HARVARD GAZETTE ARCHIVES

The Memorial Church: Born in the Crucible of War

80th anniversary of Armistice Day marked with service of 'Commemoration of Benefactors and the War Dead'

By Ann Hall
Special to the Gazette

The Memorial Room at the base of the Church's bell tower contains a sculpture in Caen marble of The Sacrifice (left rear), created by Malvina Hoffman. Photo by Laura Wulf.

Most people are aware of the meaning of Veterans Day: it's that day off in November when we take some time to think of those who have served their country in the armed forces. And it's the holiday that sticks with its date and is not relegated, like so many other holidays, to a Monday.

But how many people know what the day truly stands for? And why is it always on the 11th of November, and not some steady Monday like Memorial Day?

At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, a truce was declared in the "War to End All Wars," the armed conflict we now know as World War I. That designated hour was met with relief and rejoicing all over the world. Today, Armistice Day is still celebrated - in France, where it is known as 11 November; in Britain, as Remembrance Sunday; and in the United States, as Veterans Day.

The sculpture The Sacrifice is dedicated to the men of Harvard who died during the First World War. Photos by Laura Wulf.

The University's Memorial Church cannot forget what Armistice Day meant and still means because it was built as a monument to the dead of World War I, a visible reminder that the "War to End All Wars" ended the lives of 413 men of Harvard.

Its meaning was still powerful 14 years after the war when the Church was dedicated on Armistice Day 1932 as a gift of the alumni to the University. At the base of the 197-foot bell tower stands the Memorial Room on whose four walls are inscribed the names of three faculty members and 410 students and alumni of the College and graduate schools. The room is filled with the unspoken stories of these men, one of whom, Lionel deJersey '15, is the only relative of John Harvard to have attended this University. Many of these men volunteered for service, some joining the Foreign Legion after Germany attacked France.

In keeping with its historic roots, the Memorial Church marks Armistice Day with a service of "Commemoration of Benefactors and the War Dead," celebrated on the Sunday nearest Nov. 11. (This year the service will be held Nov. 15.)

The walls of the Memorial Room are inscribed with the names of the 413 Harvard men who died in the First World War. Photo by Laura Wulf.

"Not many keep Armistice Day anymore, but it is important to pause and remember the sacrifice of the young for their country," says the Rev. Professor Peter J. Gomes, Plummer Professor of Christian Morals and Minister in the Memorial Church. This year's service is especially poignant as it is the 80th anniversary of the armistice. "Eighty years after the armistice of 1918, this Church still stands to remind the world of the unfinished work of peace for which so many died," says Gomes.

This year, the Harvard University Choir along with Youth pro Musica and orchestra, with narration provided by Jeremy R. Knowles, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, will sing Ralph Vaughan William's Song of Thanksgiving. This piece was commissioned by Winston Churchill and recorded in anticipation of the end of World War II; it was broadcast on the BBC during the early part of 1945.

The Very Rev. Gilleasbuig Macmillan, Minister of St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, will be giving the University Sermon during the service of "Commemoration of Benefactors and the War Dead." Photo by Tony Loreti.

In addition, guest preacher the Very Rev. Gilleasbuig Macmillan, minister of St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, will be preaching the University Sermon entitled "A Spire to Remember."

"Dean Macmillan comes from Scotland," Gomes says. "He knows the heroic sacrifice of the British in two world wars. In his own cathedral the war memorials are among the most precious and tender monuments in the church."

The Memorial Church has come to include memorials to those who died in other wars that followed the "War to End All Wars," memorials that have spilled over into the main sanctuary, on view for all those who attend Sunday worship, weddings, and other services.

Perhaps former Harvard President Lowell's dedication, which is carved into the four walls of the Memorial Room sums up best what Veterans Day should mean for those who stand at the other end of the century: "While a bright future beckoned, they freely gave their lives and fondest hopes for us and our allies, that we might learn from them courage in peace to spend our lives making a better world for others."

Photo by Laura Wulf.