The Cenotaph is a

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

in George Town within the

Malaysian state Malaysia is a federation of thirteen states and three federal territories, which form the primary administrative divisions of the country. Eleven states and two territories are part of Peninsular Malaysia, while two states and one territory ...

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

. Constructed in 1929, the memorial commemorates

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

servicemen who lost their lives during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Located at the city's

Esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

, it serves as a venue for

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces me ...

ceremonies.

History

Construction and dedication

In 1928, a

dedicated to the casualties of

was proposed by G. D. A. Fletcher, chairman of the Ex-Services Association of Malaya (Penang branch), during a meeting of the association. The organisation aimed to have the memorial completed by

Armistice Day Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark Armistice of 11 November 1918, the armistice signed between th ...

that same year. The war memorial was funded through public subscriptions, donations, and events such as operas and balls. Initial estimates for the memorial's cost were $7,000 (

Straits dollar The Straits dollar was the currency of the Straits Settlements from 1898 until 1939. At the same time, it was also used in the Federated Malay States, the Unfederated Malay States, Kingdom of Sarawak, Brunei, and British North Borneo. Histor ...

), but expenses increased to $10,000 due to higher than expected ornamental costs. Ultimately, the total amount needed reached $12,000. Fundraising was slow and the total collected amounted to $12,513.52, with additional interest of $64.24, only covering the costs after the memorial's construction. The Cenotaph's base was completed in time for the foundation stone ceremony on 11 November 1928, marking the 10th anniversary of the

armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from t ...

. Penang's Resident Councillor Meadows Frost officiated by lowering the stone using a pulley. The ceremony included the "

Last Post The "Last Post" is a British and Commonwealth bugle call used at military funerals, and at ceremonies commemorating those who have died in war. Versions The "Last Post" is either an A or a B♭ bugle call, primarily within British infan ...

", a two-minute silence at 11 am, the "

Reveille "Reveille" ( , ), called in French "Le Réveil" is a bugle call, trumpet call, drum, fife-and-drum or pipes call most often associated with the military; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise. The name comes from (or ), the ...

" and wreath laying. A wooden model of the Cenotaph was displayed behind the base for public viewing. Despite delays in the delivery of bronze decorations, the Cenotaph was completed for its unveiling on Armistice Day in 1929. Meadows Frost officiated the ceremony, which began at 10:25 a.m. with a military parade. After Frost unveiled the shrouded Cenotaph, the "Last Post" was sounded, followed by the firing of a rocket to mark the start of a two-minute silence and a second rocket to signal the "Reveille". Wreaths were laid for 15 minutes by public representatives, including an Italian in

Blackshirt The Voluntary Militia for National Security (, MVSN), commonly called the Blackshirts (, CCNN, singular: ) or (singular: ), was originally the paramilitary wing of the National Fascist Party, known as the Squadrismo, and after 1923 an all-vo ...

attire who gave the

Fascist salute The Roman salute, also known as the Fascist salute, is a Salute, gesture in which the right arm is fully extended, facing forward, with palm down and fingers touching. In some versions, the arm is raised upward at an angle; in others, it is hel ...

. The ceremony concluded with "

God Save the King "God Save the King" ("God Save the Queen" when the monarch is female) is ''de facto'' the national anthem of the United Kingdom. It is one of national anthems of New Zealand, two national anthems of New Zealand and the royal anthem of the Isle ...

Destruction

In January 1945, during the

Japanese occupation of Malaya Malaya, then under British administration,, was gradually occupied by Japanese forces between 8 December 1941 and the Allied surrender at Singapore on 15 February 1942. The Japanese remained in occupation until their surrender to the Allie ...

, the Cenotaph was destroyed by Allied aerial bombardment. To avert the sudden collapse of the badly damaged Cenotaph, the Japanese undertook a systematic block by block demolition. A total of 184 intact dressed granite blocks and all of the bronze decorations were dismantled and kept in storage for future reconstruction. Following the British recapture of Penang, a flagstaff was temporarily placed at the spot where the Cenotaph once stood for

observances in 1946 and 1947.

Reconstruction

In 1948, the Ex-Services Association of Malaya (Penang Branch), led by chairman W. I. Legg, petitioned the

Malayan Union The Malayan Union (; Jawi: كساتوان مالايا) was a union of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single g ...

government to rebuild the Cenotaph. The government was unwilling to finance the reconstruction, forcing the association to bear its full cost. Designed by Charles Geoffrey Boutcher, the new cenotaph had a slightly altered appearance from the original since it was constructed using the remaining granite blocks that were available. The Cenotaph was rebuilt at a cost of $3,500 (

Malayan dollar The Malayan dollar ( Malay: ''ringgit'', Jawi: رڠڬيت) was the currency of the British colonies and protectorates in Malaya and Brunei until 1953. It was introduced in 1939, replacing the Straits dollar at par, with 1 dollar = two shillings ...

) and unveiled on

Remembrance Sunday Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...

in 1948.

Present

In 2008, the

Penang Island City Council The Penang Island City Council ( ) is the local government that administers the city of George Town, which includes the entirety of Penang Island. The city council, which has jurisdiction over an area of , falls under the purview of the Penang ...

initiated a restoration project for the Cenotaph, costing RM144,567. In addition, the Penang Veteran's Association erected a memorial plaque to commemorate those killed in later conflicts in Malaysia. In 2023, the Esplanade seafront promenade underwent redevelopment into a linear garden as part of the North Seafront Masterplan. During this transformation, the iron fences surrounding the Cenotaph were removed to enhance public access. The memorial plaque from the Penang Veteran's Association was replaced with an arc-shaped plaque positioned behind the Cenotaph. The redevelopment began in May 2023 and was completed by December that year.

Design

Original

The original Cenotaph was designed by architect David McLeod Craik of the firm Craik and Leicester. It was situated at the north corner of the Esplanade field (''Padang''), facing

Fort Cornwallis , location = George Town, Penang , country = Malaysia , image = Fort Cornwallis, Penang 2023 01.jpg , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Malaysia Penang George Town central , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ge ...

. The structure was 8 by 20

feet The foot (: feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is an organ at the terminal part of the leg made up of ...

high slightly tapered, flanked on three sides by plain panels with a niche and a

Stone of Remembrance The Stone of Remembrance is a standardised design for war memorials that was designed in 1917 by the British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens for the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC). It was designed to commemorate the dead of World War I, to b ...

in front. The Cenotaph was raised on a platform 30 by 26 by 3 feet high approached by five steps with low pedestals at each corner: the total height being about 25 feet above road level. The bronzes on the Cenotaph consisted of a sword and

laurel wreath A laurel wreath is a symbol of triumph, a wreath (attire), wreath made of connected branches and leaves of the bay laurel (), an aromatic broadleaf evergreen. It was also later made from spineless butcher's broom (''Ruscus hypoglossum'') or cher ...

in the niche, a massive wreath with Flanders poppies fixed to the Stone of Remembrance, and four corner plaques bearing the badges of the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

and Mercantile Marine in

high relief High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift t ...

. These plaques face the front and back of the Cenotaph and show at the sides scenes typical of each of these four services, executed in

low relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

. Provisions had been made for four flags to be hung at the corners, consisting of the

Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

, and

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

Red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

and

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

ensigns on poles ornamented with bronze spear heads, cords and tassels. A footpath extends around the platform and form a circular path.

Inscription

There were two inscriptions on the Cenotaph. The words on top of the niche was "1914-1918", while the words at the front of the Stone of Remembrance was "OUR GLORIOUS DEAD". The intended inscription on the Stone of Remembrance was initially "PAX", but it was changed after the Ex-Services Association deemed it inappropriate. No roll of honour was written, owing to difficulties of obtaining names of the war dead. Thus, a back panel under the crown of laurel on the Cenotaph were placed for future inscription of names.

Material and construction

The Cenotaph and the raised platform it sat on was made of granite sourced from Penang. The granite carvings were carried out by Yeo Kim Eng. Bronzes of the Cenotaph were designed and executed by Adrian Stokes & Co. in London, whilst United Engineers Ltd. in Penang cast the bronze spear heads, cups and rings for the flag poles. The latter also assisted with fixing of the bronze work on the Cenotaph. The bricks used for the inner core of the Cenotaph were supplied by Borneo Co. Ltd. free of charge. The erection of the Cenotaph was carried out by contractors Pin & Co. at

cost price In retail systems, the cost price represents the specific value that represents unit price purchased. This value is used as a key factor in determining Profit (accounting), profitability, and in some stock market theories it is used in establish ...

Reconstruction

After the Cenotaph was destroyed in World War II, the Penang Ex-Servicemen Association decided to rebuild it in 1948. The architect Charles Geoffrey Boutcher of Boutcher & Co. agreed to design the new Cenotaph for free. The new Cenotaph was reconstructed using the remaining granite blocks and bronze ornaments of the original Cenotaph, resulting in slight deviations from its original design. The steps were rebuilt with precast concrete slabs instead of granite slabs to reduce costs. The orientation of the new Cenotaph is different than the original, which now faces Esplanade Road (''Jalan Padang Kota Lama''). Penang WWI Cenotaph 01

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cenotaph, Penang Monuments and memorials in Malaysia Buildings and structures in George Town, Penang Landmarks in Penang Tourist attractions in George Town, Penang World War I memorials

History

Construction and dedication

Destruction

Reconstruction

Present

Design

Original

Inscription

Material and construction

Reconstruction

See also

References