Notice of next meeting of the All Party Parliamentary War Heritage Group
Thursday 5 December 2013 in Committee Room 3, House of Lords at 4.00 pm

The next meeting of the All Party War Heritage Group will be held on 5 December 2013, in Committee Room 3, House of Lords at 4.00 pm.

Helen Grant MP (Minister for Sport & Tourism) and Dr Andrew Murrison MP (Minister for International Security Strategy & the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for the Centenary Commemoration of the First World War) will attend to discuss the Government’s approach to, and plans for, the centenary of the Great War in 2014–18.

All MPs and peers are welcome to attend.

Details of the Government’s Centenary Programme can be found in advance of the meeting at: https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/first-world-war-centenary

8 July 2013
MEETING OF THE WAR HERITAGE APPG

Mr Colin Kerr, Finance Director at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), and Ms Liz Woodfield, Head of Information Systems at the CWGC, made a presentation to the meeting entitled "The CWGC and the Commemoration of the Great War Centenary"

   Read the Minutes of the meeting here.

26 November 2012
Meeting of Group on 26 November 2012


See the Minutes from the meeting

10 July 2012
AGM
Progress report on plans to commemorate the centenary of WWI


See the Minutes from the meeting of 10 July 2012.

14 June 2012
UPDATE ON PLANS FOR CENTENARY OF THE GREAT WAR 2014–18

Dr Andrew Murrison MP, the Prime Minister’s special representative and coordinator for the commemorations to mark the centenary of World War One, writes with an update on developments.

Read his letter of 14 June 2012 addressed to all interested parties

Tuesday 6th December, 2011 at 6.45pm in Committee Room 4, House of Lords
SPECIAL DISCUSSION MEETING: CENTENARY OF THE GREAT WAR 2014–18

Dr Andrew Murrison MP, the Prime Minister’s special representative and coordinator for the commemorations to mark the centenary of World War One, will be outlining his initial thoughts and listen to the views of members of the group.

Read minutes from the Special Discussion Meeting on 6 December 2011

13 July 2011: Presentation on commemoration of centenary of 1914

At its meeting on 13 July 2011, members of the parliamentary all-party war heritage group received a series of presentations on how other countries are planning to commemorate the centenary in 2014 of the outbreak of the First World War.

Within the Commonwealth, Australia has formed a national committee, on which two former Prime Ministers serve; in Europe, France is opening a new national museum on 11 November 2011, a day on which President Sarkozy will make a major announcement about how France plans to commemorate an event which is only matched by 1789 in the history of the republic; and in the United States, despite the fact that the country did not enter the war until 1917, a bill is passing through Congress to create a national committee to organise the centenary events.

While the Imperial War Museum has been named as the DCMS’s lead, it can only advance its own strategies and act as a clearing house for ideas by other museums and the media. As a result of the IWM’s educational remit, its role is somewhat circumscribed. For the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, who are preparing for a greater footfall in its cemeteries, and for the fact that its visitors will have different demands and expectations from the first pilgrims to the front in the 1920s, there can again only be a limited engagement within its limited range of responsibilities. For both organisations, most endeavours will necessarily be educational, and given that the First World War is part of the national curriculum, schools and academia are already planning how they will respond. In France and Flanders major commemorative and study projects are at present being put in place.

  Read briefing document sent to Prime Minister in full and accompanying letter from chairman of War Heritage Committee.
  See Prime Minister's response
Minutes from meeting of Group on 23 May 2011

See the Minutes from the meeting of 23 May 2011.

22 March 2011: Chairman asks Question on plans for commemorating the outbreak of the Great War

A meeting of the All-Party War Heritage Group on 21 February gave Mr Kris Peeters, minister-president of Flanders,the opportunity to outline how his government proposes to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the Great War in 2014.

The meeting was attended by eminent war historians, representatives of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the Royal British Legion, the Guards Museum, the Guards' Chapel, the Imperial War Museum, the Flemish and Belgian governments, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

It was clear to everyone that the Flanders government have already given much thought to this centenary, and their plans are well advanced. They include a number of events in Flanders itself, a memorial concert at the Chelsea Hospital, an aerial photography research project being carried out by the University of Ghent and the Battlefield Museum in Ypres, the signing of the 'Flanders Fields Declaration' which commits its signatories not to forget 'this cataclysmic event', and most imaginatively – and generously – of all, the creation of a permanent garden of remembrance in front of the Guards' Chapel in Birdcage Walk in London, the earth for which will be brought over from Passendale by the Flemish administration. This garden will replace the present pond which is an inappropriate and unsafe eyesore.

By asking the Question on 22 March, chairman of the Group, Lord Faulkner of Worcester, hoped to acquaint colleagues in the House of Lords with what is already being planned in Belgium, to find out what plans the British government has for commemorating this centenary, and also to solicit support for the Guards' Chapel garden.

  Hansard report
   ePolitix.com comment

Minutes from meeting of Group on 26 July 2010

A meeting of the Group was held on 14 December 2010 when the Minutes from the first meeting of the reconstituted Group were agreed.

Group reconstituted as All-Party War Heritage Group

Lord Faulkner of Worcester has been reinstated as Chairman of the Group.
The first Meeting of the reconstituted Group will be held on Monday 26 July 2010.
A summary of the Group's achievements to date can be found under Successful Campaigns.



Who are we?

The All-Party Parliamentary War Heritage Group, chaired by Lord Faulkner of Worcester, has over 90 members.
Co-secretaries are Peter Barton, historian & author of several books on WW1 in association with the Imperial War Museum & Professor Peter Doyle, a military terrain specialist.

Some useful links