In Memoriam: Remembering the Great War

90th Anniversary of Armistice Marked by Imperial War Museum, London

Sep 29, 2008
Frances Spiegel

Pistol and Bomb - Ronald Spiegel by Permission of IWM

This exhibition marks the 90th anniversary of the Armistice and looks at the experiences of 90 individuals, showing how the Great War affected their lives.

In Memoriam: Remembering the Great War opened on 30th September 2008 at the Imperial War Museum, London. The exhibition explores the experiences of 90 individuals, civilians and servicemen. It explains shows how their lives were changed by the Great War and its aftermath.

The display includes many items from the IWM's First World War collection supplemented by loans from other museums including paintings, sketches, photographs, posters, personal letters and mementos, audio visual materials and sound recordings.

Bomb and Pistol Used to Assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The highlights of this exhibition are not necessarily the largest items. A pistol and bomb, lent by the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum, Vienna, are on show for the first time in the UK. These weapons were used by Gavrilo Princip and a group of conspirators, co-ordinated by Danilo Ilic, to assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria on 28th June 1914. His death led to the outbreak of World War I a month later.

War Artists

Many artists were sent to the Front to paint pictures for Great Britain's Ministry of War. In Memoriam is supplemented with pieces by Percy Wyndham Lewis, Henry Lamb, John and Paul Nash, Sir Stanley Spencer and John Singer Sargent, on display in the adjoining Singer Sargent Gallery. The Menin Road, (1919) by Paul Nash (1889-1946) was painted in 1919 from sketches made by the artist while visiting the Western Front. Nash's painting depicts a nightmare world of bare trees and mud reflected in pools of water. Two tiny figures, almost unrecognisable, move through the picture.

The Experiences of Women: The Women's Land Army

One of the greatest problems for British agriculture during World War I was the acute shortage of labour. With six million men fighting the war, the government acknowledged the need for women to become involved in farming and the production of food. The Board of Agriculture (now the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food) established the Women's Land Army in 1915. By the beginning of 1918, after much objection from traditional farmers, more than 250,000 women worked as farm labourers. The photograph shows members of the Women’s Land Army at work in a field during the First World War.

Publications, Activities and Events

The IWM has five branches, all of which will be hosting, exhibitions, activities and events in connection with the anniversary. The official book, In Memoriam: Remembering the Great War, written by eminent historian Robin Cross, with foreword by Ian Hislop and introduction by Malcom Brown, will be published to accompany the exhibition. There will also be a number of other publications marking the Armistice's anniversary.

In Memoriam: Remembering the Great War will run until 6th September 2009. Details of all publications, exhibitions and activities can be obtained from the Imperial War Museum.