National Memorial Arboretum - Features - Memorials

Made from Chinese granite and designed to give a different perspective when viewed from different angles, the Star of David memorial is dedicated to all members of the Jewish community who over the years have served Crown and country, and to the many who lost their lives in that service.

The elements of this garden represent all parts of the UK and Ireland. The Boys’ Brigade Garden is designed as a place of quiet reflection and contemplation. Members and friends can remember those who have gone before, and who have served in the Brigade since 1883. Some 16 Victoria Crosses have been awarded to former and serving Brigade members.

The memorial is constructed from 30 metres of the original rails and sleepers used on the Burma Railway, which were brought to the Arboretum from Thailand in HMS Northumberland in 2002. The memorial is a permanent tribute to those who were forced to construct the infamous ‘Railway of Death’ and the benches and trees around the railway track have relevant dedications. The memorial was dedicated on 15 August 2002.

The Commandos were formed by the Army in June 1940 as a well-armed but non-regimental raider force employing unconventional and irregular tactics to assault, disrupt and reconnoitre the enemy.

This memorial consists of a reproduction of part of the Association badge – the wreath in copper and the Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife in stainless steel. It was created at Anwick Forge in Lincolnshire.

The Polar Bear Association Memorial was the first monument and sculpture to be erected at the National Memorial Arboretum. It is a tribute to the 49th Infantry West Riding Division and was dedicated on 7 June 1998. Inheriting the fine reputation forged by its predecessor in The Great War, the Second World War found the 49th Infantry stationed in Iceland and because they were snowed in under 20-foot (6.1 m) of snow for most of the campaign, their commanding officer called the men ‘his Polar Bears’ and the Polar Bear on a block of ice was soon adopted as their mascot and shoulder flash. Made from yellow hardwood, the bear is 9 ft long (2.7 m) and 5 ft high (1.5 m) and weighs 2.5 tonnes; it was created by the Essex Woodcarvers and took six men a year to carve. Inside the bear is a capsule containing the names of all the members of the 49th Division who did not come home, together with relevant letters and documents.

The RNLI memorial has been landscaped as pebble, shingle and sand beach. The dramatic figure of a lifeboat man in his 19th-century oilskins and cork lifejacket was sculpted by Andrew Fitchett.

During the First World War some 306 British and Commonwealth soldiers were shot for desertion or cowardice; the real cause for their offences was often a psychological reaction to the stresses of war which today would be diagnosed as post-traumatic stress syndrome or combat stress reaction. ‘Shot at Dawn’ is modelled on Private Herbert Burden, of the 1st Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, who was shot at Ypres in 1915 aged 17.

The SANDS Garden reflects the emotional journey that many parents face in trying to come to terms with their bereavement. At the heart of the garden is a sculpture of the SANDS tear drop logo which was created by John Roberts and the Portland Sculpture Trust to encourage people to sit and touch the central carved figure of the baby.

A dedicated memorial has been erected in recognition of the contribution made by Polish service men and women to the Allied Forces during the Second World War. The centre monument sculptured by Robert Sobocinski was unveiled by His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent on the 19th September 2009.

It is a memorial to all British policemen who have died on duty. Its trees are horse chestnut, because old-type British policemen's truncheons were made of horse chestnut wood.

In memory of Anne Frank. Its centerpiece is an elder tree; each year in April its flowers and flower buds are removed, to symbolize that Anne Frank was not allowed to grow to adulthood and achieve her full life.

This plinth was unveiled on 1 September 2001. The plaque on the plinth has an Irish Tricolour and the words "Dedicated to all those who were serving on the following Neutral Irish Registered Vessels lost as a result of German action 1939-1945", followed by a list of ships lost. The front of the plinth has a plaque dedicated to Irish seamen captured while serving in the British Merchant Navy. They were not accorded POW status, but were treated as slave labourers. This plaque names the five (of 32) who died from ill-treatment.