| Content Note | Topics discussed:
Apologies for absence
Sir Richard Hopkins
Sir Herbert Ellissen
Mr Trafford Smith (on behalf of the Secretary-of State for the Colonies)
Captain Chopping (on behalf of the High Commissioner for Pakistan)
Sir William Halcrow
Approval and signing of the 337th Commission meeting minutes:
A) Suggested modification of the Commission’s title
B) Jerusalem War Cemetery
C) Membership of the Commission
D) Tour by General Sir Robert Gordon-Finlayson
E) Report of the 381st Finance Committee.
Unveiling of the Green Jackets Memorial, Calais, France
Refers to the unveiling of the Green Jackets Memorial at Calais by H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester on 2 June 1951.
Unveiling of the Cross of Sacrifice at Cranwell (St. Andrew) Churchyard, Lincolnshire
Refers to the unveiling of the Cross of Sacrifice at Cranwell (St. Andrew) Churchyard, Lincolnshire.
Birthday Honours
M.B.E. awarded to Mr T.A. Turner, Records Officer in the North-West European District, and Mr. R.C. Walker, Accounts Officer at the Commission’s Head Office, Wooburn Green.
British Empire Medal awarded to Mr W.F. Friend, Head Gardener in the North-West European District (who was at present working in Berlin).
Death of the Marquess of Sligo
Mention of the death of Lord Colonel Arthur Browne, 8th Marquess of Sligo, who was Principal Assistant Secretary from 1919 to 1930.
Concentrations in India and Pakistan
Report on progress of concentrations in India and Pakistan; refers to completion of concentrations at Kirkee; concentrations at Delhi to commence in early July 1951; concentrations into Karachi War Cemetery commenced in May 1951.
Principal Assistant Secretary’s visit to Germany
Refers to visit by the Principal Assistant Secretary F.C. Sillar, Esq., C.B.E. to Germany, to discuss with the German Government the permanent tenure of the land on which the cemeteries were situated.
Report of the 382nd Finance Committee meeting
Item 2 dealt with the modification in the design of the Air Forces Memorial at Runnymede.
Item 5 indicated that a start was being made in the construction of the last of the three cemeteries in Sicily.
Item 7 showed that construction was starting in India.
Visit to Turkey, Greece, Italy and Malta by the Vice Chairman and Assistant Secretary
Report on visit to Turkey, Greece, Italy and Malta, by the Vice-Chairman Admiral Sir Martin Dunbar-Smith, V.C., K.C.B. and the Assistant Secretary W.J. Chalmers, Esq.. Comments on meeting with Mr Millington in Turkey, visiting the old Crimean cemetery at Haidar Pasha, the old naval cemetery in Crete, a sherry party with members of the Rome Office, and new Crosses of Sacrifice at Pembroke and Imtarfa cemeteries in Malta.
Cemetery and memorial registers for the 1939-1945 War
Refers to the procedure for producing the Cemetery and Memorial Registers for the 1939-1945 War, including estimates of costs of printing registers.
War Graves Agreements
Refers to the Thai Government’s refusal to sign the agreement with the participating governments and that the treaty with Denmark would be negotiated along the same lines as that with the government of Norway.
Headstones on non-service graves
Discussion regarding an enquiry received from the War Office about headstones on non-service graves.
Schiermonnikoog (Vredenhof) Cemetery, Friesland, Holland
Report on condition of Schiermonnikoog (Vredenhof) Cemetery, Friesland, Holland, with question about whether a Cross of Sacrifice would be erected.
Examination of sketch design for cemetery construction by Philip D. Hepworth, F.R.I.B.A., Principal Architect for North-West Europe, for Banneville-la-Campagne War Cemetery.
Examination of sketch designs for cemetery construction by Louis de Soissons, A.R.A., Principal Architect for Italy and Greece for Forli War Cemetery and Coriano Ridge War Cemetery, Italy.
General notes: Mention that the paper was circulated at the meeting.
Date of next meeting scheduled for Thursday 19 July 1951 at 11:00am.
Statement by the Secretary
Refers to points raised in the report made to the Commission at their 337th Meeting by General Sir Robert Gordon-Finlayson on his tour to the French and North-West European Districts, including comments about damage sustained during the war at Terlincthun British Cemetery, Boulogne Eastern Cemetery and flaking brickwork at the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing, as well as damage at Le Touret, Faubourg d’Amiens and progress of creating a cemetery at St. Valery-en-Caux.
ATTENDEES:
Admiral Sir Martin Dunbar-Smith, V.C., K.C.B. (Vice-Chairman in the Chair)
J.P. Sigvaldason, Esq., C.B.E. (Representing the High Commissioner for Canada)
W.H. Bunning, Esq. (Representing the High Commissioner for Australia)
Major-General W.E. Stevens, C.B., C.B.E. (Representing the High Commissioner for New Zealand)
W.B. England, Esq., M.B.E. (Representing the High Commissioner for India)
General Sir Robert Gordon-Finlayson, K.C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Longmore, G.C.B., D.S.O.
Sir Patrick Spens, K.B.E., K.C., M.P.
General Sir John Crocker, G.C.B., K.B.E., D.S.O., M.C., A.D.C.
ADVISERS:
Edward Maufe, Esq., R.A. (Chief Architect and Artistic Adviser)
SECRETARY:
F. Higginson, Esq., C.M.G.
Also in attendance:
F.C. Sillar, Esq., C.B.E. (Principal Assistant Secretary)
W.J. Chalmers, Esq. (Assistant Secretary)
R.W. Bateman, Esq. (Director of Works)
H.P.R. Foster, Esq., O.B.E. (Legal Assistant)
O.D. Holt, Esq. (Principal, Secretarial Branch)
A.S. Laing, Esq. (Private Secretary to the Secretary)
W.K.K. Kinnear, Esq., M.B.E. (Chief Administrative Officer, United Kingdom District) |