A County Remembers

A County Remembers is an exhibition co-created with a small team of local volunteers which explores war memorial making in Hertfordshire. There is a particular focus on the immediate Great War era, as the was a watershed for war memorials. Where once they adulated mighty generals or monarchs, by the early 20th century, a more democratic approach was developing.  

Central government stood back after the War and allowed every community across Great Britain to remember those who had served as they saw fit.   Consequently many different approaches were taken, the modest, the impressive, the private, the public, the traditional and the utilitarian.  But what they nearly had in common was a recognition of all who had served, not just the military leaders. Behind each war memorial is a story to be found in the records at Hertfordshire Archives, that tells of the struggles to reach consensus among distraught and grieving communities.  This exhibition explores some of these stories and ask if it is possible to make the ideal memorial.