THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

The Thiepval Memorial, the Lutyens' masterpiece, sits on the highest point of The Somme Battlefield. This majestic memorial to the Missing of the Somme battles of 1916 and 1918 dominates the whole area over which the men fought and died. Its purpose is to record in stone the missing who have No Known Grave.

Unveiled in 1932 by the then Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII), it survived the German occupation of 1944 and is maintained by The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWG) ; it is the largest Commonwealth memorial to the missing anywhere in the world. Piers is an official speaker for the CWG Foundation.

However, for 70 years there was nothing at Thiepval to explain the reason for the memorial, for whom the men had fought, when and why; let alone a tribute to their effort and sacrifice. Until Sir Frank Sanderson and Colonel Piers Storie-Pugh teamed up to form The Thiepval Project in 1998; and over the next 6 years with a small fundraising committee they raised the funds to build The Thiepval Educational Centre. In September 2004 the Centre was opened by HRH The Duke of Kent in his capacity as Patron of The Thiepval Project as well as being President of The Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Since 1986 Piers Storie-Pugh, then Head of Remembrance Travel of The Royal British Legion (RBL) had, with the British Consulate General Lille, co-organised the annual service at Thiepval. The RBL would become staunch supporters of the Thiepval Project. At the 1996 Service Sir Frank Sanderson and PS-P discussed the feasibility of building a centre which would not only honour the memory of the men recorded on the Memorial but educate future generations of school children of all nationalities.

Faces of the Missing.

Images of some of the men whose name are inscribed on the Thiepval Memorial.

Compiled by Ken and Pam Linge

Portrait outlined in orange, above:

Captain Charles Skey, 1st Bn Black Watch killed in action near High Wood, 15 August 1916.

Christopher Berkeley (seen here in this photograph with his wife Sue, niece of Charles Skey) was a Trustee of the Charles Skey Charitable Trust until the end of 2024.

Charles Skey's father Major Cyril Skey DSO MC of the 8th Royal Fusiliers fought on the Somme and at Cambrai and survived. However. his uncle Captain Charles H. Skey of the 1st Black Watch was Killed in Action near High Wood on August 15th 1916. His name is on the Thiepval Memorial.

The Charles Skey Charitable Trust was a significant donor at the outset of the Thiepval Project.

Thiepval: A Chronology

Pic Revd Bill King (left) RBL National Standard Bearer (Centre behind) and Piers Storie-Pugh at Thiepval 1st July service.

Earl Kitchener (left) and Earl Haig (right) at the Thiepval Visitor Centre Opening Ceremony, September 2004

A LETTER FROM VINCENT LAUDE, DIRECTOR, THIEPVAL VISITOR CENTRE

My name is Vincent Laude and I've been in charge of the Thiepval Visitor Centre for over twenty years now. I'm lucky enough to have seen the centre's project come to fruition in 2004, to have opened it to the public on 1 July of that same year and to have been involved in its successful development over all these years. Dawn is my work colleague since day one.

Thiepval is a very special place, and it's always moving to think about all those British and South African soldiers who went missing on the battlefield, most of them in 1916. This experience made me and still makes me realise that human life is very precious and that the tragic death of one man has very serious repercussions on families and the lives of their descendants.

I can't thank Sir Frank Sanderson, Piers Storie-Pugh and all the members of the Thiepval Project enough for their confidence in me throughout the years.

It is sad that of the original Thiepval Visitors Centre Fundraising Committee only Piers Storie-Pugh is still alive; and therefore provides an important link with the UK.

Kind regards,

Vincent

1915 July: British soldiers start arriving on The Somme.

1916 July to November: 1st Battle of The Somme, starting 1 July.

1917 May: The Commonwealth (then Imperial) War Graves Commission established.

1918 March: 2nd Battle of The Somme.

1928: Work starts on The Thiepval Memorial.

1932 August: Thiepval Memorial unveiled (''The greatest executed British work of monumental architecture of the 20th Century'').

1940-44: The Germans occupy the area of The Somme.

1985 July: The first Remembrance Travel group attends the 1st July commemorations.

1991: British Consulate General Lille asked Piers and Remembrance Travel to organise the annual service.

1992: The Revd Bill King MBE (Chaplain at Calais) becomes the officiating Chaplain (photo, right).

1992: The Historical Museum de la Grande Guerre in Peronne opened.

1998: The British Embassy Paris starts to take a prominent role in the 1st July ceremony.

1998: The Thiepval Fundraising Committee starts it's work.

2004: September Thiepval Visitors Centre formally opened by HRH The Duke of Kent. Attendees included Earl Haig (son of the WW1 Field Marshal), Earl Kitchener (Nephew of the WW1 Minister of War), (photo, right) Brigadier Ian Townsend CBE (Director General of The Royal British Legion).

2006: The (then) Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend the 1st July Service

2006: Somme 90 - a comprehensively coloured and detailed book launched, with forewords from HRH The Prince of Wales (now HM The King), Major General Sir Evelyn Webb-Carter, Defence Attache, Paris and Piers Storie-Pugh; with further contributions from Sir Frank and Piers.

2014: Work on a museum extension at Thiepval starts - The Historial de la Grande Guerre having taken over the running of the Thiepval Centre and its superb bookshop.

2016: The Museum formally opened. Attended by the (then) Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. Sir Frank Sanderson Bt, OBE and Piers Storie-Pugh introduced to the Royal Party.

To Piers ~ In Gratitude.

Without your constant assistance and your multiple contacts, the creation of a visitor centre on the 1916-1918 battlefields of The Somme would never have come to fruition.

Your ability to enthuse all round you and your habit of always being around during times of difficulty made you a key member of the team that congregated around you.

Since the opening of the centre by HRH The Duke of Kent in September 2004 well over one and a half million visits have been made to Thiepval and the education and refreshment enjoyed by all those visitors is to no small extent your continuing reward for giving yourself so freely.

The hope of your colleagues, who are now becoming rather aged, is that your still comparatively young legs will continue to represent a British participation in the running of the centre by our French friends who did so much in the creation of your Thiepval Visitor Centre.

Sir Frank Sanderson Bt OBE

Sir Frank Sanderson Bt, Obituary

The Daily Telegraph, 21 November 2023

original draft by Piers Storie-Pugh

Introduce your brand

Mrs Patrissie Marriot following the visit to the Thiepval Memorial where her husband’s name is inscribed; he was killed in 1916. Their son, a Hurricane pilot was killed in 1940.

A French veteran, left, and a British veteran deep in conversation following their attendance at the 1 July, 1997 Thiepval Memorial Ceremony.

Introduce your brand

Brigadier Ian Townsend, CBE - then Director-General of the Royal British Legion - with Piers Storie-Pugh at the opening of the Thiepval Centre on 24 September, 2004.

Earl Kitchener, nephew of Lord Kitchener - the Minister of War famous for his poster “ Your King and Country Needs You” - in conversation with Earl Haig, son of the eponymous Field Marshal of the First World War. Haig arrived at Colditz Castle as a prominante in 1944.

Introduce your brand

HRH The Duke of Kent, President of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Patron of the Thiepval Educational Project, in conversation with Piers Storie-Pugh.

General Purdon meets Piers Storie-Pugh

A letter from Major General Corran Purdon to Piers Storie-Pugh on the occasion of the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, following a meeting at the Thiepval Memorial. Corran Purdon arrived at Colditz Castle in 1943, and knew Peter Storie-Pugh well. Piers gives Escaping from Colditz talks. See details at this link.