Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing, Zonnebeke, Ypres Salient Battlefields, Belgium
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The Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing commemorates 34,887 names of men from the United Kingdom and New Zealand Forces who died from the date of 16th August 1917 and who have no known grave.
The location of this Memorial to the Missing is on the ridge reached by the Commonwealth Forces on 4th October 1917 during the Battle of Broodseinde Ridge.
The memorial is a semi-circular flint wall of 4.25 metres high and over 150 metres long, faced with panels of Portland stone. The names of the missing are carved on the stone panels.
The Memorial forms the north-eastern boundary of Tyne Cot cemetery.
Design and Construction of the Memorial
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The Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing was designed by Sir Herbert Baker, one of four Principle Architects engaged in directing the construction of over 1,200 cemeteries and memorials along the Western Front. The sculptured figures were by Joseph Armitage and F V Blundstone. The memorial was unveiled on 20th June 1920 by Sir Gilbert Dyett.
There is a domed arched pavilion at each end of the main wall. Each dome is surmounted by a winged female figure with her head bowed over a wreath.
The Memorial to United Kingdom Forces
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Two of the apses, as well as the rotundas and the wall itself, carry the names of United Kingdom dead who fell in the Ypres Salient between the night of 15-16 August 1917 (the start of the Battle of Langemarck) and the Armistice of 11 November 1918.
The inscription carved on the frieze above the panels which contain the names of the missing is:
1914 - HERE ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF OFFICERS AND MEN OF THE ARMIES OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE WHO FELL IN YPRES SALIENT, BUT TO WHOM THE FORTUNE OF WAR DENIED THE KNOWN AND HONOURED BURIAL GIVEN TO THEIR COMRADES IN DEATH - 1918
The New Zealand Memorial
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A central apse in the memorial wall forms the New Zealand Memorial. It bears the names of nearly 1,200 officers and men of the New Zealand Force who died after 16th August 1917 and who gave their lives in the Battle of Broodseinde Ridge and the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele) in October 1917.
New Zealand Forces' casualties who died before this date are commemorated on the Memorial to tbe Missing at Buttes New British Cemetery and Messines Ridge British Cemetery.
Register of Names on the Tyne Cot Memorial
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The Register is located in the left hand rotunda of the memorial as you face the memorial on walking through the cemetery. Names are arranged on panels by regiment and in order of rank. The Register will confirm on which panel the name is to be found.
Restoration Work in 2009
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Work is being carried out during 2009 to re-engrave the names of the missing on the memorial. It is expected that work will be finished by the end of 2009. Visitors are advised that some areas of the memorial wall may be restricted for access. If you wish to check that access is available for the panel you intend to visit contact the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in advance of your journey to Tyne Cot.
Location
The Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing is located at the eastern end of Tyne Cot cemetery. Tyne Cot Cemetery
Acknowledgements
References to memorial details by kind permission of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.