Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery, War Memorial and State Cemetery Visit

CWGC Cemetery Office, Quarters & Nursery Area

The cemetery office and quarters are located at the right side near the cemetery entrance.




It is guarded by an alert looking dog. So I did not go in.



 
Since the people here maintain the grounds of the cemetery and memorial, it is not surprising to find that the office and quarters are immculately tended to.




There is a nursery area to maintain all the beautiful plants and grass found all over the memorial and cemetery. Among all those plants we spotted some chickens reared most likely by the caretakers of the area.





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Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery, War Memorial and State Cemetery Visit

Cross of Sacrifice & Surrounding Features

This was something new to me this feature below I found out through Wikipedia was called the Cross of Sacrifice and can be found in Commonwealth war cemeteries. For more details about it, click on the link provided. This one is located directly front and centre of the Kranji War Memorial.




More headstones can be found at the left and right back of the memorial




Further to the right of the memorial are the Gurkha Garden and British Garden which consists of ashes of the respective servicemen and civilians and members of their families formerly buried in Pasir Panjang and Ulu Pandan cemetries but are now reburied in these 2 gardens.






Even further to the right of these 2 gardens is the Kranji Military Cemetery consisting of Non-World War dead. Amongst the plots stands a stone monument that is similar in appearance to the Cross of Sacrifice.



 
I wonder who left those 2 little idols at the base





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Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery, War Memorial and State Cemetery Visit

Special Memorials

For more information on each of the memorials below click on the Wikipedia link on Kranji War Cemetery and scroll down to the middle of the article.

Unmaintainable Graves Memorial

On the right of the Kranji War Memorial is the Unmaintainable Graves Memorial. The inscription reads "These Soldiers Died Serving Their Country And Lie Buried Elsewhere In Malaya". According to Wikipedia it commemorates the over 250 troops killed in action in British Malay whose graves, whilst known, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission were unable to maintain and whose bodies could not be moved due to religious conviction.

The Cremation Memorial

The Cremation Memorial can be found at the back of the Kranji War Memorial. The following words are inscribed "In Honour Of These Officers And Men Who Died In Battle And Whose Mortal Remains Were Committed To Fire". These were casualties who were cremated as part of their religious beliefs.

Civil Hospital Grave Memorial

Civil Hospital Grave Memorial is located on the left of the Kranji War Memorial. The inscribed words are "The Soldiers Whose Memory is Honoured Here Perished In Captivity in February 1942 and Lie Buried in One Grave in The Grounds of Singapore Civil General Hospital". It is a mass grave.

Chinese Memorial

Chinese Memorial can be found on the right and further away from the Kranji War Memorial. The inscription reads "The Men Whose Names Are Recorded On These Panels Perished in Captivity in February 1942 and Lie Buried Here in One Grave With Ten Comrades Whose Names are Not Known""






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Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery, War Memorial and State Cemetery Visit

Kranji War Memorial

The Kranji War Memorial looks very imposing indeed and has a very sterile and clean look since it is made up of mostly bare concrete that blends well with the cemetery headstones.




The plaque gives a short tribute to the fallen whose names are inscribed on the walls of the memorial.



 
Like most of the inscriptions found in and around the cemetery and memorial, the inscriptions on the walls of the memorial are carved out in the bare concrete.




A typical part of the wall is just filled with names and are grouped according to the units they belonged to. This one shows Commonwealth units of Indian origin.




Here is a shot of the memorial with a Cross of Sacrifice at the left foreground.




And here is another shot of the memorial further back and from a more sideways angles




Finally, a close up shot of the ball and star found on top of the Kranji War Memorial. No idea how it is maintained so well up there.





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Back: The Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery

Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery, War Memorial and State Cemetery Visit

Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery

The entrance leading up to the Kranji Commonwealth War Cemetery are flanked by 2 small stone shelters and along the way there are a lot of small sets of steps up. Not that wheelchair friendly I must say.




The left side shelter contains a register so that one can look up for a particular person who is interred. For the life of me I cannot fathom why brochures about the Kranji countryside are found on the lower left side of the register. Some cross promotion idea??? Seems out of place to me...




The right side shelter is the rest area with seats for people to rest in the shade away from the sun.




As you can see below the cemetery flanks the sides and back of the Kranji War Memorial. Looking at the rows of immaculately maintained headstones, one can sense history on these hallowed grounds.



 
Here is a view taken from the other end of the cemetery. You can see that there is a gentle slope all the way up to the memorial and it has a very dignified and serene when looking backwards. The left and the right side of the cemetery is another story unfortunately as there is some construction going on (this is common feature and sight in Singapore!).




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