Reported Missing in the Great War

Book excerpt: “A snapshot of the misery and pain that [were] suffered by those who not only lost loved ones in the Great War, but were denied a graveside to mourn at.” —Paul Nixon, Army Ancestry Research Of the one million British and Empire military personnel who were killed in action—died of wounds, disease, or injury; or were missing presumed dead during the First World War—over half a million have no known grave. This book traces the history of the searching services that were established to assist families in eliciting definitive news of their missing loved ones. Then, using previously unpublished material, most of it lovingly preserved in family archives for over a century, the lives of eight soldiers, whose families had no known resting place to visit after the conclusion of the war, are recounted. These young men, their lives full of promise, vanished from the face of the earth. The circumstances of their deaths and the painstaking efforts undertaken, both by family members and public and voluntary organizations, to piece together what information could be found are described. The eventual acceptance of the reality of death and the need to properly commemorate the lives of those who would have no marked grave are examined. For three of the eight men, recent discoveries have meant that over a century since they were given up as missing, their remains have been identified and allowed families some degree of closure. “The author skillfully weaves the harrowing experiences of these eight grieving families with the official processes and procedures in place over the years to identify and commemorate the missing.” —Military Historical Society