About the Memorial
This is the first UK memorial to the millions of African and Caribbean soldiers who joined regiments to fight valiantly on the behalf of the UK government, the USA and other allies. The unveiling of the AC memorial took place on 22nd June, 2017.
The standing obelisk represents those who stood tall for the cause and is imprinted “In Memory of the Men and Women of African Descent who Served Great Britain in Military Campaigsn during World War I and World War II”
The lower obelisk represents fallen soldiers, and has imprinted the names of the regiments from Africa and the Caribbean who fought valiantly – but are commonly not recognised in popular history or war films.
The Inscriptions on the 2 obelisks
Upright obelisk: In Memory / Of The / Service Men / And Women / From Africa / And The / Caribbean / Who Served / Alongside / The Forces Of / The British / Commonwealth / And Her Allies / During / WWI And WWII / REMEMBERING THE FORGOTTEN Laying down obelisk top face: Remembered / Africa and its Diaspora has been part of Britain’s Military history since Roman Times, from the North African legion stationed at Hadrian’s Wall in the third century to the descendents of the / Windrush Generation. This fallen stone is in honour of those service personnel from Africa and the Caribbean who aided the United Kingdom in both World Wars on sea on land and in the sky / Merchant Navy and Royal Navy / African and Caribbean Merchant Navy seaman 1914 – 1945. Nigerian Marine Department 1914 – 1918. SS Mendi 1917. Trinidad Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve 1939 – 1945. / African and Caribbean Royal Navy seaman 1940 – 1945 / African Carrier, Labour, Pioneer and Native Military Corps / Over 2,000,000 men 1914 – 1945.
Provided in the two World Wars from Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe / West African Frontier Force and Royal West African Frontier Force / Gambia Regiment 1914 – 1918, Gold Coast Regiment 1914 – 1918, Nigeria Regiment 1914 – 1918, Sierra Leone Regiment 1914 – 1918, / 11th and 12th (African) and 81st and 82nd (West African) Divisions of the British Army 1941 – 1945 / Military Service: Togoland, Cameroon and East African Campaigns in WWI and East African and Burma Campaigns in WWII / King’s African Rifles and Other African Forces / Malawi KAR Battalions 1914 – 1945, Kenya KAR Battalions 1914 – 1945, Uganda KAR Battalions 1914 – 1945, Somaliland Camel Corps/Scouts 1914 – 1945, Somaliland KAR Battalions 1939 – 1945 Laying down obelisk front face: Tanzania KAR Battalions 1917 – 1945, Northern Rhodesia Police/Northern Rhodesia Regiment 1914 – 1945, Rhodesia Native Regiment/Rhodesian African Rifles 1914 – 1945, / Sudan Defence Force 1939 – 1945, 11th and 12th (African) and 11th (East African) Divisions of the British Army 1941 – 1945. / Military Service: East African Campaigns in WWI and WWII, Invasion of Madagascar, Western Desert, Italian and Burma Campaigns in WWII /
West India Regiment and British West Indies Regiment / Drafted from the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Guiana, British Honduras, Grenada, Jamaica, the Leeward Islands, St lucia [sic], St Vincent, and Trinidad and Tobago. / Military Service: Western Front, Cameroon, East African and Palestine Campaigns / Air Crew and Ground Crew / African and Caribbean pilots and ground crew of the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force 1917 – 1945 / West Indies Auxiliary Territorial Services / Caribbean Women in the womens’s branch of the British Army 1943 – 1945 / Caribbean Regiment / Caribbean Branch of the British Army including the Bermuda Militia Artillery and Infantry 1944 – 1945. Military Service: Italian Campaign, Egypt / And to all the Forgotten Laying down obelisk end face: “The African and Caribbean War Memorial / was created by Nubian Jak Community / Trust in partnership with the West Indian / Association of Service Personnel and / supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, / Lambeth Council, the Black Cultural / Archives and Madstone Ltd.” Plaque on plinth: Researched and Designed by / Johnny Alexander Bubeula Dodd aka “Jak Beula” / Unveiled by Major LB Davis on / 22nd June 2017