The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is encouraging people to remember the Battle of Jutland, with the launch of new commemorative resources for the May 2016 Centenary.
Events planned at the principal CWGC cemeteries and memorials on both sides of the North Sea are listed in a dedicated section on the commission’s website.
There are also outlines of key moments in the biggest naval battle of the First World War.
More than 6,000 British dead are commemorated at CWGC sites across the UK and Scandinavia.
In a new video, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, a CWGC Commissioner, urges the public to join in paying tribute to all those who died in the conflict at sea.
Sir Tim, speaking at Chatham Naval Memorial, says: “The sailors of the Royal Navy and the Merchant Navy were central to the war effort, even if their exploits are less well remembered than their land-based compatriots.
“On 31st May, on the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Jutland, I urge you to join with us at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, in remembering all those who served and died at sea, not only at Jutland but throughout the war.
“Visit their graves and memorials if you can; for they too deserve to be remembered.”
The grave of Jack Cornwell, a 16-year-old sailor at Jutland posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, is cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission at Manor Park Cemetery, east London (Photo: Centenary News)
Jutland events summary:
May 31st: UK national commemorations in Orkney – services at St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall, and CWGC’s Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery.
Services will also take place at the Portsmouth, Plymouth and Chatham Naval Memorials, identical monuments unveiled in British navy towns after the First World War to remember those who have no grave but the sea.
Commemorations will be held too at CWGC cemeteries in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, remembering that some of the Jutland dead were found on Scandinavian shores.
Germany will remember the Battle of Jutland (Die Skagerrakschlacht in German) with ceremonies at Wilhelmshaven Cemetery on May 29th, where many of its dead dead are buried, and on May 31st at the German Naval Memorial in Laboe, near Kiel.
There will also be German participation at the UK national event in Orkney on May 31st.
For more information, visit the CWGC Jutland commemorative site.
Source: Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC)
Images courtesy of CWGC (infographic); Centenary News (Jack Cornwell grave)
Posted by: CN Editorial Team