War Memorial, Boston

click photo to enlarge
It's always gratifying to see  the respect that is widely given to war memorials. But it isn't everyone who gives them, or what they represent, the recognition that they deserve. I read recently about the prosecution of some despicable people who had forced the brass plaques recording the dead of two world wars off a memorial and sold them to a scrap metal dealer! Thankfully such low-life are very much the exception and most people know that our remembrance of those who fought on our behalf is important and should be accorded respect.

Today's photograph shows the war memorial and its enclosing garden of remembrance in Wide Bargate, Boston, in Lincolnshire. It is fairly typical of a town war memorial with its stone column, a base recording the dead of the town, and a surrounding area to receive the tributes of subsequent generations. What does make it slightly different, however, are the two rows of small, inclined and engraved marble tablets seen on either side of the path leading to the memorial. Each of these shows the name and insignia of an arm of the military, a regiment or an associated organisation. It is a place for representatives of these bodies to place a wreath on Remembrance Day. The wreaths of civic bodies and others are at the base of the memorial. I took my photograph in late December of last year, five or six weeks after the poppy wreaths had been laid, and they were still where they had been placed, undisturbed by weather or any person. One other thing that distinguishes the Boston war memorial site is the steel entrance arch. This graceful construction that terminates with Art Nouveau-like flourishes is sometimes a little lost against the background trees, leaves and buildings. However, on this frosty morning with a thin layer of snow covering everything, it stood out, clear and elegant, a perfect frame for my shot.

photograph and text © Tony Boughen

Camera: Lumix LX3
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 12.8mm (60mm/35mm equiv.)
F No: f3.5
Shutter Speed: 1/500
ISO:80
Exposure Compensation: 0 EV
Image Stabilisation: On

The "Counting the Cost" Memorial

click photo to enlarge

I recently attended a talk on "remembrance" that included the subject of war memorials. These tributes to the fallen can be seen all over the country in villages, towns and cities. Most of them date from around 1920 and list the local men (and women) who died in the First World War. Invariably they were added to after the Second World War, and some have names from later conflicts. A few memorials - such as the The Cenotaph in Whitehall, London - commemorate no individual, but rather seek to remember all those who died. And then there are others that are very specific, honouring women, or particular branches of the armed forces.

On my recent visit to the Imperial War Museum aviation museums at Duxford I photographed a memorial to United States airmen who flew from Britain during World War Two. It is a very effective and moving design that departs radically from the usual stone and sculpture of earlier memorials. The designer was Renato Niemis, and his bold idea was to use 52 toughened clear float glass panels each of which is etched with a repesentation of an aircraft that was lost. The panels line the path that leads to the American Air Museum, and as you walk alongside it, passing the packed ranks of B-17s, Liberators, Mustangs etc you become aware of just how many aircraft were shot down. Moreover, as you imagine each bomber with its full complement of crewmen - 10 in the case of the B-17 - you start to grasp the human cost of the bombing campaign in terms the aircrew who never returned. In fact, 7,031 aircraft are depicted, and it is a salutary experience to see this before you enter the museum and see examples of some of the aircraft shown on the memorial.

The light was very changeable, and somewhat dull when I tried to photograph the "Counting the Cost" memorial. The best shot I got was the detail against the clouds and blue of the sky. I include the second photograph not for any special photographic qualities, but to give a better idea of how the aircraft are packed onto each panel.

photograph and text (c) T. Boughen

First photo
Camera: Canon
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 67mm
F No: f5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/1000
ISO: 100
Exposure Compensation: 0 EV
Image Stabilisation: On