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Following the cessation of hostilities in Europe in 1945, a debate ensued in colonial Zambia on what was the best tribute to dedicate to its servicemen who had lost their lives in the Second World War. On the one hand, the colonial government advocated for conventional forms of a war memorial such as statues, obelisks, and triumphal arches. On the other side, African servicemen supported the idea of 'living memorials' in form of useful projects such as educational institutions, clinics or community centres. In the end, proponents of traditional memorials won this contest—eventually leading to the erection of a cenotaph in the heart of the seat of government. Using data from the National Archives of Zambia, this article argues that the erection of a cenotaph, was another blow to African servicemen who felt cheated by colonial authorities in the way they were to forever honour their dear departed compatriots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study approaches the micro-novel Dora Bruder by Patrick Modiano from the perspective of memory (and post-memory) which, through documentary work, restores the identity of the victims definitively annulled by the Nazi regime (victims who have no grave). Our hypothesis is that Modiano is building a literary cenotaph for Dora Bruder. For her part, Herta Müller tries, in at least two of her novels (The Land of Green Plums and The Appointment), to build for the victims of the Securitate (the Political Police in Communist Romania, during the neo-Stalinist regime under Nicolae Ceaușescu), a memorial, a literary tumulus. In this case, it is about victims who have a grave, but the author is building a second grave from an ethical point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This research investigates the spatial landscape of Hong Kong's earliest imperial war monument, the Cenotaph, from the city's early colonial past to the 1960s. Hong Kong's Cenotaph, which is an almost exact replica of London's Whitehall Cenotaph, reveals how the British Empire established its imperial visual network in its colonies in the early 20th century. However, the prewar visual representation of the royal authorities through the statues of royal members in the colony's central square was replaced by politically neutral designs for civic use after the end of WWII. Through the exploration of the change of meaning of this monumental space in relation to its neighboring environment, I argue that the end of WWII, the social upheavals in the 1960s and the consequent "depoliticization" of British colonial rule have transformed the early war commemorative artefacts in Hong Kong, marginalizing them in the city's major narrative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking its cue from a phrase in a wartime sermon by the Bishop of London, Arthur Winnington-Ingram, this article examines the tensions between Christian and more secular approaches to the commemoration of the military casualties of the First World War. An initial overview of perceptions of sacrifice, martyrdom and Christian militarism in the early twentieth century is followed by discussion, in turn, of local war memorials, of the early policies of the Imperial (now Commonwealth) War Graves Commission, and of the arrangements for the dedication of the Cenotaph and the interment of the ‘Unknown Warrior’ in Westminster Abbey on Armistice Day 1920. At the local and institutional level a wide spectrum of approaches between the overtly Christian and the robustly secular were adopted, but national memorialisation required compromise and consensus. Hence it was agreed that the war cemeteries should includebotha Cross of Sacrifice and Stone of Remembrance, and that there should be uniform headstones engraved with a cross or other religious symbol. Similarly the primarily (but not exclusively) secular ceremonial at the Cenotaph was seamlessly linked to the Christian funeral service for the Unknown in the Abbey. At the same time non-Christian faiths were accorded significant recognition. While other belligerent powers faced similar issues, and in some respects adopted similar solutions, in Britain there was nevertheless a distinctive and particularly pronounced blending of the Christian and the national which has had an abiding legacy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Stratum Plus Journal is the property of P.P. Stratum plus and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)