The Legacies of War
The First and Second World Wars have profound cultural and political resonance today. Generations continue to be fascinated and awed by the acts of heroism and destruction that war has invoked.
In such a context, research carried out by the University’s Centre for the Study of Modern Conflict has made a significant contribution to processes of remembrance and commemoration within the British Isles and Commonwealth nations.
Rolls of Honour
Until recently there had been no full attempt to quantify the contribution of men and women from the island of Ireland to the Allied war effort.
Exhaustive research undertaken by Yvonne McEwen led to the compilation of the Roll of Honour of 9,100 Irish men and women who served in the British, Commonwealth and Dominion forces and who died in World War Two.
She was invited to present it to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Stormont, on 11 Nov 2009. The event was widely covered in the media because of its political significance as part of the recognition, remembrance and re-evaluation associated with the peace process. The Roll of Honour was then placed on display in the Northern Ireland Assembly Library at Stormont.
Yvonne McEwen has also compiled a similar Roll of Honour of the 1000 women who lost their lives as nurses whilst supporting the Allied forces in both the First and Second World Wars. The tribute was presented to the Royal College of Nurses in London in November 2010 at a special event attended by (then) Secretary of State for Health Andrew Lansley MP and Director Army Nursing Services and Matron-in-Chief (Army) Colonel Wendy Spencer.
Yvonne McEwen is Knowledge Exchange Project Coordinator and Honorary Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Modern Conflict.
Remembering Edinburgh’s War
The Centre has also worked in collaboration with Edinburgh City Libraries to produce a unique history of the people and institutions of Edinburgh, Leith and the Lothians during the war years of 1914 to 1918.
The WW1 History Hub provides a dedicated space at Edinburgh Central Library, where the history of Scotland's contribution the First World War can be brought alive. The Hub is used to run workshops and seminars, to encourage military and family history research and to give members of the public the chance to talk to experts.
The project culminated in the launch of the virtual resource ‘Edinburgh’s War’, which acts as a collaborative archive, enabling the sharing of contributions by interested parties throughout Scotland and beyond.
Commemorating Scotland’s War
The success of the Edinburgh’s War project has led to a national initiative titled ‘Scotland’s War’.
The university is working with a range of organisations (including the National Library of Scotland, the Scottish Military Research Group and HistoryFest) to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War in August 2014.