Delhi War Cemetery has a Cross of Sacrifice

Place: Delhi War Cemetery, Delhi Cantonment

Location: 28° 36′ 59″ N, 77° 8′ 45″ E

When to visit: The cemetery is open Monday to Friday from 7:45 am to 5 pm. For weekends and other festival holidays, the main entrance is locked, but access to the cemetery is possible via the side entrance next to the cemetery office building.

Delhi War Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) cemetery in Delhi. It is the final resting place of over 1,700 soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars. The cemetery is located in the suburb of Delhi Cantt.

Significance of the place

It was established in 1951 to ensure the permanent preservation of the remains of soldiers across various cemeteries in northern India. The cemetery is home to the graves of 1,154 service personnel who served the British Empire during the First and Second World Wars.

The cemetery is divided into two sections, one for soldiers who died in the First World War, and the other for soldiers who died in the Second World War. Each section is laid out in a grid pattern, with the graves arranged in neat rows. The graves are marked with headstones, which bear the soldier’s name, rank, and regiment.

The cemetery also has several memorials, including a Cross of Sacrifice, which stands in the center of the cemetery. The Cross of Sacrifice is a traditional war memorial and is dedicated to all the soldiers who are buried in the cemetery.

There is also a Screen Wall, which bears the names of over 200 soldiers who are buried in the cemetery, but whose graves could not be identified. The Screen Wall is a poignant reminder of the many soldiers who lost their lives in the wars.

It is a place of remembrance and reflection. It is a reminder of the sacrifices that were made by so many soldiers, and it is a place where families can come to pay their respects to their loved ones.

Special memorial

Among them are graves from cantonment cemeteries in Allahabad, Cawnpore, Dehra Dun, and Lucknow. There are now 1,022 Commonwealth casualties of the Second World War buried or commemorated by special memorials, in this cemetery together with several war graves of other nationalities, mostly Dutch.

 Delhi War Cemetery also contains the Delhi 1914-18 Memorial which was built to commemorate 153 casualties buried in Meerut Cantonment Cemetery whose graves could no longer be maintained. However, in recent years, the Commission has re-instated these graves.

The Delhi 1939-45 War memorial forms the entrance to Delhi War Cemetery and an identical memorial stands in Karachi War Cemetery. No names appear on the memorials but a Roll of Honour at each site, one in Hindi, the other in Urdu, records the names of those commemorated.