A digital booklet outlining the history of the Oxford International Brigade memorial is now available to download as a PDF. The 36-page document contains many details and images about the memorial, which stands as a tribute to the 31 men and women from Oxfordshire who joined the International Brigades. Six of them died in Spain.
The memorial – created by sculptor Charlie Carter – was unveiled on 10 June of this year, after almost four years of planning, campaigning and delays.
The idea of a memorial in Oxford was conceived by Chris Davies of the Oxford & District Trades Union Council. A steering committee was set up with the help of the IBMT to co-ordinate the necessary procedures for creating and situating the memorial. Colin Carritt, whose father and uncle were International Brigaders, chaired the group and subsequently wrote this booklet as an account of how it happened.
The booklet runs through the origins of the memorial and the many setbacks that the group encountered in trying to get their proposals approved, including issues that the Oxford City Council planners had with the preferred location and the practical design of the memorial.
After some changes were made, and with widespread support from various fundraising efforts for a memorial, the memorial was eventually approved and erected at St Clement's, Oxford. The unveiling took place during a weekend of events to commemorate the International Brigade volunteers and was attended by over 200 people.
