There's some corner of a foreign field that is for ever England.
Never were the words of Rupert Brooke more apt – though we must add Scotland, Wales and Ireland to his original verse – than in the Falklands, where islanders have named beaches, bays, harbours, islets and inlets after the 258 souls killed in the 1982 conflict.
Every British Serviceman killed in the liberation of the islands – 255 in all – plus three locals who lost their lives have been honoured by today’s inhabitants of the South Atlantic island chain, an honour connected with last year’s 40th anniversary of the war.
The result is the Falkland Islands Memorial Map, with 258 previously-unnamed stretches of coastline, beach or ridges among other geographic features, plus a string of roads around the Mount Pleasant complex, now bearing the names of all those listed on the Roll of Honour.
So you can pay your respects by climbing Rundle Rocks on the western approaches to the capital Stanley in memory of Royal Marine landing craftsman Marine Anthony Rundle, killed when landing craft Foxtrot Four was bombed in the closing days of the conflict.
Or HMS Glamorgan’s Petty Officer Michael Adcock, a victim of an Exocet missile strike on the destroyer, immortalised with a namesake lagoon on Lively Island.
And Briggs Beach on the rugged northeastern shore of East Falkland, a permanent reminder of Petty Officer David Briggs, another victim of an Exocet missile, this time aboard HMS Sheffield.
The map is the work of three islanders – Rosemarie King, Ken Passfield and Sally Poncet – who’ve spent the past two years contacting around 70 landowners and the families of the fallen to obtain permission and approval.
The next stage of the project will be to provide photographs of the newly-named sites so families can visualise the tranquil spots.
All 258 families have received copies of the map but a copy has also been produced for the Falkland Islands Memorial Chapel at Pangbourne College in Reading.
The Bishop for the Falkland Islands, the Right Rev Jonathan Clark, blessed the large replica chart, which has been funded by the 40th Anniversary Committee in the islands, in the presence of chapel trustees, Sara Jones (whose husband Colonel ‘H’ Jones received a posthumous VC for his bravery) and Sukey Cameron (Falkland Islander and former representative of the Falkland Islands’ government in the UK).
“We are honoured to be able to display this map in the chapel for the benefit of all the families and veterans who regularly visit,” said Major General Jeff Mason, chairman of the chapel trustees.
“To have special places in the Islands, named after each of those who paid the ultimate price, will be an everlasting tribute to them.”
The dedication ceremony was followed by the annual Service of Thanksgiving and Remembrance in the chapel, attended by some 570 people, including next of kin of those who died and veterans of the 1982 war.
The list of features and the personnel they honour can be found here: Placenames
