ME and Ophelia

Forgotten soldiers of Cyprus campaign will get memorial at last

Almost 400 British servicemen killed by guerillas in Cyprus in the 1950s are finally to be honoured after Daily Telegraph readers helped raise £80,000 to build a memorial to them.

From The Daily Telegraph
By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter
04 Aug 2009



The vast majority of those who died at the hands of Greek-Cypriot terrorists were young men carrying out National Service, some of the last British conscripts to lose their lives in service of their country, but their sacrifice had remained largely unreco Photo: GETTY

A monument bearing the names of all 371 soldiers, sailors and airmen killed during four years of bloodshed will be unveiled on Remembrance Day in a military cemetery on the island.

The vast majority of those who died at the hands of Greek-Cypriot terrorists were young men carrying out National Service, some of the last British conscripts to lose their lives in service of their country, but their sacrifice had remained largely unrecognised for 50 years.

The campaign for a memorial to them was highlighted in The Daily Telegraph in April, and drew a magnificent response from readers, whose generosity has enabled the British Cyprus Memorial Trust to press ahead with its plans.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Graydon, a former Chief of the Air Staff who served in Cyprus in the early Sixties and is a patron of the appeal, said: "We're hugely grateful to everyone who has given money so far, which has enabled us to honour the memory of those who died."

The Trust has also set up a pioneering online Book of Remembrance, containing the names and short biographies of each of the dead. It includes a facility for friends and relatives to add their own comments, recollections and photographs and has already been viewed by more than 6,000 people since it went live last month.

Sir Michael said: "We felt that by putting a Book of Remembrance online we would achieve a unique form of tribute to those who died, as it is accessible to anyone and it can grow and develop over the years. We have already had a huge response to it and I'm sure it's an idea that will be picked up by veterans of other campaigns."

The Cyprus Emergency, as it was known, lasted from 1955 to 1959, and involved a series of murderous attacks on servicemen in what was then a British colony by members of EOKA (the Greek acronym for National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters).

The British servicemen are buried at Wayne's Keep Military Cemetery, near Nicosia, but the graveyard is virtually inaccessible to the public because it lies in a UN-patrolled no man's land which divides the Greek and Turkish parts of Cyprus.

For now, the memorial will be erected in another British cemetery in Kyrenia, on the north coast, with the blessing of Turkish Cypriots. It has been built in sections so it can be moved to Wayne's Keep in the future if the political landscape changes.

The Trust still needs to raise more money, however, for the future upkeep of the memorial.

* To donate to the appeal, make cheques payable to British Cyprus Memorial Trust and send your donation to British Cyprus Memorial Trust, 26, York Street, London, W1U 6PZ. To donate online or visit the Book of Remembrance go to www.friendsandrelations.com/partners/bcmt

Labels: Cyprus