There has been some discussion in Caernarfon in recent weeks about the future of the Boer War memorial on top of Twtil, the hill that dominates the town. (see photo) It’s in a spectacular location with views in all directions over the town and the famous castle, towards Segontium Roman Fort; over the Menai Straits and Ynys Môn in one direction and the mountains of Eryri in the other. However, it’s not easy to get to, particularly if you have the slightest walking problem, and there had been suggestions that it should be moved to a more accessible locations such as Twtil Square which was thought suitable as so many of the men from Caernarfon who served in the Boer War came from the Twtil area.

We had invited the Caernarfon Chairman of the RWF Comrades Association to come to a meeting of the Caernarfon Civic Society to discuss the situation. To prepare myself for the meeting I decided to do some research into Boer War Memorials which I knew were fairly rare. I found a number of websites including www.roll-ofhonour.com/Boer which I found to be the most useful. This contained details of memorials in various towns and cities but in Wales only two were listed, in Llandudno and Merthyr Tydfil. The memorial in Caernarfon was not listed and I realised that the list was not complete and this is because the website is run by volunteers. They are to be applauded for the work they do but clearly they do not have the resources of a professional organisation and I realised that there is no comprehensive list of the dead of the Boer War.
It’s different for the casualties of WW1 and WW2 where cemeteries and their records are cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Since its establishment in 1917, the Commission has constructed 2,500 war cemeteries and plots, erecting headstones over graves and, in instances where the remains are missing, inscribing the names of the dead on permanent memorials. Over one million casualties are now commemorated at military and civil sites in some 150 countries.
If you have a relative who was lost in these wars and are uncertain of the details then you should visit www.cwgc.org and go to the search page. The more information you have the easier it will be but if, for example, you only know his name and that he was killed in WW1 then you simply enter his surname and initials with the time range of 1914 to 1918 and you’ll get a list of all persons of that name who were killed during the war. Against each entry you will find his rank, Service Number, date of death, age when killed, regiment, nationality, the grave or memorial reference number and the name of the cemetery where he was buried. If you don’t know any of these details then you’ll have to check each name in turn until you, hopefully, find your relative. When you click on the name you get additional information including the next of kin which, in the case of single men, would be his parents and their address and this should be sufficient for you to be able to identify your relative.
You can also get information about the cemetery, its location and how to get there and there are also photographs. You’ll find a Cemetery Plan so that if you did decide to visit you could easily find your way to the grave of your relative. You’ll also find a Certificate that is a record of exactly what is written on the gravestone. Anyone interested in learning about relatives lost in the world wars should visit this site.
The GFH society meeting for remainder of March and April are:

Bangor, 1 April (first Tuesday of each month) 7.00pm at the Quakers Meeting Hall, Dean Street: Gina Kent and Pat Lindsey, “Two short talks”

Caernarfon, 27 March (last Thursday of each month) 7.00pm at the The Library, Lôn Pafiliwn: Geraint Jones, “Hanes Nant Gwrtheyrn”

Dolgellau, 10 April (second Thursday of each month) 7.00pm at the Royal Ship Hotel:
Ann Lloyd Roberts, “Teulu’r Post, Llanuwchlyn”

Llandudno, 11 March (second Monday of each month) 7.00pm at The Library, Mostyn Street: Margaret Dunn, “Dating old houses in Snowdonia”.

Llangefni, 20 March (third Thursday of each month) 7.15pm at Capel Smyrna, Ffordd Glanhwfa: Stephen Binks of Western Front Battlefield Tours “Wales and the Great War’

Pwllheli, 21 March (third Friday of each month) 7.00pm at Capel Seion, Lon Dywod: Dr Hywel Wyn Owen, “Llen Cynefin”

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