Church of St. George9 Ypres.
Memorial Celebration at the Menin
Gate in Honour of the British Dead.
148
THE YPRES TIMES
THE Church is now nearing completion, the roof is on, windows in, heating
has commenced in order that the walls may be sufficiently dry preparatory to
some of the interior decorations.
The gifts to the Church have been very numerous and very generous, the
memorials are in every way worthy and beautiful; a printed list of these gifts can be
obtained on application to the Hon. Secretary, Ypres Memorial Church, 9, Baker
Street, London.
The Church will be consecrated on Palm Sunday, March 24th, 1929; it is hoped
that all who can do so will endeavour to attend thi^ opening ceremony, and further
take an interest in the British Settlement that is being built up there.
The Ypres League is conducting a special party of pilgrims for this occasion;
they are all poor relatives of the missing whose names appear on the Tyne Cot
and Menin Gate Memorials, they will be taken over free of charge and paid for by
the Pilgrimage Fund which was subscribed to in reply to Field-Marshal Lord
Plumer's broadcast appeal in July, 1927.
The School is finished, the Chaplain's Residence well in hand, and the founda
tion work of the Pilgrims' Rest Room has been commenced.
It is impossible not to be interested in the Church and its Memorials; they
represent many units and many individuals. All this work has been under the
personal care of Sir Reginald Blomfield, R.A. It was found necessary to have the
whole scheme under one man's supervision, and although it was not possible
to meet the views of everyone, I am sure that the result, when seen, will vindicate
the choice of the Committee and congratulate Sir Reginald Blomfield on what he
has achieved; the dignity of the whole building leaves nothing to be desired.
W. P. Pulteney,
Lieutenant-General.
On opposite page is shown the Memorial Window presented to the Church of St. George, Ypres, by
the 3rd Corps (4th and 6th Divisions).
(Translated from the French.)
THIS year (1928), from July the 1st until September the 30th, every evening at
half-past eight three buglers from the Fire Brigade have sounded the Last
Post" in honour of the British dead and missing." A quiet and thoughtful
crowd has stood shoulder to shoulder beneath the monument to keep the one
minute's silence.
On Sunday, September the 30th, the ceremony was performed for the last time
this season. On that occasion Monsieur P. Vandenbraambusche, Commissioner of
the Ypres Police, who instituted the ceremony, organized a memorial celebration
by inviting all the ex-Service men's associations to take part in rendering tribute to
their brothers-in-arms. The members of these associations, with their flags, took
