THE LOCHNAGAR CRATER MEMORIAL
Just over twenty six years ago I had the great good fortune to be able to buy the vast Lochnagar Crater at La Boisselle on the Somme in France. The huge 60,000 lbs mine that caused it had been tunnelled and exploded beneath the German trenches at the beginning of the Battle of the Somme, July 1st 1916.
I had always believed it was a special place and when it emerged that it was in danger of being filled in, it was a great privilege to preserve it and see it safe for future generations.
The long term aim was simple:
To care for it and maintain it in its natural unspoilt state.
To ensure that it was never exploited for commercial gain.
To create an annual ceremony to honour the memory of the men of both sides who fell there.
To preserve and share with its growing number of visitors the unique atmosphere of peace and remembrance that is always there.
Over the years like minded and dedicated friends have joined in the task and over a decade ago we formally became The Friends of Lochnagar. From the initial group of about a dozen (who are still 'The founding committee')we are now over 300 strong. It is one of the greatest pleasures of my life to meet with them and not only share the work of maintaining the Crater or orgainising the ceremony, but to know that there are others who also value the precious gift that Lochnagar has handed down to us all.
The Lochnagar Crater now has over 300,000 visitors a year, many of them school children; in 1986 a large cross of medieval wood from Northumberland was erected on the edge of the Crater. Each year, on the anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Somme, we hold a Remembrance ceremony there attended by up to 1,500 people.
It never ceases to
amaze me that the power and the impact Lochnagar has on the visitor.
Its site is awesome, a vast crater over 300 feet across, 90 feet
deep, one sixth of a mile round and still today, the largest crater
ever made by man in anger.
I believe Lochnagar Crater is a living memorial, helping us to pause and reflect on our lives in a way few places can. A place to stand and feel close to those brave lads who, when the whistle blew, rose from their battered trenches and walked slowly into the guns.
The unique and special atmosphere at Lochnagar reminds us, not only of the debt that we owe those who fell there, but of our responsibility to return and live our lives as decently as they would have wished to have lived theirs.
Such is the power of that extraordinary place on a quiet ridge on the old battlefields of the Somme.