Menin Gate Moments

THE STORY OF THE MENIN GATE

THE MENIN GATE 1910
Ypres is not a battlefield but a town, a home, where people lived and live.

STORM CLOUDS GATHER 1914
War comes to Ypres. To its defence come soldiers from France and from across the British Empire.

DESOLATION 1917
Years of war have destroyed the gate and the city of Ypres.

VICTORY 1919
Amongst the wasteland the search for the fallen continues and the cemeteries grow ever bigger. So many have been lost forever, they are ‘the missing’.

A MEMORIAL FOR THE MISSING 1925
The CWGC were determined the missing would not be forgotten. Plans are drawn up by Commission staff for a great memorial to stand at the Menin Gate through which so many marched during the long years of war.

"HE IS NOT MISSING, HE IS HERE" 1927
The CWGC’s vision is realised. On 24 July 1927, thousands witness the moment the Menin Gate is unveiled. They look up and see the names of family, friends, and comrades.

THE LAST POST 1965
Remembrance requires all of us. By the mid-1960s, many who knew the men commemorated here had passed away.  The Menin Gate was often quiet, even during the famous Last Post Ceremony. Work to preserve the Gate by the CWGC never faltered and today thousands are able visit to learn and remember.

THE FUTURE
The CWGC works to preserve all the cemeteries and memorials in their care around the world, including the Menin Gate. Future generations will be able to visit, learn and remember, walking in the footsteps of those who have come before and will come after.