The History of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission
In this presentation, Julie Summers looks at the history of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), formerly the Imperial War Graves Commission, was established in 1917 by Royal Charter to commemorate the individuals who died during the two World Wars while serving in the Commonwealth forces. It ensures the proper marking and maintenance of graves and memorials, and its founding principle emphasized equality in death, treating all ranks and religions the same. Today, the CWGC maintains 2,500 war cemeteries and plots across 150 countries, commemorating over 1.7 million individuals.
This presentation was recorded at the Thirty-first Annual General Meeting of The Western Front Association, 14 April 2012, at Mansfield College, Oxford.
Becoming a member of The Western Front Association (WFA) offers a wealth of resources and opportunities for those passionate about the history of the First World War. Here's just three of the benefits we offer:
Identify key words or phrases within back issues of our magazines, including Stand To!, Bulletin, Gun Fire, Fire Step and lots of others.
The WFA's YouTube channel features hundreds of videos of lectures given by experts on particular aspects of WW1.
Read post-WW1 era magazines, such as 'Twenty Years After', 'WW1 A Pictured History' and 'I Was There!' plus others.
