First World War Memorials Commissioned by Welsh Communities which Commemorate those who Served and Died at Sea

There are thousands of memorials to the First World War around Wales, many of which commemorate those who were killed at sea. As well as the civic memorials found in public spaces in town centres, or on village greens, there are a range of memorials created by specific communities to honour and remember their own. These were very often commissioned and unveiled within a year of the Armistice – most often before the committees for larger, civic memorials had made their decisions on how to proceed – and so they reflect the individual communities’ feelings about the war in its immediate aftermath. Also, as these were memorials which were entirely under their own control, with no-one telling them what to do or how to do it, they are exceedingly diverse in their messages and designs. Some memorials include naval imagery which might surprise the contemporary observer. A number of chapel memorials have images of warships at full steam – some have mixed messages, with images of warships alongside an image of the chapel. In terms of the patterns of inclusion of sailors, as one would expect there are many more to be found in coastal towns, and in some places with a strong maritime tradition the memorials are dominated by the names of those who died at sea. Those who were killed in the merchant navy are commemorated just as readily as those who served in the Royal Navy. There are also memorials which commemorate women who were killed at sea during the war, such as the one to the fallen of Hyfrydle Chapel, Holyhead (which names Hannah Owen, a stewardess on RMS LEINSTER).

Contributed to the U-Boat Project 1914-18 by Dr Gethin Matthews, Swansea University.

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