Memorial details

Memorial type
Composite
District
Lichfield
Town
Alrewas
County
Staffordshire
Country
England
Commemoration
Malayan Emergency (1948-1960), Korean War (1950-1953), Egypt and the Suez Crisis (1951-1956), Cyprus Emergency (1955-1959), Indonesian Confrontation (1963-1966), Falklands Conflict (1982), Yugoslav Wars (1991-1999), Gulf War (1990-1991), Iraq War (2003-2011), Aden Emergency (1963-1967), Northern Ireland Conflict; The Troubles (1969-1998), Palestine (1918-1948), Afghanistan (2001-2014), Non-Combat Deaths, 20th Century Wars (1900-1999), 21st Century Wars (2000-Present)
Maker
LIAM O'CONNOR (Architect)
Ian Rank-Broadley (Sculptor)
Ceremony
  • Foundation Stone
    Date: 23 January 2007
    Attended by: LORD LIEUTENANT OF STAFFORDSHIRE,RELATIVES/FRIENDS OF THE FALLEN
  • Dedicated
    Date: 12 October 2007
    Attended by: HRH Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Archbishop of Canterbury
  • Unveiled
    Date: 12 October 2007
    Attended by: HRH Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
  • Show More (2)
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
55449

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Current location

Off Millennium Avenue
close to the main Arboretum buildings
National Memorial Arboretum
Croxall Road
Alrewas
Lichfield
Staffordshire
DE13 7AR
England

OS Grid Ref: SK 18472 14457
Denomination: Undefined

View location on Google Maps
Description
Inspired by the landscapes of prehistoric Britain and the classical architectural forms of Ancient Rome, the memorial comprises a six metre high earth mound, 100 metres wide at the base reducing to 50 metres at the top, in the form of an early British barrow/tumulus on top of which is a 43 metre diameter circular structure made up of two curved walls and two straight walls, constructed of 200,000 bricks faced with over 1,000 tonnes of Portland stone panels. The names of all service personnel who have been killed on duty since the end of WWII are inscribed on the walls, ordered by Service within date. Service men and women who died in the same incident are thus grouped. There are more than fifty individual conflicts represented on the walls. At the eastern end is an obelisk. Within the circle are two bronze sculptures. The north wall sculpture depicts a groups of servicemen carrying a wounded comrade while grieving family look on from either side. The south wall sculpture depicts the soul of the dead serviceman preparing to depart through a symbolic door as another figure chisels the name on the memorial. A gap in the two southern walls has been positioned so that a shaft of sunlight can shine directly through the wall at 11am on the 11 November onto a bronze laurel wreath which is placed on a low sone plinth in the centre of the memorial area. The memorial is approached by a spiral walkway taking walkers up the grassed slopes of the barrow. The area is landscaped with trees evocative of a Roman landscape.
Inscription
[Obelisk]: THEY DIED/ SERVING/ THEIR/ COUNTRY/ WE WILL/ REMEMBER/ THEM [Walls]: (Names...) [Dedication Stone]: THE ARMED FORCES MEMORIAL WAS DEDICATED BY/ HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN/ 12 OCTOBER 2007
Inscription legible?
yes
Commemorations
  • Malayan Emergency (1948-1960)
    Total names on memorial: 1443
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1443
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname
  • Korean War (1950-1953)
    Total names on memorial: 1086
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1086
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname
  • Egypt and the Suez Crisis (1951-1956)
    Total names on memorial: 417
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 417
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Cyprus Emergency (1955-1959)
    Total names on memorial: 357
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 357
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Indonesian Confrontation (1963-1966)
    Total names on memorial: 176
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 176
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Falklands Conflict (1982)
    Total names on memorial: 255
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 255
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Yugoslav Wars (1991-1999)
    Total names on memorial: 65
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 65
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Gulf War (1990-1991)
    Total names on memorial: 49
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 49
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Iraq War (2003-2011)
    Total names on memorial: 171
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 171
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Aden Emergency (1963-1967)
    Total names on memorial: 83
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 83
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Northern Ireland Conflict; The Troubles (1969-1998)
    Total names on memorial: 1400
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1400
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Palestine (1918-1948)
    Total names on memorial: 747
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 747
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Afghanistan (2001-2014)
    Total names on memorial: 82
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 82
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • Non-Combat Deaths
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: surname,year died,decorations
    Order of information: year died,surname,decorations
  • 20th Century Wars (1900-1999)
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: 0
    Order of information: Undefined
  • 21st Century Wars (2000-Present)
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
Components
  • Wall
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Stone - Portland
  • Sculpture
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Obelisk
    Measurements: height c12000mm
    Materials: Stone - Portland
  • Sculpture
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Sculpture
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Plinth
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Stone - Portland
  • Tree
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Undefined
Listing information
Condition
History
Ongoing engraving of names.
Costs

Comments: Funds were raised by public subscription, the Millennium Commission, the sale of Trafalgar Coin.
Memorial: c £6million

Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Public
Details: Funded by public subscription under the overall sponsorship of the MOD and the Amred Forces Memorial Trust (no longer active)
Reference

This record comprises all information held by IWM’s War Memorials Register for this memorial. Where we hold a names list for the memorial, this information will be displayed on the memorial record. Please check back as we are adding more names to the database.

This information is made available under a Creative Commons BY-NC licence.

This means you may reuse it for non-commercial purposes only and must attribute it to us using the following statement:

© WMR-55449

For queries, please contact [email protected].