The Great War - The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

by Rob Atherton

In the course of World War I, the slaughter over the fields of Flanders was on an horrendous scale with the majority of bodies never identified or brought back. On 11th November 1920, simultaneously ceremonies were held in both London and Paris to unveil tombs of unknown soldiers.

The tomb of the unknown soldier came to represent the loss sustained by the families of troops who died and their bodies were never identified or brought back. The unknown French soldier lies in the Arc de Triomphe in Paris while the unknown British soldier lies buried in Westminster Abbey between nobleman and statesmen.

The concept was initially contemplated by a clergyman named Reverend David Railton. In 1916 in France, he had observed a cross with the words "An Unknown British Soldier" written on it. Four years later in 1920, Railton got into contact with the Dean of Westminster recommending it may be appropriate to create a nationally recognised grave for an unknown soldier.



Four British servicemen were exhumed from Aisne, the Somme, Arras and Ypres and taken to a chapel at St Pol, in the vicinity of Arras. Every body was draped in a Union flag and one was picked by Brigadier General L J Wyatt. Wyatt had no idea from where the soldiers had been taken from or their rank. The idea was that the unknown soldier could possibly have been anyone from a Private to a Colonel, a colonial labourer to the son of an Earl.

The soldiers coffin was brought to London and was taken to Westminster Abbey in a horse drawn gun carriage. The cortege was accompanied by King George V and individuals of the Royal family. At Westminster Abbey, it was flanked by a guard of 100 recipients of the Victoria Cross.

The coffin was placed and covered with dirt brought from the battlefields of World War I. It was topped with a piece of black marble from Belgium and is the only tombstone in Westminster Abbey on which it's forbidden to step on.

Since then, quite a few other nations have dedicated very similar tombs including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Germany, Iraq, Japan, Russia, Ukraine and the United States.

About the Author:

World War I was reduced to a bloody stalemate which saw millions of lives needlessly given. Few families in Britain were left unaffected.. Also published at The Great War - The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.