Much is commemorated on the small plot of land bound by Church, King and Queen Streets in Fredericton, New Brunswick. The Fredericton cenotaph was dedicated on 11 November 1923, naming 106 local men killed in WW1. The names of WW2 casualties were added later, as were plaques for Korea, the Canadian Merchant Navy and UN Peacekeepers. Beside the monument are a plaque for the New Brunswick War Brides Association, and another marking the site as the New Brunswick Provincial Cenotaph “for those who gave their lives in the service of their country.”
A tall shaft rises from a base, the corners of which are embellished by swords and wreaths. The shaft is topped with the coat of arms of the province and city, and a crown. Battle honours are listed on the four sides of the shaft. A brass plaque on the front of the plinth is dedicated “in honoured memory of the men of Fredericton who laid down their lives in the Great War and whose names are here gratefully recorded by their fellow-citizens.” At the bottom of the plaque, lines from To You Who Have Lost by John Oxenham: “He died the noblest death a man can die, fighting for God and Right and Liberty, and such is Immortality.” The original WW1 and WW2 plaques were stolen in 2015 and replaced with new ones in 2017.
In front of the monument, a draped cross stands at the head of a cenotaph on which rests a soldier’s gear and a laurel branch.
Great War 100 Reads 