The Friends of Glasgow Necropolis have an ongoing World War 1 Oral History project. They are inviting members of the public to contact them and share any family First World War memorabilia, photographs and stories with the group. These will then be curated and used to create an important picture of the role the people of Glasgow paid in helping to win the First World War.

It’s important that those who sacrificed and fought in this Great War are not forgotten, and by sharing stories and photographs we pass these memories on to the next generation.

All Stories Welcome

Not all stories about World War I are stories about heroes and victories: to create a true portrait of the War it is important to share stories that are real and true to the real lives of your relatives and loved ones. Stories of fear, stories of post-war trauma, stories of comrades lost but never forgotten are just as important as those tales about battles won and heroic acts. The realities of war are not always clean and sanitized, and so we welcome all memorabilia, photographs and memories, no matter how gritty they happen to be.

Although it is easy to dismiss the First World War as irrelevant and outdated because it is now just over a hundred years since the war began, remembering and honouring those who lived and died in the war is just as important today as it was a hundred years ago, and it is only by remembering what happened that we will learn and hold to heart the vital lessons that will prevent such a widespread and all-encompassing war from ever happening again.

The Importance of Keeping the Memories of WWI Alive

The total number of both military and civilian lives lost during the First World War is accurately estimated to be around 16 million, with an additional 20 million people injured or otherwise categorised as casualties of the war. This makes the First World War the deadliest conflict that the world has ever experienced. Of those 16 million people that lost their lives, around 10 million were military personal, meaning that there were an incredible 6 million civilian deaths during the conflict. The war effected every single individual living in Great Britain at the time, meaning that as well as simply gathering stories from those that fought in the war, the stories of those individuals that lived through the war are just as vitally important in helping us to understand the all-encompassing nature of the conflict.

Because of the huge numbers of people directly involved or directly affected by the First World War, it is likely that we all have a story about someone that was involved in it; a story told about a relative that you may not even have met, but that has been passed down through generations. We would like to hear that story, share it, and preserve it for prosperity.

Please contact web@glasgownecropolis.org.

Written by Sally Noonan