The Imperial War Graves Commission appointed three major contemporary architects to lead a team to come up with the basic framework – these were Sir Edwin Lutyens, Herbert Baker and Reginald Blomfield. Their basic design ‘style’ was then adapted – often with considerable ingenuity – to suit the particular site.
The Imperial War Graves Commission became the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in 1960. It is responsible for maintaining the memorials and cemeteries ‘in perpetuity’.
The Commonweath War Graves Commission's principles are:
- Each of the dead should be commemorated by name on the headstone or memorial
- Headstones and memorials should be permanent
- Headstones should be uniform
- There should be no distinction made on account of military or civil rank, race or creed
Each of the cemeteries is kept in excellent condition. For many years this was achieved by having a gardener assigned to a particular cemetery or group of smaller cemeteries. The result was considerable personal pride ensured a high standard of care was normal.
More recently a drive to reduce costs has meant that the cemeteries have been maintained by groups of travelling gardeners.
See the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website.
