Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Operation Market Garden - A Bridge Too Far #LegacyofLiberation #Arnhem80

List of burial services happening in September: https://ow.ly/QSuP50Tfw6Y

Our new visitor centre stands at the heart of commemoration in Belgium directly across from the Menin Gate. It forms the perfect starting point when visiting the #WW1 battlefields and the cemeteries and memorials when those who fell are today commemorated. Our multi-language team are on hand. You can: - Discover more about our cemeteries and memorials in Ieper and the work of our teams in Belgium and around the world. - Purchase souvenirs from our gift shop. All proceeds are directly invested in our educational and outreach projects worldwide. - Purchase your biodegradable wreath (📷) – we can even keep it safe for you until the Last Post. - Undertake research on the CWGC database – you can discover if we commemorate your relative or let us assist you with a research project and help find the graves you’re looking for. - Join a guided tour of the Menin Gate - learn more about the iconic memorial and discover some of the stories of the Commonwealth casualties commemorated there.

80 years ago the Menin Gate in Belgium was liberated by Allied Troops. #LegacyofLiberation #WWII

📍La Ferté-sous-Jouarre Memorial to the Missing commemorates 3,740 officers and men of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) who fell at the battles of Mons, Le Cateau, the Marne and the Aisne between the end of August and early October 1914 and have no known graves. As night fell #OTD 110 years ago, the men of the BEF began to halt approximately 40 kilometres south east of Paris. For the next two days, British forces advanced north eastward, encountering only minor resistance from the German forces in the area, which had reached the limit of their advance and were now carrying out a tactical retreat. On 8 September, British infantry brigades advancing toward the Marne came under heavy machine-gun and artillery fire from German units in La Ferté sous Jouarre and on the north bank of the river where they had formed a bridgehead. The British withdrew, began bombarding the German positions, and by mid-afternoon had entered the town in force. Both of the local bridges had been blown, but the Royal Engineers immediately began to construct a floating bridge, over which III Corps crossed the Marne on 10 September and joined I and II Corps which had crossed the river further to the east the previous today. The German armies were now in full retreat to the north and east, hotly pursued by the combined British and French forces. Retreating German units fought rearguard actions under heavy rainfall throughout the day on 11 September and by the morning of the 12th they had occupied defensive positions on the high ground overlooking the northern banks of the River Aisne. The Battle of the Marne, referred to in the French press as the ‘Miracle of the Marne’, halted the month-long advance of the German forces toward Paris and decisively ended the possibility of an early German victory. The battle also marked the beginning of trench warfare as Allied and German forces entrenched during and after the Battle of the Aisne in mid-September. By November battle lines had been drawn that would remain virtually unchanged for almost four years. The British Expeditionary Force suffered almost 13,000 casualties during the Battle of the Marne, of whom some 7,000 had been killed.

On this #InternationalDayofCharity be part of something greater. Today, we honour those who gave their tomorrow for our today. By becoming a member of the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation, you can help us preserve the legacy of the fallen, ensuring their stories live on for generations to come. Why become a member? • Support our work to keep their stories alive. • Help us educate future generations about the sacrifices made in times of conflict. • Get exclusive access to resources that bring history to life. This International Day of Charity, your membership is more than a donation—it’s a commitment to remembering the past and building a brighter future. Join us today and make a lasting difference: https://lnkd.in/ees46xV5 📷 German and British Guides at Tyne Cot Cemetery

We are delighted to announce that our President, HRH The Princess Royal, will inaugurate the new Loos British Cemetery Extension in France on the 26th September. https://lnkd.in/gtDewN5H

Can you name this cemetery and the famous #WWI memorial site in the background? (Clue: the location is in 🇫🇷 and the cemetery was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield.)

Today is #MerchantNavyDay in the UK. During #WWII the heaviest losses of the Merchant Navy were suffered in the Atlantic, but convoys making their way to Russia around the North Cape, and those supplying Malta in the Mediterranean were also particularly vulnerable to attack. In all, 4,786 merchant ships were lost with nearly 32,000 lives. 📷 The Second World War extension of the Tower Hill Memorial commemorates almost 24,000 casualties who have no grave but the sea. #LegacyofLiberation

Operation Market Garden was the largest airborne assault in history and one of the most ambitious Allied operations of the #WWII. 80 years later we tell the story of the men who fought and died for ‘a bridge too far’: https://ow.ly/5xxl50TcX0s 📷 Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Netherlands