69 Monuments Related to Pacifists, Conscientious Objectors & War Resisters

Pacifism is the opposition to war and/or violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaigner Émile Arnaud [1864-1921] and adopted by other peace activists at the 10th Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901. A conscientious objector (CO) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. A war resister is a person who resists war. The term can mean several things: resisting participation in all war, or a specific war, either before or after enlisting in, being inducted into, or being conscripted into a military force.

Click here for Quakers. | Click here for German deserters (also included below). | Click here for a list of Wikipedia articles on aspects of conscientious objection. | Click here for other monuments related to Pax Christi.

Click here for a long list of famous peacemakers, on which indicates Quakers, P indicates other famous pacifists & CO indicates famous conscientious objectors.

Right click any image to enlarge.

May 20, 1907 - Birth of Franz Jägerstätter, Sankt Radegund, Upper Austria (Austria). Born Franz Huber in a small village between Salzburg & Braunau am Inn as the illegitimate child of Rosalia Huber, a chambermaid, & Franz Bachmeier, a farmer. He was first cared for by his paternal grandmother, Elisabeth Huber. Franz's natural father was killed in World War I when he was still a child. When his mother married in 1917, Franz was adopted by her husband, Heinrich Jägerstätter.

1913 - Birth of Franziska Schwaninger. A deeply religious woman, she married Jägerstätter on Maundy Thursday 1936. After the ceremony, the bridal couple proceeded on a pilgrimage to Rome. The marriage produced three daughters. Franziska Jägerstätter is still alive.

1938 - When German troops moved into Austria, Jägerstätter was the only person in the village to vote against the Anschluss in the plebiscite of April 10, 1938. The local authorities suppressed his dissent & announced unanimous approval. Although he was not involved with any political organization & did undergo one brief period of military training, he remained openly anti-Nazi & publicly declared he would not fight in the war. 36."

August 9, 1943 - Jägerstätter is executed at age 36 in Brandenburg an der Havel (Germany). "After many delays, Jägerstätter was finally called to active duty on 23 February 1943. On March 1, he declared his conscientious objection. His offer to serve as a paramedic was ignored. A priest from his village visited him in jail and tried to talk him into serving, but did not succeed. He was immediately imprisoned, first at Linz, then at Berlin-Tegel. Accused of Wehrkraftzersetzung (undermining of military morale), after a military trial at the Reichskriegsgericht he was sentenced to death on July 6 & subsequently executed by guillotine at Brandenburg-Görden Prison on 9 August 1943, aged 36."

1946 - Jägerstätter's ashes are buried at the cemetery in Sankt Radegund (Austria). "The death sentence was nullified by the Landgericht Berlin on 7 May 1997."

B O O K

1964 - Jägerstätter's fate is not well known until US sociologist Gordon Zahn [1918-2007] publishes his biography, "In Solitary Witness: The Life & Death of Franz Jägerstätter" in 1964. "The book is considered to be a biographical account which has since become a classic." (Zahn was a Conscientious Objector & co-founder of Pax Christi USA.)

W I N D O W

1960's - Franz Jägerstätter Fenster, Kreuzkapelle, Votivkirche / Votive Church, Vienna (Austria). Google translation: "The window of the 1960's is the first sacred work of art ever to be dealt with by the martyrdom of the Upper Austrian conscientious objector. The window is in the newly restored Chapel of the Cross - the weekday chapel - to visit again. The whole chapel is renovated to a worthy setting. During the Second World War, all the windows of the Votive Church had been destroyed. After the war, the windows were glazed temporarily. As part of an extensive restoration of 1960-73, one of the new church windows with the theme of resistance and Jägerstätter was designed." Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

S T A T U E

1987 - Statue of Franz Jägerstätter, Saint Malachy Church, North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA). "Why, given the awe-inspiring calendar of saints, is St. Malachy so taken with a virtually unknown Austrian peasant from WW-II times? In God’s providence & with the generosity of Fr. Daniel Berrigan, we possess on a side altar a magnificent carved statue of [Franz] Jägerstätter. The artist, Bob McGovern [1933-2011], one of our fellow parishoners, carved the statue to honor Fr. Dan’s fifty years as a Jesuit in 1987. Fr. Berrigan has great devotion to Jägerstätter, but stripping down in his mid-eighties, donated the statue to St. Malachy as a place where the peace of Christ will be celebrated." Image shows Fr. John Patrick McNamee. Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

M U S E U M

1993 - Franz Jägerstätter House, Sankt Radegund, Upper Austria (Austria). Sankt Radegund is a small village between Salzburg & Braunau am Inn. "Founded as a memorial to Franz Jägerstätter in his & his family’s former farmhouse. Most of the house remains in its original state. Displayed his personal belongings, his writings & other keepsakes. His wife Franziska, who was born in 1913 and is still alive, restored the original furnishings - including the table on which Jägerstätter wrote many of his letters & essays - and many personal items such as his wedding ring, rucksack, rosary & prayer book of the Third Order of St. Francis are on display. In addition there is a biographical exhibit with photos."

S T A M P

1993 - Austrian postage stamp "for the 50th Anniversary of the resistance fighter Franz Jägerstätter" (Österrreichische Briefmarke zum 50. Todestag des Widerstandskämpfers Franz Jägerstätter).

P L A Q U E

1997 - Gedenktafel Franz Jägerstätter, Landes Kulturzentrum Ursulinenhof, Linz, Upper Austria, (Austria). Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

P L A Q U E

July 4, 1997 - Gedenktafel für Franz Jägerstätter / Commemorative plaque for Franz Jägerstätter, Witzlebenstraße 4-5, Reichskriegsgericht, Berlin-Charlottenburg (Germany). At the former military court. English text: "In this building on July 6, 1943, the Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter (1907-1943) was sentenced to death by the Supreme Military Court of the Third Reich on grounds of his conscientious objection to military service. In commemoration of Franz Jägerstätter and all those who for like reasons were made victims of military courts." Franz Jägerstätter [1907-1943] was an Austrian conscientious objector sentenced to death (at this place) and executed by Nazi Germany during World War II. He was beatified by the Roman Catholic Church on October 26, 2007, in Linz (Austria).

W I N D O W

1999 - Franz Jagerstätter Window, Newman Centre Catholic Mission, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario (Canada). "In 1999, while I was still pastor & executive director of the Newman Centre Catholic Mission, I had the privilege of installing a stained glass window of the Servant of God Franz Jägerstätter in the university chapel. May he continue to watch over this generation of young people who are seeking to give witness to the Gospel & to Christ, as they learn the ways of justice & peace in a complex world. - Fr. Thomas Rosica, C.S.B., C.E.O., Salt & Light Catholic Media Foundation." Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

2000 "Franz Jägerstätter: In memory of his testimony," Pax Christi of Upper Austria, Linz (Austria). 148-page handout in German from the Department of Justice, Peace & Creation in the Pastoral Office of the Diocese of Linz. Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

S H R I N E

2002 - Shrine of the Martyrs of Our Time, Church of St. Bartholomew, Tiberina Islet, Tiber River, central Rome (Italy). "The shrine was a project entrusted by Pope John Paul II to Sant'Egidio during the Jubilee Year 2000 and was inaugurated in 2002. Today, the Basilica of St. Bartholomew has custody of the 'memory & remains of many witnesses for Christ in our time.' Among them: Bishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero of Nicaragua (martyred while saying Mass), Mexican Cardinal Posadas Ocampo (killed by drug traffickers in Guadalajara airport), evangelical pastor Paul Schneider, Austrian layman Franz Jagerstatter (who opposed Nazism), Romaninian monk & spiritual guide Sofian Boghiu (who opposed the the totalitarian Communist regime), Fr. Andrea Santoro (Roman priest martyred in Turkey), French priest Andre' Jarlan (who died in Chile as a missionary among the poor), & the Poor Clare sisters of Bergamo (who served in Africa & perished from the Ebola virus while caring for stricken patients).

2006 - Stolperstein for Jägerstätter, Sankt Radegund, Upper Austria (Austria). Laid in 2006.

P A R K

August 8, 2006 - Franz Jägerstätter Park, Braunau am Inn, Upper Austria (Austria). Franz Jägerstätter [1907-1943] was an Austrian conscientious objector sentenced to death and executed by Nazi Germany during World War II. He was beatified by the Roman Catholic Church on October 26, 2007, in Linz (Austria). Park identified by Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi) who attended the opening ceremony.

M E M O R I A L October 26, 2007 - Neuer Dom / New Cathedral, Linz (Austria). Franz Jägerstätter [1907-1943] is beatified by the Roman Catholic Church in a ceremony held by Cardinal José Saraiva Martins. His feast day is the day of his christening, May 21. He is the patron of Conscientious Objectors. Right image shows Gedenkstätte für den sel. Franz Jägerstätter / Memorial for the Blessed Franz Jägerstätter.

I C O N

Date? - Icon of Franz Jagerstatter by Father William Hart McNichols, St. Andrei Rublev Icon Studio, Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico (USA).

D V D

2008 - Franz Jägerstätter: A Man of Conscience "featuring Martin Sheen as the voice of Franz Jägerstätter."

B O O K

Date? - "Against the Stream: Franz Jägerstätter - the man who refused to fight for Hitler", written by Dr. Erna Putz, translated by Michael Duggan, published by Pax Christi, London, & Anglican Pacifist Fellowship, Milton Keynes (England).

D O R M

2009 - Studentenheim / Dormitory Franz Jägerstätter, Katholische Hochschulgemeinde Linz / Linz Catholic High School (KHG), Menger Road 23, Linz (Austria). Houses about 133 students. Very close to Johannes Kepler University. Click here for more information. Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

L I B R A R Y

June 29, 2011 - Franz und Franziska Jägerstätter Raum (Bibliothek), Kardinal König Haus, Vienna (Austria). Google translation: "Cardinal Christoph Schönborn unveiled the dedication plaque in the library in the presence of the daughters of Francis & the Bishop of Linz & Franzska Jägerstätter em. Maximilian Maximilian Aichern and episcopal vicar Mittendorfer. The worship of Franz Jägerstätter is, especially in the U.S., has been heavily promoted by some Jesuits - especially in the time of the Vietnam War. Even before that, at the Second Vatican Council, a Jesuit priest, Archbishop Emeritus. Roberts, SJ, from Bombay, the "case Jägerstätter" presented and thus contributed to a clear vote of the Council of State regulations for conscientious objectors (cf. Gaudium et Spes 79). All reports of Jägerstätter note that has been his marriage to Franziska Jägerstätter a crucial support for his conscience. Franziska Jägerstätter [image] was & is the decision of her husband & has made many sacrifices for themselves. The courses and seminars in the cardinal royal family often involves the formation of conscience, to make difficult decisions in order to return from self-interest - and this is what Franz and Franziska Jägerstätter. In the chapel of the Cardinal King house is a relic of Blessed Franz Jägerstätter. The living example of the spouses Jägerstätter also a bridge to people who are politically alert - Not just religious." Click here, or click here for more information. Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek (Pax Christi International).

B E L L

October 26, 2014 - Friedensglocke / Peace Bell, Parish Church of Linz, Linz (Austria). Replaces bell confiscated by the Nazis & melted down for war purposes. 2,200 kg with peace dove on reverse side. Cast at Bachert Bell Foundry in Karlsruhe (Germany). Dedicated to the Blessed Franz Jagerstatter [1907-1943] & his wife Franziska. Information courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.

1795 - Dunkard Church, near Sharpsburg, Maryland (USA). Founded by German pacifists. "The original church stood in the midst of some of the fiercest fighting and changed hands several times. Old photographs show its shell-pocked walls. It was destroyed by a storm in 1921, but a local citizen salvaged and stored much of the original material, which was used in this restored structure built in 1962."

1871 - Apotheosis of War, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow (Russia). Oil on canvas by Russian artist Vasily Vasilyevich Vereshchagin [1842–1904]. Dedicated by the artist "to all conquerors, past, present and to come" -- or ""to all conquerors, who were, who are, and who will be." Either way, an unambiguous condemnation of war.

1880 - Pacifist Hodgson Pratt [1824-1907] founds the International Arbitration & Peace Association (IAPA) in London (England). Pratt worked 14 years for the East India Company & the Bengal government in 1861 & went back to England. After 1880, he visited a number of European cities as IAPA representative, such as Berlin, Frankfurt, Paris, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Budapest, Milan & Rome. In 1883 he was with Henri La Fontaine [1854-1943], the impetus for the Belgian Society for mediation and peace to found [sic]. Together with Franz Napian Wirth [1826-1897] he founded in 1886 Frankfurt Peace Society. ("Bertha von Suttner learned about the IAPA in 1887, promptly joined, became its leading spokesperson.") Pratt was nominated in 1906 for the Nobel Peace Prize, but it went instead to US President Theodore Roosevelt.

July 1916 - "The Deserter," from The Masses, New York City, New York (USA). Cartoon by Boardman Robinson [1876-1952]. "The creator of the Masses, Max Eastman [1883-1969] - who faced prison along with Robinson, Minor & others - had this to say about what is probably Robinson’s most famous cartoon: "Surprisingly as it may seem, he actually introduced into America the idea, as old as Daumier, that cartoons should have the values of art as well as of meaning. When Mike 'blew in' with a picture of a white-clad, saintly Jesus standing against a stone wall facing the rifles of a brutish firing squad, I felt that number [of The Masses] deserved a place in the history of art."

1922 - Monument aux morts / Pacifist War Memorial, Gentioux, Creuse Department, Limousin Region (France). "After World War I, some towns in France set up pacifist war memorials. Instead of commemorating the glorious dead, these memorials denounce war with figures of grieving widows & children rather than soldiers. Such memorials provoked anger among veterans & the military in general. The most famous one is located in Gentioux. Below the column which lists the name of the fallen stands an orphan in bronze pointing to an inscription 'Maudite soit la guerre / Cursed be war.' Feelings ran so high that the memorial was not officially inaugurated until 1990, & soldiers at the nearby army camp were under orders to turn their heads when they walked past."

1923 - War Memorial Sculpture, Michael Sadler Building, Leeds University, Leeds (England). "The radical sculptor, Eric Gill [1882-1940], was commissioned to produce a war memorial for the University of Leeds. In 1923 he presented a frieze of the gospel story of Jesus driving the money-changers out of the temple. Those expelled were dressed as contemporary Leeds merchants. Gill’s message was that the ‘money men’ were a key cause of the war. This controversial artwork challenges us to ask whether the pressures of wealth and human greed still lead to war in the 21st century."

1934 - Poem "Conscientious Objector" by Edna St. Vincent Millay [1892-1950]. Click name for text. Search for YouTube video.

Date? - Richmond Castle, Richmond, North Yorkshire (England). The castle's Exhibition Centre includes a virtual reality touch-screen guide about the imprisonment in the castle of the concientious objectors in the First World War. Concientious objectors, conscripted into the army and sent to join the Non Combatant Corps at Richmond, were put in the cells as a result of their refusal to obey orders." One of 13 sites on the MAW Peace Map of the British Isles as of January 2009.

1941-1945 - Alternative Service Camps (Canada). During World War II.

1941-1947 - Civilian Public Service (CPS) Camps (USA). During World War II. "More than 12,000 conscientious objectors worked in camps at 152 sites throughout the USA & Puerto Rico rather than serve in the military during World War II."

November 1941-July 1946 - CPS Camp No. 21, Cascade Locks, Oregon (USA). On Columbia River. A US Forest Service base camp operated by the Brethren Service Committee. The conscientious objectors fought forest fires, conducted preventive & fire suppression work, performed camp maintenance & construction & (unofficially) operated a "School of Pacifist Living.". The site is now a public campground. Subject of "Refusing War, Affirming Peace: A History of Civilian Public Service Camp No. 21 at Cascade Locks" by Jeffrey Kovac, Oregon State University Press, 2009.

About 1942-1945 - Germfask, Seney Wildlife Refuge, Upper Peninsula, Michigan (USA). CPS camp No. 135. Previously CCC camp No. 3626. "During WW-II, young men had four choices: Active military duty, active duty as a noncombatant (medic, etc.), CPS (doing "work of national importance") or prison. Germfask camp, No. 135 became infamous as the "Alcatraz" of the CPS camps. Conscientious objectors who acted out (or got crosswise with camp management) in ways that didn't warrant being sent to prison were sent to Germfask. There were CO's (also called "conchies") who did their assigned duties in the camps, but there were also absolutists who opposed war in any form & would not lend a hand in any way to the war effort, believing that to do so was to support the war."

January 3, 1959 - Conscientious Objectors Memorial Plaque, Peace Pledge Union (PPU), 1 Peace Passage, London (England). Names 70 of the 81 British CO's known to have died during World War I. Depicts a man striking a sword on an anvil. Carved by Canadian artist Dorothy Stevens [1888-1966] in 1923. (Click here to see her "Munitions Fuze Factory, 1919.") First erected in Berlin (Germany) at the headquarters of the Bund der Kriegsdienstgegner, the German section of the War Resisters International (WRI),. Taken to south Denmark in 1933. Hidden in Sweden in 1940. Now on permanent loan to the PPU, principal British section of the WRI. One of 21 peace monuments named by the PPU website.

1968 - Pedestal of the Missing Hero Monument, parking lot adjacent to Travelodge, 613 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (USA). "Poured to honor all potential heros of American wars, who refused military service on the basis of pacifist philosophy. In an effort to increase tourism revenue, the Missing Hero Association, which maintains the pedestal, recently voted to commission a bronze statue of a current pacifist to be erected on the site. The statue will be cast in the likeness of one individual chosen through an open audition process (Oct. 15–31) that includes a YouTube video essay & phone interview. Three finalists in the comptition will be invited to Gettysburg on November 19, 2008, to complete the final requirement of the selection process: standing atop the pedestal to deliver a three-minute monologue outlining his/her belief in peace & the futility of war. Finalists must arrange for their own travel, meals & accommodations."

1976 - Statue of "Alain," Musée Alain, Mortagne Au Perche, Normandy (France). Alain is Émile-Auguste Chartier [1868-1951] -- philosopher, journalist & pacifist. "He deeply influenced his pupils, who included Raymond Aron, Simone Weil, Georges Canguilhem & André Maurois. He is buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris."

1978 - Peace Pentagon (Muste Building), A.J. Muste Memorial Institute, 339 Lafayette Street, New York City, New York (USA). Organized in 1974 to carry forward the commitment of A. J. Muste [1885-1967] to nonviolent radical change, the institute bought the "Peace Pentagon" office building in 1978 to provide a stable and affordable base for itself & other activist groups in New York City, includint the War Resisters League (WRL), ____ & ____. Now in need of major repairs and in danger of being sold. Click here for "Save the Peace Pentagon."

1980 - Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand / Memorial to the German Resistance, Bendlerblock courtyard, Berlin (Germany). "A memorial & museum opened in 1980 in part of the Bendlerblock, a complex of offices in Stauffenbergstrasse (formerly Bendlerstrasse), south of the Tiergarten in Western Berlin. It was here that Colonel Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg [1907-1944] & other members of the failed July 20 plot that attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler were executed. Although the memorial is primarily intended to commemorate those members of the German Army who tried to assassinate Hitler in 1944, it is also a memorial to the German resistance in the broader sense."

1985 - Statue of Fenner Brockway, Red Lion Square, London (England). Sculpted by Ian Walters. Baron Brockway [1888-1099] was a British anti-war activist & politician. One of 21 peace monuments named by the PPU website. Named in "A Peace Trail Through London" by Valerie Flessati (1998). One of 309 London monuments in Kershman (2007), page 197.

D E N K M A L October 1986 - Denkmal für den unbekannten Deserteur / Monument to the Unknown Deserter, Gustav-Heinemann Büergerhaus, Bremen-Vegesack, Bremen (Germany). "A one meter high pedestal [and] a sculpture of a soldier's head, covered with a helmet and camouflage net. The inscription reads, 'For the unknown deserter'. The memorial was commissioned by a group called 'Gruppe Reservisten verweigern sich' / 'Group of resisting reservists.'" Gustav Heinemann [1899-1976] "was German Minister of Interior Affairs from 1949 to 1950, Minister of Justice from 1966 to 1969, and President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1969 to 1974. He was famous for being open-minded with respect to the student protests of 1968, and he tried to keep his office as down-to-earth as possible. In the Weimar Republic, Heinemann was member of the Christian Social People's Service (CSVD). After World War II he was one of the founders of the CDU and became mayor of the city of Essen. He was Minister of the Interior in the first cabinet of Konrad Adenauer. He left the cabinet in 1950 and the CDU in 1952 to form the All-German People's Party (GVP) with Helene Wessel and other CDU and Center Party members. In 1957 he, and most GVP members, joined the SPD. In the grand coalition (1966-69) he was Minister of Justice. In 1969 he became the first SPD member to be elected President of Germany since the death of Reichspräsident Friedrich Ebert (president since 1919) in 1925. The Gustav-Heinemann-Friedenspreis für Kinder- und Jugendbücher / Gustav Heinemann Peace Prize for Children's and Youth Books is awarded every year for a book judged to have best promoted the cause of world peace."

D E N K M A L May 7, 1987 - Denkmal für den unbekannten Deserteur / Monument to the Unknown Deserter, Fuldaaaue, Kassel (Germany). "Near a memorial for the fallen of both world wars. Has the following inscription: 'In memory of the Kassel soldiers, who refused military service for the national-socialist violent dictatorship, and who were persecuted and killed as a result.' A decision for such a memorial had been made by the city's governing council on 4th February." Click here for "Erinnerung braucht einen Ort Zum Kasseler 'Mahnmal für die Opfer des Faschismus' von Hilde Dohmann." Click here for an overview of deserters monument initiatives in Germany (From Zeitschrift OHNE UNS - Zeitschrift zur Totalen Kriegsdienstverweigerung, Ausgabe 1/94, Februar 1994).

P L A Q U E

August 1987 - A plaque for Michael Lerpscher, at the catholic church, Missen-Wilhams, Sonthofen district, Bravaria (Germany). This is the home community of Michael Lerpscher [1905-1940] who was a religiously motivated conscientious objector executed by the Nazis. Inscribed in German: "Laienbrüder der Christkönigsgesellschaft - Märtyrer für den Frieden Christi [Pax Christi]."

D E N K M A L 1988 - Denkmal für den unbekannten Deserteur / Monument to the Unknown Deserter, Trammplatz, Hannover (Germany). "Since 1988 there has been at Trammplatz in front of the New Town Hall in Hanover, a memorial to deserters. It is located on the edge of the square on the wall to the cycle. About the victim group of deserters little is known. About a dozen of them were buried in the former garrison cemetery, the Fössefeldfriedhof in Linden (Cemetery Road). Deserters were shot in Vahrenheide in the ball catching drift on the barracks. [Google translation]" Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.

D E N K M A L Date? - Deserteur Denkmal / Deserter Monument, Sievershausen (Germany).

Mothers Day 1988 - Peace Abbey, 2 North Main Street, Sherborn, Massachusetts (USA). Three-acre "Multi-faith retreat center" founded by Lewis Randa & Dot Walsh. Includes "Peace Seeds" (prayers for peace of 12 different faiths), Memorial for Unknown Civilians Killed in War, Sacred Cow Animal Rights Memorial, and Conscientious Objectors Hill of Remembrance. Right image shows Pacifist Memorial with Gandhi statue. Makes annual Courgage of Conscience Award. Entry #472 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

1988 - National Garden of Peace, behind the Temple of Peace, Cardiff (Wales). Marks the 50th anniversary of the Temple of Peace (qv). Home to a number of commemorative trees and plaques, including a colourful plaque to mark the 20th anniversary of the walk from Cardiff to Greenham Common. "The first ever Welsh monument to Conscientious Objection was unveiled in the National Garden of Peace on 15 May 2005" (qv).

May 15, 2005 - Welsh monument to Conscientious Objection, National Garden of Peace, Cardiff (Wales). Inscription: "If the right to life is the first of all human rights, being the one on which all other rights depend, the right to refuse to kill must be the second."

August 6, 1990 - Sadako Peace Park, Seattle, Washington (USA). Initiative of conscientious objector Floyd W. Schmoe [1895-2001] who rebuilt homes in Hiroshima (Japan). Inscription: "Sadako Sasaki, Peace Child. She gave us the paper crane to symbolize our yearning for peace in the world. A gift to the people of Seattle from Fratelli's Ice Cream. Daryl Smith - Sculptor. 1990." Vandalized in December 2005 but repaired. Upper image shows Schmoe with the statue & peace cranes. Lower image shows hibakusha Ken Nakano of Kirkland, Washington. Entry #1063 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

August 1949-1952 - "Houses for Hiroshima," at the foot of Ebasara-yama Hill, Eba-machi, Hiroshima (Japan). "Forestry scholar Floyd Schmoe [1895-2001] came up with a plan to build houses for people in Hiroshima. Friends Pacific Yearly Meeting and the Japan Friends Years Meeting [sic] cooperated to raise funds. Money eventually came from Canada, France, China and other countries around the world... Houses were built every year from 1950 to 1952. In addition. a community center was constructed in 1951." Upper image shows Schmoe and Mayor Shinzo Hamai [1905-1968] looking at a stone lantern in the garden. "The lantern inscribed "That There May Be Peace" in both English and Japanese, symbolizing the philosophy of Schmoe."

D E N K M A L September 2, 1990 - Das Bonner Denkmal für die unbekannten Deserteure / The Bonn Monument to the Unknown Deserters, Platz der Einheit / Unity Square, Potsdam (Germany). Click here for second source of information. Made in 1989 by Turkish sculptor Mehmet Aksoy for Bonn, but the Lord Mayor of Bonn (Potsdam's sister city) prevented the establishment of the monument in a public space in Bonn. So it was loaned to Potsdam. [Google translation paraphrased]" [Information courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek, Nov. 5, 2011] /// "The figure in this memorial is carved in negative relief, a technique that Aksoy employed in later work."

P L A Q U E "[This image] is a plaque in front of the memorial 'for the unknown deserters;' the plaque has a nice 1925 poem by Kurt Tucholsky [1890-1935]."

P L A Q U E

October 31, 1990 - Plaque for Michael Lerpscher & Josef Ruf, St. Ulrich Catholic Church, Graz (Germany). Michael Lerpscher [1905-1940] and Josef Ruf [1905-1940] were both religiously motivated conscientious objectors executed by the Nazis. Inscribed in German: "Laienbrüder der Christkönigsgesellschaft - Märtyrer für den Frieden Christi [Pax Christi] / Lay brothers of the Society of Christ the King - Martyr for the peace of Christ [Google translation]."

S T O N E

1992 - Memorial stone for Josef Ruf, next to the Maria Geburt / Mary's Birth Catholic Church, Hochberg, Bad Saulgau-Hochberg, Sigmaringen district (Germany). Placed by Pax Christi. Born in Hochberg (now part of the city of Bad Saulgau), Josef Ruf [1905-1940] was a religiously motivated conscientious objector executed by the Nazis. German inscription says, "Lived for peace, died by violence."

May 15, 1994 - Peace Stone, Tavistock Square, London (England). Solid rock of grey Cumbrian slate. Next to Gandhi statue (qv). Dedicated on Conscientious Objectors Day. Plaque: "To all those who have established and are maintaining the right to refuse to kill." "Only pacifist memorial in London." One of 21 peace monuments named by the PPU website. Named in "A Peace Trail Through London" by Valerie Flessati (1998). One of 309 London monuments in Kershman (2007), page 249.

October 2, 1994 - Pacifist Memorial, Peace Abbey, Sherborn, Massachsetts (USA). Six radiating brick walls surrounding a statue of Mahatma Gandhi by Ludo Goudjabidze. The walls contain the names of and quotations from famous pacifists. Dedicated on 125th anniversary of Gandhi's birth. Entry #471 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

Date? - Memorial Stone & Remembrance Cabin, Conscientious Objectors Hill of Remembrance, Peace Abbey, Sherborn, Massachsetts (USA). Pacifist Living History Museum Pacifist Memorial Multi-Faith Chapel Sacred Cow Animal Rights Memorial Unknown Civilians Killed in War

D E N K M A L 1995 - Denkmal für den unbekannten Wehrmachtsdeserteur / Monument for the Unknown Deserters of the German Wehrmacht, Citadel Petersberg, Erfurt (Germany). "Memorial for the victims of the German military justice in Second World War – To all who resisted the Nazi regime. Designed by artist Thomas Nicolai."

October 26, 1996 - Civilian Public Service historical marker, Friends Center, 1501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA). "Commissioned by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission." Honors "some 12,000 men who were classified as conscientious objectors to war...during World War II."

C E N T E R

Date? - Hermann Stöhr Community Center, Angerburger Allee 56, Berlin (Germany). Municipal office, a worship room, and nursery named tor Christian martyr Dr. Hermann Stöhr [1898-1940], a German pacifist and resistance fighter against the Nazis, who was beheaded in Plötzensee Prison.

S T O N E

December 29, 1998? - Memorial stone for Christoph Moritz von Egidy, Potsdam (Germany). "Christoph Moritz von Egidy [1847-1898] was a Royal Prussian officer, pacifist, Christian reformer & moral philosopher. He died in Potsdam on 29 December 1898. A very interesting & important figure. There was a memorial ceremony on 29th December 1998, the centenary of his death. The meeting was at the memorial in the Old Cemetery ('am Gedenkstein auf dem Alten Friedhof')." This info is from an excellent chronological listing of events etc. in Potsdam (Potsdam Chronik). von Egidy has an entry in Josephson's Biographical Dictionary of Modern Peace Leaders (see Bibliography). Cannot find image of the memorial stone. Image is von Egidy's autobiography, "Ich hab's gewagt!: Vom preussisch-sächsischen Offizier zum streitbaren Pazifisten / I have dared it: From the Prussian-Saxon officer for militant pacifisism."

1999 - Gordon Hirabayashi Campground, Sky Island Scenic Byway, Coronado National Forest (Arizona). Also called Recreation Site? "The site was built in 1937 as a Federal prison camp... During WW-II, some prisoners were conscientious objectors; some were Japanese Americans protesting the relocation. Gordon Hirabayashi refused a Relocation order and served his sentence here after the Supreme Court upheld his conviction." "Because the Federal Attorney would not provide transportation, Hirabayashi hitchhiked alone from Spokane, Washingtion, to Tucson to serve his sentence at the honor camp in the Santa Catalina Mountains."

June 2001 - Shot at Dawn Memorial, National Memorial Arboretum, Lichfield, Staffordshire (England). Commemorates the 306 British & Commonwealth soldiers executed for cowardice & desertion during World War I. Portrays a young British soldier blindfolded and tied to a stake in anticipation of execution by firing squad. Created by artist Andy DeComyn & unveiled by Mrs. Gertrude Harris, daughter of Private Harry Farr who was executed on October 16, 1916.

May 15, 2005 - Welsh monument to Conscientious Objection, National Garden of Peace, Cardiff (Wales). Inscription: "If the right to life is the first of all human rights, being the one on which all other rights depend, the right to refuse to kill must be the second."

November 19, 2005 - Memorial to Deserters, Lehrertal entrance, university botanical garden, Ulm (Germany). Creation of Hannah Stuetz Menzel. Memorializes the men who deserted the Wehrmacht during World War II (15,000 men were executed). Information courtesy of Mark Hatlie.

Date? - Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp (Germany). Text of plaque: "We remember August Dickmann (born 1910) one of Jehovah's Witnesses who was publicly shot by the SS on September 15, 1939, because of concientious objection." August Dickmann [1910-1939] was the first conscientious objector executed by the Nazis in Germany during the Second World War.

2006 - Friedensdenkmal / Peace Monument, Auerstedt. Thuringia (Germany).

M U S E U M

November 19, 2005 - Muhammad Ali Center, Louisville, Kentucky (USA). Exhibits Ali's core values on respect, confidence, conviction, dedication, charity & spirituality. "Hope & Dream" exhibit is composed of over 5,000 tiles with drawings & paintings from children from 141 countries, telling what they want to be when they grow up. The "Global Voices" exhibit asks questions to both children & adults from around the world with answers submitted through a variety of media, such as drawings & poems. "I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong... They never called me nigger." – Muhammad Ali, 1966.

Before 2007 - Statue of Corbett Bishop, Dissenters’ Park, 2635 North Venice Avenue, Tucson, Pima County, Arizona (USA). Depicted resting on a bench in his prison cell. "Religious conscientious objector Corbett Bishop [1906-1961] was arrested after walking out of a Civilian Public Service Camp. During subsequent trials & imprisonments, he refused any type of cooperation with the government until he was released 193 days later. 'I’m not going to cooperate in any way, shape or form. I was carried in here. If you hold me, you’ll have to carry me out. War is wrong. I don’t want any part of it.' /// Dissenter’s Park was a sculpture park located in downtown Tucson. Created by Tony Hinkens and Joseph Lupiani, the park featured sculptures of four figures — Mohandas K. Gandhi, the Civil War abolitionist John Brown, women’s right activist Emma Goldman & conscientious objector Corbitt Bishop. The park was dismantled in 2007 following a change in ownership of the land it occupied. Sign said, "These individuals couraegeously exercise their right to dissent. As you rest here may their strength empower you."

August 30, 2007 - Memorial to Deserters, Theaterhaus, Stuttgart (Germany). Smaller "postive" figure in front of larger "negative" figure. Awaits a more permanent location in downtown Stuttgart. NB: More than 15,000 men were executed for desertion by the Nazi regime. This monument was opposed by all political parties. The federal government argued that "Deserters are people who avoid their responsibility to the community." Info & Image from Mark Hatlie.

May 18, 2008 - Agat Peace Memorial Monument, Agat (US Territory of Guam). "A pacifist organization of Japanese nationals living on Guam [Peace Ring of Guam] has erected a cenotaph to commemorate the deaths of tens of thousands of people there during World War II... It is engraved with the kanji for 'wa,' meaning peace, rendered by the late Shoichi Yokoi [1915-1997], a Japanese soldier who hid in the jungle on Guam until 1972 without knowing the war was over. It also bears the message 'Peace is everything' in the Chamorro language."

D E N K M A L September 1, 2009 - Deserteurdenkmal / Deserter Monument, Cologne (Germany). "Pays tribute in the form of a pergola of Swiss designer Ruedi Baur to deserters & war opponents from the time of National Socialism. Stands equidistant from 3 historically relevant buildings: The former armory (now a building of the Cologne City Museum), the EL-DE Haus, which ran the Gestapo once their torture chamber (now the Nazi Documentation Center) & the Administrative Court, were convicted in the building during the Nazi than a hundred people to death. 104 soldiers deserted in Cologne, mostly as a permanent so-called 'desertion,' sometimes only temporarily ('Unauthorized Removal'). In almost all cases, they were soldiers from the lower ranks. To read the inscription on the monument must be turned upward glance, it shows its text apparently written in the sky, without a solid background in colored aluminum letters on an area of 8 by 4 meters. Inscribed on the monument: 'Homage to the soldiers who refused to fire on the soldiers who refused to kill the people who refused to torture the people who refused to denounce the people who refused to brutalize people who refused to discriminate against people who refused to laugh at the people who showed courage, as the silent majority and followed.' [Google translation]" Info courtesy of Peter van den Dungen.

Summer 2010 - New stainless steel markers at graves of the "Alcatraz Martyrs," Friedhof/Cemetery, Rockport Colony (Hutterite), Hanson County, South Dakoka (USA). 18 miles from Alexandria, SD. Hutterites Joseph Hofer [1894-1918] & Michael Hofer [1893-1918] died as a result of "persecution [in Alcatraz & Leavenworth prisons] for their religious beliefs during World War I, in an era before alternative service was effectively implemented for conscientious objectors... The deaths of the brothers were a main catalyst for the mass movement of Hutterites [from the USA] to Canada." See books by Joanita Kant (2011) & Duane Stolzfus (2013). /// Information courtesy of Andrew Bolton (Community of Christ, Indepndence, MO).

September 10, 2011 - Manitoba Conscientious Objector Memorial, Bethel Heritage Park, Winkler, Manitoba (Canada). "The Wall of Remembrance, a peace memorial & teaching aid recognizing all 3,021 Manitoba conscientious objectors during World War II,... is part of a concerted community effort, supported by donations, to do the right thing with a hectare (acre) of land in the middle of town. When their old Bethel Hospital was demolished 5 years ago, the city council heard proposals, from which emerged an educational park showcasing their diverse community. The result was an outdoor classroom along a walking path with: An entrance gate similar to Mennonite villages in Ukraine, storyboards depicting Winkler's history, war memorial for veterans, peace memorial to conscientious objectors (CO's) & garden features (fountain, gazebo, flowers). Though the majority (55% in 2001) are of Mennonite descent, with 10 of 19 churches being Mennonite, other denominations of Germans from Russia & Jews have co-existed for generations."

October 30, 2011 - Stone tablet for Augusto Masetti, Bologna, Via Castelfidardo (Italy). Augusto Masetti [1888-1966] was an anarchist & anti-militarist Italian who was involved in a case of insubordination to military orders on October 30, 1911, when the military was leaving for the war in Libya. Tablet unveiled on the centenary of this act of resistance. Inscribed "Il soldato che disse no alla guerra." / "The soldier who said no to war." Information courtesy of Vittorio Pallotti & Peter van den Dungen.

September 9, 2012 - Cairn to Conscientious Objectors, 10th Avenue NE, Altona, Manitoba (Canada). "A memorial to the many thousands of people who chose alternative service instead of military service during wartime. 'This community was founded by people who came here [from Ukraine] because they were conscientious objectors,' said Bernie Loeppky, a spokesman for the local group that spearheaded the project. 'A marker like this is much more than a memory, it is also a teaching tool. From this marker we expect people will ask questions as to why people chose to be a CO.' // In Canada, conscientious objectors were often assigned to an alternative civilian service during the war as a substitute for conscription or military service. Loeppky says those who chose alternative service made contributions that have benefited the country. // A fairly large crowd turned out for the ceremony on Sunday afternoon. The monument has a bronze plaque attached to a stone that stands about 8 feet tall. Loeppky says conscientious objectors date back to the early Church. // Loeppky says it has been a long process in getting to this point. 'Originally, many of the COs that were part of this did not want to be recognized. However, after some time, we managed to generate some enthusiasm and interest. We did one in Winkler [qv, 40 km West of Altona] earlier, and other memorials are being planned in locations throughout Canada.'" /// Information courtesy of Conrad Stoesz, Archivist, Mennonite Heritage Centre, Winnipeg, 13Nov2013.

Date? 2014 - Memorial plaque, near the People's Palace, Glasgow Green, Glasgow (Scotland). Inscription: "In memory of those who opposed World War One in order to challenge the purpose of the war and the waste of lives. /// They also campaigned for social and economic justice and against the exploitation of those who lived in the city [of Glasgow] during the war." ("During World War I, the anti-war movement held mass demonstrations on the Green. In September 1914, John Maclean held his first anti-war rally under [Admiral Horatio] Nelson's monument [43.5 metres tall, erected in 1806]. The Military Service Act of 1916, led to a rally on the Green, which resulted in 12 months imprisonment for the three lead speakers under the DORA. On 29 June 1916, David Lloyd George was invited to receive the freedom of the city, which led to mass protests on the Green. In May 1917, workers marched through Glasgow to the Green in support of Russia's February Revolution. Another result of World War I, was increased migration to the city of munitions workers. The resulting rent increases led to protests on the Green in 1920.") Information courtesy of Peter van den Dungen.

G R A V E

November 1, 2017 - Grave of Conscientious Objector Ben Salmon, Mount Carmel Cemetery, Hillside (near Chicago), Illinois (USA). "The Friends of Franz [Jägerstätter] & Ben [Salmon] collected donations to have the stone placed on Ben's unmarked grave. On All Saints Day 2017, his grave was marked with the stone shown [here]...inscribed "There is no such thing as a just war." /// Benjamin Joseph Salmon [1888–1932] was an American Christian pacifist, Roman Catholic, conscientious objector & outspoken critic of just war theory, who believed no war could be morally justified." Information courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.

Proposed in 2004 - "The Welcoming," Nelson, British Columbia (Canada). Also known as the "Draft Dodger Monument." "A 60-foot Peace-Sign base of rock & pools of water, with the '3-fingered' end of the Peace-Sign indicating the journey from all parts of the US, & where the 'Water Arches' indicate the US/Canadian border, where there is an American man & woman being welcomed by a Canadian with outstreached arms & welcoming hands." "Roughly 125,000 Americans crossed the border into Canada during the 1960's & 1970's because of their opposition to the Vietnam War. Many settled in the Nelson area... The plan got the attention of FOX-TV News in the US & has come under fire from Americans, veterans groups & some Canadian politicians. As a result of the criticism, the city of Nelson, afraid of alienating US tourists, has distanced itself from the proposal." "More recently, servicemen deserting from America's war with Iraq have found their way to Nelson."

Future - Monument to the unknown deserter, Nottuln, North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany). "FI Nottuln plans a monument to the unknown deserter. For many years, FI Nottuln [has been interested in] the issue of desertion. This is a reclamation of a historical theme -- desertion in World War II -- also known as resistance against National Socialism. And it deals with desertion today -- the still existing obligation [of being] forced to kill. It is [also] about the so-called military service."

Future - National Peace Museum of Conscientious Objection & Anti-war Activism, Stockade, Presidio, San Francisco, California (USA). "In these days of yet another war of choice, based on misinformation and ideological goals instead of matters of national security, we feel that it is critically important to establish, for the first time in America, a museum honoring conscientious objection and anti-war activism within and outside the military. In order to prosecute any war, a nation must call on its young men and women to be willing to lay down their lives in service to their country. Whether they know it or not, each individual member of the military must make their personal decision to participate in that war. Many times the rationalization for the war has been distorted by the government, and the individual cannot know the true cause and motives of their country. Sometimes an individual will have deep moral grounds for objecting to all wars, seeing that corrupt policies and inattention to the misery of others is the root cause of war. They say that peace can never be the result of war. Other times an individual will find themselves in the midst of war, and realize that the basis for it is false, or that the tactics will violate international war crime laws. To honor those who have taken a moral stand, whether against all wars, some wars, or specific tactics, we propose that a museum be established to archive their stories and present to the public their alternative views of military service. We further propose that the museum be located in the stockade building of the Presidio of San Francisco - the site of notable protests in the 1960s and imprisonment of many of those active duty army personnel who opposed the Vietnam War. The former military base is now managed by the Presidio Trust, governed by a board of directors. It is our hope to gather enough supporters to submit a proposal to the Presidio Trust to reserve the building, for the eventual establishment of the museum."