It is a memorial for all British military personnel who have been killed since the Second World War. The memorial looks, from above, similar to Stonehenge. It has a giant obelisk which represents all British military personnel killed since World War II. On its curved, white stone walls are engraved the names of the approximately 16,000 British service personnel killed in action since WWII (amazingly, 1968 is the only year in which no British military personnel have died in action) and the rest of the walls are blank - enough space for another 15,000 names to be chiselled on. The names of all those who have died in action this year will be added soon.

A giant sculpture shows a dead soldier being carried on a stretcher by comrades, with his grieving wife and young son looking on. The stretcher is being carried to a slightly opened door, represented by a slit in the wall behind the figures. Sunlight shines through the ajar door, and on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month the sunlight will shine through the slightly open door on the wall, past the figures, and onto a large, bronze wreath on the floor nearby .

   2726371 Gdsm Anthony Ruddy,
Pictured here with me on the right,
in the city of Haifa, March 1947

I was searching for County Mayo born service personnel for a Memorial in Castlebar, County Mayo. Ireland. I came across your site that had Gdsn Ruddy a fallen comrade and friend of yours. The Memorial site is www.mayomemorialpeacepark.org  Gdsn Ruddy will be commemorated in late September (2008) when it opens. The chairman Michael Feeney is compiling a Book of Remembrance a Memorial wall and garden for the fallen Military Personnel who were born in Mayo. He is still looking for names to be added to the memorial they can be sent via his website above

Martin Coyle