The Soissons Memorial is a World War I memorial located in the town of Soissons, in the Aisne département of France. The memorial lists 3,887 names of British soldiers with no known grave who were killed in the area from May to August 1918 during the German spring offensive. The battles fought by those commemorated here include the Third Battle of the Aisne and the Second Battle of the Marne.[1]
| Soissons Memorial | |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth War Graves Commission | |
 View of the statuary at the front of the memorial | |
| For forces of the United Kingdom | |
| Unveiled | 22 July 1928 |
| Location | 49°22′52.32″N 03°19′44.18″E / 49.3812000°N 3.3289389°E |
| Designed by | G. H. Holt and V. O. Rees (design) Eric Kennington (sculptor) |
When the French Armies held and drove back the enemy from the Aisne and the Marne between May and July 1918 the 8th, 15th, 19th, 21st, 25th, 34th, 50th, 51st and 62nd divisions of the British Armies served in the line with them and shared the common sacrifice. Here are recorded the names of 3,987 officers and men of those divisions to whom the fortune of war denied the known and honoured burial given to their comrades in death. | |
| Statistics source: Cemetery details. Commonwealth War Graves Commission. | |
This is a free-standing memorial (one without an associated cemetery) constructed in Portland stone. It was designed by G. H. Holt and V. O. Rees with sculpture by Eric Kennington. The memorial was unveiled on 22 July 1928 by Sir Alexander Hamilton-Gordon. Hamilton-Gordon was a general in World War I, commanding IX Corps from 1916 onwards, and was commander of this corps during the Third Battle of the Aisne, which is commemorated here.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Soissons Memorial. Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
External links
edit- Details of Kennington's sculpture and the inscription (from YourArchives)
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