Woolly says – Todays outing had been on the list for a long time and with a day spare before heading back to Wales Jo and I decided that today was the day. As we navigated the British roads we checked off our lists as our return to work was growing closer and we had a busy season ahead, we were both looking forward to all things glamping but I fully intended to make the most of our last few weeks of relaxing. Exiting the motorway the first brown sign appeared for the National Memorial Arboretum.

The National Memorial Arboretum is a British site of national remembrance at Alrewas, near Lichfield in Staffordshire. Its objective is to honour the fallen, recognise service and sacrifice, and foster pride in the British Armed Forces and civilian community.

The idea for the Arboretum was conceived by Commander David Childs CBE in 1988, who wished to establish a national focus or ‘centre’ for Remembrance to those that had passed after giving to their community or country. Following a meeting with Group Captain Leonard Cheshire VC, an appeal was launched in 1994 by the then Prime Minister, John Major. He believed that the Arboretum would form a living tribute to service men and women for future generations to reflect upon and enjoy while walking through a beautiful green scenery, I hoped that Alfie the Dog would enjoy the walking part of this as well.

As the marshals waved us into a parking space, barking boy lived up to his name and bounced round the rear seat making his presence known to the whole of Staffordshire, the car park was very full but luckily there was 150 acres (6 ha) for us all to enjoy so crowding shouldn’t be a problem. Having emptied Jo’s purse into the carparking meter we headed through the visitors centre and into the arboretum proper.

I hadn’t really known what to expect except from the obvious memorials but this was on another scale, memorials were everywhere as far as the eye could see, we headed to the right.

Woolly says – Two columns with spheres on top marked the entrance to an area for the men of the Masonic lodges that had lost their lives, whilst behind it stood a long curved memorial to the Normandy landings which stood next to a Tribesman acknowledging their roles in the African uprisings.

We followed the footpath round and came to an area dedicated to the Boys Brigade, the garden is designed to remember those who have served in the Brigade since 1883, placards of the sixteen Victoria Crosses that have been awarded to former and serving Brigade members were displayed. In front of this stood a tall black obelisk that was topped with a silver crown in memory of the years of National Service.

Across the path was possibly the cutest of statues, a polar bear. The Polar Bear Association Memorial was the first monument and sculpture to be erected at the Arboretum in 1998 as a tribute to the 49th Infantry West Riding Division. In the Second World War they were stationed in Iceland and because they were snowed in under 20 feet (6.1 m) of snow for most of the campaign, their commanding officer called the men ‘his Polar Bears’ and the polar bear on a block of ice was soon adopted as their mascot and shoulder flash. Made from yellow hardwood, the bear is 9 ft long (2.7 m) and 5 ft high (1.5 m) and weighs 2.5 tonnes; it was created by the Essex Woodcarvers and took six men a year to carve. Inside the bear is a capsule containing the names of the members of the 49th Division who died, together with relevant letters and documents. It was a glorious memorial to them.

Everywhere we looked there were more, we ambled along reading some of the plagues and stopping to admire some of the fine memorials that had been created.

The largest memorial of all took centre stage, surrounded by neatly clipped tree columns. The Mad Mutt was not allowed into this area but a lovely volunteer offered to doggy sit so that Jo and I could go and have a look, we climbed the steps to take it in.

Commemorating service men and women killed since 1945, it remembers 160000 people already and sadly this number keeps rising, at 11 am on 11th November each year the sun shines through two slits in the outer and inner walls of the memorial, casting a shaft of light across a wreath in the centre.. The two curved walls and two straight walls are made from bricks covered with Portland stone panels. At the centre of the Memorial are two bronze sculptures created by Ian Rank-Broadley. It was an incredible place with its crowning glory of a gold topped obelisk towering over it.

Collecting furry paws and thanking the kind lady we ambled toward the river. The land for the arboretum was built on the reclaimed gravel workings, bordered by the Rivers Trent and Tame, gifted to the charity by Tarmac Lafarge in 1997. It made for a wonderful walk with the river on one side and thousands of dedicated trees and more memorials on the other side.

A lovely train memorial caught my eye, a dedication to the Railway industry as did a wonderful sculpture of a horse which recognised the service these incredible beasts have given to men in times of conflict.

A large area of pebbles and beach grass was a memorial to the men and women of the RNLI while a wonderful plague told the story of one man’s dedication to duty.

Plagues were everywhere and I knew we were missing out large amounts but the sky was getting more and more overcast and I was keen to see s much as possible, we passed the area which in the spring would be blood red with a sea of poppies and paused to read about ‘the man who never was’.

Memorials to the Police, The Quakers and many more I hardly knew where to look

A wonderful black sculpture dedicated to the children who had been evacuated caught my eye as did a colour butterfly which didn’t tell me what it was there to remember but it was beautiful none the less.

A set of gates were a stark reminder of those that had lost their lives in the prison camps

Next came a large bed of artificial poppies and a gun turret

Certainly, the Navy’s memorial to its fallen was the most colourful of all with its colourful glass sheets it must look spectacular on a sunny day.

A nod to the submarine crews and the Fleet Air Arm led us into the section dedicated to the Far East.

We stepped onto Captain Sir Tom Moore’s Way, named after the elderly solider who had raised millions during lockdown and provided inspiration for so many he had served in the Far East.

Memorials to different campaigns made us remember our visit to the Hanoi Hilton and the things we had read and seen there that the POW’s had suffered. Some track taken from the Railway of Death in Burma was a stark memorial to those that had lost their lives.

With rain splatters starting to cover me I felt that we had seen all that we could for our visit, my carer appeared to agree and lead the way into the coffee shop just as the rain started to bucket down. We sat watching downpour as we munched happily on our scones both agreeing that we had thoroughly enjoyed our day and that it had held far more that we had expected and been very thought provoking as well. Let’s not forget those that gave.