Project Description

Remembrance activities of the Edward Reeves Archive Project covered a number of events and exhibitions. These included the 'Light Box Exhibition' held in Lewes from 29th October - 20th November 2016. The display consisted of images of 1914-1918 images sourced from the Reeves Archive, which were duly displayed in light-boxes in the windows of sixty-five locations throughout Lewes. The exhibition was subsequently re-staged with an accompanying audio/visual online tour in August-September 2017. On Remembrance Sunday in 2017, a team of nearly five hundred volunteers joined forces to create a unique, highly moving tribute at Lewes War Memorial. As dusk fell, a volunteer of similar age as each of the 236 casualties named on the memorial walked from the home address of that casualty to the memorial, carrying a flaming torch. When all were gathered, individual names, addresses, causes and dates of death and ages were read out. As each casualty’s details were announced, the volunteer stepped forward, doused their torch and disappeared into the crowd. The torch-bearers wore modern casual clothes in order to demonstrate that they were representing ordinary Lewes people. Among the volunteers there were a number of relatives representing their forebears. The final group to douse their torches were four brothers from the Penfold family, walking for four Crock brothers who died. In the course of just over an hour, a street full of living flame diminished to darkness and silence. A cordon of one hundred somberly dressed women surrounded the torch-bearers and protected the space they had occupied, thus representing the loss of so many from the town, and the families left behind. As the first torch-bearers arrived, the crowd of well over a thousand spontaneously fell silent. That silence remained unbroken throughout, the only sound being the readers’ voices and the sound of the wind in the lit torches. Many of those present, both watching and participating, were deeply moved by the occasion - it succeeded in making the act of remembrance meaningful to those attending. The event was organised by the Edward Reeves Archive Project, based on information gleaned from the original sheets filled in by the relatives of the fallen, who wanted their loved ones commemorated when the town's War Memorial was erected in 1922. All 236 sheets were displayed in an exhibition in Lewes Town Hall with a selection of photographs from the Edward Reeves Archive. The memorial initiative was conceived as a vigil and not a spectacle, so ended as a truly community-focused event. In order to secure its legacy, a film shot by four professional film makers resident in Lewes was edited with help from Lewes Community Screen. The evening was concluded by a gathering of all involved in Lewes Town Hall. The recorded film of the 'Lewes Remembers' Vigil was duly screened at the Lewes Depot Cinema, accompanied by an exhibition of the record sheets of casualties named on the War Memorial (the film was also made available on DVD). Supporters of the 'Lewes Remembers' project included the University of the Arts London, Lewes Town Council, Lewes District Council, the South Downs National Park Authority, the Royal British Legion, Imperial War Museums, Harvey's Brewery Lewes, the Chalk Cliff Trust, the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Lewes History Group and Viva Lewes. The Project had approximately forty volunteer helpers. The Edward Reeves Archive Project is led by Brigitte Lardinois, Director of Photography and the Archive Research Centre, University of the Arts London.
Two hundred and thirty-six volunteers representing the World War One casualties recorded on Lewes War Memorial gather with lighted torches at dusk on 12th November 2017. As each individual's details are read out they walked forward, extinguished their torch and left the site.

Organisation

Organised by

The Edward Reeves Archive Project

Region

South East England

Location

BN7 1XU

Event

Date

2018-02-05, 2018-02-11

Venue

The Depot Cinema, Lewes

Location

BN7 2JS

Focus and Research

Resources used for research

Original records held by Lewes Town Council that gave the details of names, addresses, ages and death details of casualties recorded on Lewes Town War Memorial. Research on specific individuals was conducted by research volunteers as part of the Archive Project. We also received organisational input from the seven Lewes Bonfire Societies.

Project Evaluation