First World War centenary

The First World War centenary is the centenary of World War One which starts in 2014 and will last until 2018. Countries which are planning official commemorations include Australia, New Zealand, France, the UK and Turkey.

European Union
Europeana has three digital projects to commemorate the First World World across Europe. These will make a range of materials freely available on the web.
 * Europeana Collections 1914-1918, which will make available 425,000 items from European libraries.
 * Europeana 1914-1918, which digitizes and makes available stories and objects brought to collection days across Europe.
 * EFG1418, the European Film Gateway collection of films and related documents from the war.

Australia
In Australia, the occasion is known as the Anzac Centenary. Committees planning the event include the National Commission on the Commemoration of the Anzac Centenary and the Anzac Centenary Advisory Board. The government has budgeted $83.5M for a seven year programme which will include commemorative events in Australia and overseas; educational activities and resources; and refurbishments of galleries and war graves. For more information visit the Anzac Centenary website

France
In France, the government will carry out a policy of national remembrance. An early start was made in 2011 with the opening of Le Musee de la Grande Guerre in Meaux on Armistice Day.

United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the Imperial War Museum (IWM) is leading a national programme of commemorative events and is planning new galleries for the occasion. In May 2010 the museum launched its First World War Centenary partnerships. Partner organisations receive access to IWM collections objects and expertise, and to digital resources, branding and a collaborative extranet. By November 2011, 330 national and international organisations had become partners. The museum will also open a new permanent First World War exhibition at its London branch, as part of a £35 million redevelopment of the building.

In November 2011 it was announced that Prime Minister David Cameron had appointed Andrew Murrison MP as his special representative for First World War centenary commemorations. On 11 October 2012, Cameron announced £50 million to fund national centenary commemorations. The anniversaries of Britain's declaration of war on Germany, the opening of the Battle of the Somme, the Battle of Jutland, and the November 1918 Armistice will be marked by national commemorations. The redevelopment of the Imperial War Museum, where Cameron delivered his speech, will be supported by an additional £5 million. A further £5.3 million will fund visits to Western Front battlefields by pupils from English schools. The Heritage Lottery Fund will provide £15 million to community projects, led by young people, to conserve local heritage associated with the war. In addition the preservation of the former Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Caroline, which served at the Battle of Jutland, will be supported by a grant of up to a million pounds.

The Heritage Lottery Fund is providing funding to educational projects in fields such as local history, online access to museums and archives, youth heritage projects, family history, the preservation of war memorials, and the conservation of historic artefacts.

The BBC will mark the centenary period with around 2,500 hours of television, radio and online programming over four years. The programming will include documentaries, drama, arts and music, commemorative programmes and programmes for children and schools.

New Zealand
New Zealand government agencies and other organisations are working together on commemorations to mark the centenary, which is being identified as WW100. The commemorations are being led by the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, Hon. Christopher Finlayson. A WW100 Programme Office has been established by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage along with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the New Zealand Defence Force and the Department of Internal Affairs.

New Zealand's centenary commemorations will honour those who fought, but will also tell the stories of the people who remained at home. $17 million in lottery funding has been allocated by the Lottery Grants Board to commemorate the First World War Centenary.

The New Zealand Government’s key centenary projects include the development of a National War Memorial Park in Wellington, an education / interpretation centre at the National War Memorial, a series of new histories, and heritage trails in Gallipoli and along the Western Front.

A First World War Centenary Panel has been established, chaired by Brian Roche of New Zealand Post. The Panel's role is to advocate for the First World War Centenary, attract sponsorship or philanthropic support for centenary projects, coordinate with any equivalent bodies overseas, particularly Australia; and provide advice to the government on the centenary commemorations. Dame Anne Salmond, Bob Harvey, Dr Monty Soutar, Matthew Te Pou and Sir Peter Jackson are all involved.

In addition to local and national activities, New Zealand will also participate in international commemorative activities.

Turkey
Official Anzac Day commemorations will be held at Gallipoli Turkey on 25 April 2015 to mark the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landing. For information on the commemorations including ballot arrangements for those planning to attend, visit the Gallipoli 2015 website

International organisations
The Red Cross has an archive of records about the twenty million soldiers that were captured or buried by other countries. It plans to put all these paper records online for the centenary.