MOSSEL BAY NEWS - One of Mossel Bay’s most notable landmarks is the war memorial on the Frog Rock outcrop at The Point. 

"It is the highest point of the town town commonage," notes Mossel Bay Heritage Society chairperson Carina Wiggill. 

Officially opened

Tomorrow, Saturday 28 September, it will be 100 years since the memorial was officially opened on 28 September 1924, by Sir HT Lukin, the SA Expeditionary Forces commander at Delville Wood.

Wiggill points out that in September, Heritage Month, "we celebrate our cultural heritage". 

She says: "The country’s theme for this year’s heritage celebrations is: Celebrating the heroes and heroines of the past who gave us our freedom. One aspect of our legacy is how one lives in a community and serves in support of another. 

Volunteers 

"Service for the greater good was foremost when the call was made for volunteers for both the world wars. 

The residents of Mossel Bay volunteered in their hundreds to support the British Forces in their campaigns." 

Wiggill adds: "In the First World War, the Great War of 1914 to 1918, it was recognised that the number of volunteers that signed up in Mossel Bay, as a percentage of its population, was the greatest in the country. 

Sacrifice

"At the end of World War I, the people of Mossel Bay were anxious to erect a suitable memorial to recognise the sacrifice of 'Our Gallant Dead', the words heading the cruciform on the memorial.

"Funds to enable construction were raised by public subscription." 

The distinguished architect William John Delbridge, born in Mossel Bay in 1878, offered his services for free for the project. 

Pioneer architect

He is recognised as one of South Africa’s pioneer architects, Wiggill says.

"It has been recognised as one of the most beautiful memorials in existence so far. The whole of the stonework in the surrounding wall and the monument was obtained from nearby and worked on site. 

"If you stand with your back to the memorial and look through the gate you are looking along a line linking Mossel Bay to Delville Wood. 

"The design of the actual memorial surmounts a map of Africa and a portion of Europe and a thin red line marks the path from birth to death of the soldiers, the memory of whom, is perpetuated." 

Never in shadow 

Wiggill notes: "It is significant that the earliest beams of the rising sun and the last rays of the setting sun illuminate the memorial, such that the names of those fallen are never in shadow. 

“It was built at a cost of £2 000, the contractors being messrs Coe and Bolton, of Mossel Bay. The mosaics were done by messrs McKillop of Cape Town. 

"The custodianship of the memorial rests with the Mossel Bay Municipality."

Enlisted

Wiggill says that after the start of the Second World War, once again residents from Mossel Bay and surroundings enlisted in large numbers in support of the war effort. 

The names of those who made the ultimate sacrifice during WWII were added to the memorial. In more recent times, those remembered for the Border Wars and Iraq conflict were also recorded. 

Names not recorded

"It is recognised that there are names of Mossel Bay’s citizens who died as a consequence of the two world wars not recorded on the memorial. 

"Research is under way to ensure the names of any enlisted persons who paid the ultimate price, are recorded. 

"This, in particular, will include servicemen who had been part of the Military Labour Corps, the Cape Corps and the Indian and Malay Corps. 

Parade 

"At the annual Remembrance Day parade on Sunday, 10 November, the additional plaques will be unveiled by the Mayor Dirk Kotzé, and the centenary of the memorial celebrated.

"An information block is being erected on the grounds. It will display a QR code, linking to a website that will provide more detail on each serviceman whose name is on the memorial. 

"It is hoped that in time more information will be added." 

Family members of servicemen who died in one of the two world wars, whose names are not on the memorial, are asked to contact the Mossel Bay Heritage Society (082 687 9744). All WhatsApps will be responded to.

A picture from the memorial dedication ceremony on 28 September 1924. Photo: Mossel Bay Heritage Society The war memorial with the Cape St Blaize Lighthouse behind it.
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