Telling the story behind war memorials

Wellington Arch and Marble Arch were both built as monuments to British victories over Napoleonic France but were moved and adapted over time. The prominent position of Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner led it to become a focal point for other national monuments after the First World War.

This new addition to the Red Guides series brings the stories of the arches together with six war memorials. These are: the Royal Artillery Memorial, the Machine Gun Corps memorial, The Cenotaph, the Field Marshal Earl Haig Memorial, the Belgian Gratitude Memorial and the Edith Cavell Memorial.

Jennifer Cryer, Guidebook Commissioning Editor said: "this new guide includes not only in-depth histories of the two arches, but for the first time, the guidebook explores the six memorials of the Great War in London which are in the care of English Heritage.

"Together they reveal different approaches to memorialisation and commemorating the dead."

A testament to the human cost of warfare

The book sheds new light on these memorials. The Machine Gun Corps Memorial, by Francis Derwent Wood contains a nude young man alongside two Vickers machine guns.

The figure was thought to be irrelevant, or even tasteless by many. However, Derwent Wood had spent much of the First World War, working in a London hospital with severely facially wounded men.

Roger H Bowdler, co-author of the guidebook said: "If anyone knew what the impact of bullets was on naked flesh, it was he [Derwent Wood]. Once you know that, the memorial becomes a really poignant testament to the human cost of modern warfare."

Things we've learned from the new guidebook:

• Both Wellington Arch and the Marble Arch were moved from their original locations
• The ornate gates of Wellington Arch were cast in iron and cost 1,700 guineas
• The Arches were once home to the Metropolitan Police - Wellington Arch was London's smallest police station
• During WW1 Francis Derwent Wood (RA) who designed the Machine Gun Corps Memorial created bespoke prosthetic masks for disfigured soldiers

Discover 10 things you (probably) didn't know about London's War Memorials on our blog.

Find out more

The new guidebook is available to buy online for £3.50.

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