Fieldwork team: Carmen Fletcher, Devin Forbes, Mytch Gales
What We Examined:
For our monument assignment we explored the War Graves at the Ross Bay Cemetery. We examined the War Graves located on the lower southeastern and southwestern corners of the cemetery. The cemetery sectioned these two areas as War Grave locations; however, we also found soldier’s graves sporadically throughout the cemetery.
Our focus consisted of examining the differences and similarities we found amongst the two War Grave locations, such as the gravestones themselves, placements of the graves (i.e. in neat quaint rows in visually equal distances between the graves or spaced more sporadically), and who was associated with each gravestone.
We noted that in the eastern corner there were two large monuments. One of them was a Cross of Sacrifice, which recognizes World War 1 soldiers who died and also includes the dates of World War 2, indicating it recognized WW2 soldiers as well. The other monument was a four-sided granite Naval Memorial, a tribute to the Royal Naval Canadian Reserve for the individuals who died in the sinking of the H.M.C.S Galiano. Both were placed at the perimeter of this section and in close proximity to each other. The graves in this area were place in even rows, which was quite different from the western corner of the cemetery.
The graves at the western corner were placed more sporadically, not visually equal in distance between the plots or in neat rows, and looked less maintained. These graves did not appear as uniformed and also had notable differences such as graves containing multiple burials in a single plot and colour on some of the gravestones. The graves here also had dates later than the ones on the eastern side, for example dates of death started around 1923 in this area and in the eastern corner around 1919.
Lastly, another interesting aspect of the placement of War Graves was that some of the soldier’s graves were placed outside of these two-sectioned War Grave locations, scattered throughout the cemetery and isolated from other War Graves. One of the furthest War Grave locations from these two sites was centrally located at the northern section of the cemetery (which can be seen on our google map that we made). Some of the other sections we found War Graves in were the Roman Catholic and Anglican sections.
War Grave Tombstones:
We began our identification of War Graves by first going to each War Grave location in the cemetery section and finding the similarities that identified the soldier’s graves. The graves themselves included the soldier’s rank and ID. These graves typically included a Maple Leaf, to symbolize Canada, and a cross, most likely to symbolize Christianity. Some gravestones had variation, such as emblems signifying their position as the soldier (i.e. Royal Air Force), no cross, and sometimes even no Maple leaf. We focused much of our exploration on graves that had some sort of distinguishing feature that was not the typical norm of the vast majority of these gravestones. The images we included on our Google Map page demonstrate how these two locations look, focusing on these gravestones, which in our mind, were unique in comparison to the other gravestones in the surrounding area.
With further research, I explored the Commonwealth War Grave Commission website for the guidelines of structural features and graves for memorials and cemeteries that have Commonwealth War Graves (http://www.cwgc.org/about-us/what-we-do/architecture/our-cemetery-design-and-features.aspx).
A Closer Look At The Graves:
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an organization, which cares for the graves and memorials of people of the Commonwealth countries who died fighting in World War 1 and World War 2, such as the graves in the Ross Bay cemetery (http://www.cwgc.org/media/10441/easy_read_about_the_cwgc.pdf).
The organization states that each of the “graves are marked by uniform headstones, differentiated only by their inscriptions: the national emblem or regimental badge, rank, name, unit, date of death and age of each casualty is inscribed above an appropriate religious symbol and a more personal dedication chosen by relatives” (http://www.cwgc.org/about-us/what-we-do/architecture/our-cemetery-design-and-features.aspx).
A Closer Look At The Cross of Sacrifice:
The Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria, states that the Cross of Sacrifice is a “World War 1 memorial designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield, erected by Imperial War Graves Commission” (http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/brochurerbc.pdf). As well, the design of the Cross of Sacrifice is used in other British Commonwealth cemeteries and memorials recognizing war graves. This design “symbolizes the Biblical passage of turning swords into ploughshares, and commemorates the thousands of Canadians buried in France, Flanders, and other places” (http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_rb_tour10.htm). Furthermore, the Cross of Sacrifice is placed in cemeteries that have more than 40 war graves. The Ross Bay Cemetery has about 150 of these graves (http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_rb_tour10.htm). This monument, the Commonwealth War Grave Commission states, are made of Portland stone, stands on an octagonal block, and has a bronze sword attacked to the front of the monument that faces downwards. The cross symbolizes Christianity and the sword symbolizes the connection of these graves with war (http://www.cwgc.org/media/10446/easy_read_about_cwgc_cemeteries_and_memorials.pdf).
Research questions:
At lot of questions arose while both researching and examining this site, however my main research questions are, why are there are two War Grave locations at opposing corners of the cemetery and why do these two areas differ in appearance? Additional questions can be found on a previous blog entry.
I will try and find resources as well as make my own interpretations of these findings.
I will try and find resources as well as make my own interpretations of these findings.
Answering the Research Questions:
In researching my questions, I found no explanation as to why there were two War Grave locations at the Ross Bay cemetery. I did however find some interesting information as to why the War Graves in the south-eastern corner looked better maintained than the south-western corner as well as a potential answer to why the monuments were at the eastern corner. Below I will post the material I found as well as the webpage associated with these answers. I will also include my own interpretations of the material I found from these resources as well as what material was not included in these resources.
City Hall Minutes:
- Ideas on why the graves at the south-eastern corner of the Ross Bay Cemetery looked well maintained
Looking for material on an explanation for the differences between the graves I came across the City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Committee Minutes from October 25, 2005; in the minutes it states that the Commonwealth War Graves Commission wanted to restore the south-eastern corner of the Ross Bay Cemetery by doing the following: replacing headstones, removing cement curbing and footings, providing funding for better kept horticulture maintenance. From these reports, I gather that these maintenance propositions were accepted as that is why the south-eastern corner looks well maintained and better cared for then the south-western corner. http://www.victoria.ca/cityhall/minutes_boards/min051025_heritage.pdf
Commonwealth War Grave Commission:
- Why the War Graves look the way they do and ideas on why the south-eastern corner of the Ross Bay Cemetery looks different from the south-western corner
- Also, a reason as to why the monuments are most-likely located in the eastern corner of the cemetery, rather than the western corner
- Also, a reason as to why the monuments are most-likely located in the eastern corner of the cemetery, rather than the western corner
The following link is from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission webpage and discusses the design and features found in Commonwealth War Grave locations such as structural features (i.e. Cross of Sacrifice) and how the graves should appear. At the top of the page is an interesting quote by Sir Frederic Kenyon’s vision of these cemeteries and was provided in 1918. The quote explains his vision of how the landscape and the gravestones in a cemetery should look; rows of flowers, uniformed orderly rows of gravestones, and that in there should be a Cross in a prominent area to these graves symbolizing Christianity and self-sacrifice.
Two aspects of this quote primarily got my attention. This quote states, “[t]he graves will, wherever possible, face towards the east, and at the eastern end of the cemetery will be a great alter stone, raised upon broad steps, and bearing some brief and appropriate phrase or text.” This explains why the location of the monuments are in the eastern corner of the Ross Bay Cemetery. However, the gravestones alternated by facing east and west. I wonder if this is because of lack of space or for another reason. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find material further explaining the placement of graves at the War Grave locations in the Ross Bay Cemetery.
Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria:
- Exploring the idea of the War Grave upgrade at the Ross Bay Cemetery and why the south-eastern corner looks different from the south-western corner
This link provides some history of the Ross Bay Cemetery. It includes an image of the original map of the Ross Bay Cemetery as well as the expansion in 1893 and 1906. Furthermore, there is a brief write-up on the Commonwealth War Graves Upgrade at the cemetery. It explains how in 2006 the Commonwealth War Graves Commission upgraded the south-eastern War Graves location, however, there was not mention of the south-western War Graves location. This may explains why the War Grave location in the eastern location looks better maintained, but sadly does not give me any clues as to why the western location was not upgraded as well. Perhaps this has to do with who was buried here and perhaps the Commonwealth War Graves Commission does not fund this area. As well, as noted by the Commonwealth War Grave Commission website, the eastern corner is where monuments should be placed. Maybe due to a preference of the eastern location, the western location was neglected.
Research Question Final Thoughts:
Some of my inquiries are still unanswered. I wanted to discover why there were two War Grave locations in the Ross Bay Cemetery, but unfortunately I was unable to find material that clearly states why there are two sites; this limited my examination of the differences between these two locations. The Commonwealth War Grave Commission webpage states that each War Grave should be uniform. I wonder, then, if only the south-eastern corner of the cemetery is maintained by Commonwealth War Grave Commission. However, I do not understand why this would be the case because the soldier’s graves in the south-western location are also Canadian soldiers and therefore should be recognized by the Commonwealth War Grave Commission. There must be another reason; maybe since a lot of the dates at the south-western location have a later date of death (i.e. 1923), these soldiers were not included as war deaths because they died after the war. If this were the case, perhaps that is way some of these graves plots contained multiple burials in one plot. Or, if as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission states that all gravestones should be uniform and these graves were not all visually uniform maybe this is why they are not maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Other potential answer for having two War Grave locations could be that family members wanted these soldiers remembered differently (i.e. in another location). Also, before I researched the Commonwealth War Grave Commission webpage I thought that the soldier's in the south-western corner were placed there because they did not come from a wealthy family, but upon my research the organization states that all soldier's should be recognized equally so class should not be a reason for the difference in location. Nevertheless, whatever the reason for the two locations, both War Grave corners at Ross Bay Cemetery recognizes that these people were soldiers.
____________________________________________________________________________
Bibliography
City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Committee, 2004. City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Committee Minutes April 13, 2004. [online] Available at: <http://www.victoria.ca/cityhall/minutes_boards/min040413_heritage.pdf> [Accessed 9 February 2012].
City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Committee, 2005. City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Committee Minutes October 25, 2005. [online] Available at: <http://www.victoria.ca/cityhall/minutes_boards/min051025_heritage.pdf> [Accessed 9 February
Commonwealth War Grave Commission, n.d. Our Cemetery Design and Features. [online] Available at: <www.cwgc.org/about-us/what-we-do/architecture/our-cemetery-design-and-features.aspx> [Accessed 7 February 2012].
Commonwealth War Grave Commission, n.d. About the Commonwealth Wars Graves Commission. [online] Available at: <www.cwgc.org/media/10441/easy_read_about_the_cwgc.pdf> [Accessed 7 February 2012].
Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria, n.d. Ross Bay Cemetery. [online] Available at: <http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_rb.htm> [Accessed 5 February 2012].
Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria, n.d. Ross Bay Cemetery Brochurer. [online] Available at: <www.oldcem.bc.ca/brochurerbc.pdf> [Accessed 5 February 2012].
Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria, n.d. Ross Bay Cemetery – Virtual Tour. [online] Available at: <http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_rb_tour10.htm> [Accessed 5 February 2012].
Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria, n.d. Ross Bay Cemetery – History. [online] Available at: <http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_rb_his.htm> [Accessed 5 February 2012].
The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2012. Monuments of the First and Second World Wars. [online] Available at: <http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/monuments-of-the-first-and-second-world-wars> [Accessed 7 February 2012].
Veterans Affairs Canada, 2011. Commonwealth War Graves Commission. [online] Available at: <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/Memorials/tomb/cwgc/background> [Accessed 7 February 2012].
Veterans Affairs Canada, 2011. Victoria Memorial. [online] Available at: <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/memorials/memcan/victmem> [Accessed 7 February 2012].
I didn't want my monument analysis to get too long, so if you're interested in exploring additional resources that provides further information on this subject I'll be posting another blog entry.
ReplyDeleteIf you are trying to look at some of my links and they go to a page of jibberish, remove the "http://" from the start of the address and click refresh - it will work if you do this. I removed the "http://" from the problematic links in this entry, but it seems that it doesn't matter.
ReplyDeleteFeel free to post any tips on how to fix this. :)