a bit of a nonsense of the thread!

A.

[Jan1954]

Whilst the Civilian War Dead of the Second World War who died as the result of hostile action those from the First World War have been ignored. As we approach the 90th Anniversary of the Armistice is it not time for those who died in that conflict to be remembered offically by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. This will require an ammendment to the CWGC's Royal Charter by all the particpating nations(UK, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand & South Africa).

This was found by googling.

[hughar]

What does the petition actually say? - the link's been removed which makes a bit of a nonsense of the thread!

A.

Common sense has prevailed, and Pam has kindly had the link reinstated.

[Alex Ewen-French]

Mmmmm - IIRC someone has done work on this before, and found it very difficult indeed to trace these civilians. If you start from a basis of not knowing who they were, then it's a bit hard to track them down without even a name. A few will be well documented, but most will now be lost in the mists of time. I think that previously it's been a question of finding reports of (let's say) a Zeppelin raid, then checking papers etc. for names, and failing that, approaching registrars of the local districts to give information on who died on the days/nights in question, which they have refused to do. Or perhaps the idea is just to have a general memorial to them somewhere. Not sure if that's a good use of public money.

A.

[ChristineR]

Whilst the Civilian War Dead of the Second World War who died as the result of hostile action those from the First World War have been ignored. As we approach the 90th Anniversary of the Armistice is it not time for those who died in that conflict to be remembered offically by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. This will require an ammendment to the CWGC's Royal Charter by all the particpating nations(UK, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand & South Africa).

This was found by googling.

Sorry, I should have quoted that in my previous post :)

The Commonwealth War Graves web site says this....

"We also commemorate more than 67,000 Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action during the Second World War. Their names are listed on a roll of honour, housed near St George’s Chapel in Westminster Abbey, London. "

These can also be found named in their online database, along with the name of the cemetery or memorial on which their names are recorded.

So they are not actually completely forgotten as the petition seems to suggest.

ChristineR

The petition begs ... "to Enable the Civilian War Dead of the First World War to be commemorated as those of the Second World War are Commemorated"

Oops, I have not absorbed this properly (well it was late last night) - the CWGC only commemorates the WW2 losses.
Christine