'Known unto God'

Military Chat

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Profile	Posted by	Options	Post Date
Member Since: February 2003 Posts: 25,376 Send Message	Gwyn in Kent	Report	24 Apr 2015 18:19
	Yesterday I was at Shorncliffe Military Cemetery near Folkestone. One of the graves had a headstone, but no name, stating that it was that of a soldier of the Great War, known unto God... and gave a death date. I can understand unknown soldiers being buried abroad, but under what circumstances would an unknown man, with known death date be buried in England? Local parish records show many unnamed people washed ashore and buried locally, but this man's grave was in wartime and presumably he died not far from Shorncliffe. Any ideas ?
Member Since: July 2008 Posts: 18,042 Send Message	MarieCeleste	Report	25 Apr 2015 08:49
Member Since: July 2008 Posts: 18,042 Send Message	I suppose it's possible he'd been brought to Shorncliffe Military Hospital from France or Belgium with no ID and wasn't in a state where he was able to say who he was.
Member Since: February 2003 Posts: 25,376 Send Message	Gwyn in Kent	Report	25 Apr 2015 22:09
	Thank you for your thoughts MarieCeleste . That sort of scenario seems a good possibility. I live fairly near there, so am going to see what I can find out about him. Gwyn