Actress Charlotte Rampling has expressed outrage over the destruction of more than 800 British soldiers' headstones, including that of her own grandfather, at the Basra War Cemetery in southern Iraq. Rampling, 80, described the act as "utterly shameful," learning of the scandal through a recent report. Her grandfather, Horace Johnson Rampling, who died in 1917 during World War I, was one of the soldiers whose headstone was reportedly ground into gravel and used for a drainage ditch on an Army base.
The gravestones and 80 engraved panels bearing the names of fallen soldiers were removed in 2003 during the Iraq War. The British Army stated at the time that the removal was a precautionary measure against potential vandalism or destruction by local populations. The intention, according to the Army, was to return them after the conflict. However, within 18 months, they were instead processed and utilized for construction purposes.
Rampling's grandfather is now among approximately 3,000 unmarked graves at the cemetery. She has joined former military leaders and Members of Parliament in calling for the restoration of the cemetery or the commissioning of a new memorial to honor the fallen soldiers. Lord Richard Dannatt, a former head of the Army, and Field Marshal Lord Richards of Herstmonceux, a former Chief of the Defence Staff, have both voiced criticism regarding the decision to destroy the headstones.
"I think the desecration of these graves is utterly shameful and I support any effort to create a lasting memorial to include the names of the soldiers who gave their lives for our freedom," Rampling told The Mail on Sunday. The actress also shared a personal story of a "death penny," a bronze plaque awarded to the next of kin of fallen British Empire soldiers, being reunited with her family after being lost for over a century. The plaque was found by a collector in Texas who traced it back to Rampling's family.
Among the gravestones destroyed was that of Major George Godfrey Massy Wheeler, a Victoria Cross recipient who died in World War I. He was posthumously awarded Britain's highest gallantry honor for his actions fighting Turkish forces near Shaibah, the same location where his headstone was ultimately destroyed.
During World War I, an estimated 45,000 British Empire troops died in Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq, due to combat or illness. An additional 5,000 died during World War II.
Ben Soppitt, whose grandfather Gunner Joseph Soppitt is also buried at Basra War Cemetery, exposed the issue after obtaining documents from the Ministry of Defence through Freedom of Information requests. An Information Commissioner ultimately ordered the MoD to release the details. Soppitt believes the cemetery could be fully restored now that relative peace has returned to southern Iraq, stating that detailed maps exist to identify all graves. He has initiated a High Court application for Judicial Review to hold the MoD accountable.
Tory MP Ben Obese-Jecty, a former Army officer, has stated he will raise questions in the House of Commons regarding the destruction. "The removal and destruction of the headstones from Basra War Cemetery in Iraq, not by vandals, thieves or a hostile power, but by the British Army itself 20 years ago, simply beggars belief," he said. "The decision to crush the headstones and use them as rubble to fill a ditch should shame us."
Lord Richards, who served as Assistant Chief of the General Staff when the headstones were destroyed, expressed deep sadness, acknowledging that with hindsight, there is no excuse. He added, however, that he had no doubt the officers involved believed they were acting appropriately in the dangerous environment of Basra at the time. The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment on the revelations, citing ongoing legal action.