The Menin Gate: A First Impression

The Menin Gate, unveiled on Sunday July 24th 1927 by Field-Marshal Lord Plumer, dedicated to the memory of more than 54,000 men of the Commonwealth who died in the Salient and have no known grave.  A memorial built in stone and brick, “these stones which we have builded in their honour, and on which we have engraven their names”, tangible evidence that these men will never be forgotten.

“He is not missing.  He is here”.

 -Lord Plumer’s address at the unveiling

Now my advice is to forget about the rest of this post, one of the earliest published on this website, and turn your attention to the full blown Tour of the Menin Gate that you will find if you click the link.  There is nothing to be seen in this post that is not covered far better there.

View from outside the Menin Gate looking back towards the Cloth Hall, clearly visible in the distance through the arch.

Above and below: Compare this view of the ramparts and moat to the immediate south of the Menin Gate (taken from near where the cyclist can be seen in the previous picture) with any number of photos taken during the course of the War that you’ll find if you search this good ol’ interweb of ours.  Post-war reconstruction work is still clearly visible.

At the going down of the sun…

Life goes on…

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2 Responses to The Menin Gate: A First Impression

  1. Pat Burnham says:

    My grandfather and his brother, who were both killed on the same day 20 September 1917, are on the wall. They were from South Africa. It was a very moving experience to visit the Menin Gate and hear the Last Post being played. My mother was 91yrs old when I eventually found where her father was remembered (2007). Their names were William Frederick Wood and Walter Vivian Wood. One name is on the panel facing to the inside as you leave the Menin Gate and the other is on the side to the right. She was denied a father and I was denied a grandfather so it is very comforting to see that ‘they were not forgotton’.

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