Commemoration, Cult of the Fallen (Belgium) ... : Commemoration, Cult of the Fallen (Belgium) ...

The scope of the commemorations that developed in Belgium and in the remainder of Europe showed the population’s need to keep the memory of World War I alive. The majority of Belgian municipalities erected their own war memorials through local subscription, without state support, which allowed the expression of local identity to go unhindered. Due to Belgium’s specific experience of war, memorials paid tribute not only to the soldiers (war heroes) but also to civilians (martyrs), to the civilians massacred in August 1914, the patriots killed by the Occupying Power, and to the deported workmen.... Mehr ...