Today is the centenary of the end of WW1, and at 11 am today events have been held around the UK, and the world, to honour those who’s lives were lost in that atrocious war.
The Shrouds in my post below have travelled to London, where they will lay until November 18th, in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Three years ago, Rob Heard was feeling really low while recovering from an accident. Watching soldiers returning from Afghanistan on TV, led to him thinking about the loss of lives in wartime and the incredible numbers involved. He found it impossible to imagine the 19,240 men who died in just one day, July 1st 1916, at the battle of the Somme.
From a list of the names of every one of the 19240, he created a hand stitched shroud containing a 12 inch figure, crossing off names as he went. Rob didn’t have a plan when he began the project, but a friend, Steve Knightly a musician from the band Show of Hands, contacted the city council, the Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Exeter Chiefs rugby foundation. This has become the UK’s largest WW1 commemoration and has featured in the national news this week.
If you’re in the area, the…
View original post 33 more words
Lucid Gypsy 
how moving
When you read the number it is difficult to fathom the extent of the loss, but seeing a display like this makes it real. Such waste.
Unbelievably sad, Gilly. Thanks for reposting this. I watched a little of the TV coverage this morning. You know how it feels to have a serviceman for a child. The bravery of the parents involved… I don’t suppose they have a lot of choice than to be proud.
That is a horrifying number for one day. I had to go back and re-read the one day. What an incredible project Rob Heard accomplished.
What a labour of love, Gilly. So terrible that so many lives were lost that day. Last night we watched the BBC documentary ‘One Hundred Days To Victory’. So moving and horrifying.