Coventry Society founder member Paul Maddocks tells the story of one of the more unusual memorials at Coventry Cathedral. Paul writes…..
Twenty-five years ago, in 2001, the Memorial Stone for ‘Unknown Civilians Killed in War’ was placed at Coventry’s St Michael’s Cathedral—and it still feels relevant today. You can find this distinctive headstone, which came from the Peace Abbey in America, on the north side of the old Cathedral.
Originally, the stone was intended for London’s Westminster Abbey, but there was some reluctance as there were already many memorials in and around the Abbey. Many people suggested it should come to Coventry, known for its message of peace and reconciliation. Coventry Cathedral agreed, and it was placed in perpetuity during a special ceremony beside the ruins of St Michael’s Cathedral, which had been bombed during the Second World War.
My own involvement came through the ‘caisson’—the cart used to carry the one-ton granite memorial stone. Lewis Randa, founder of the Peace Abbey at the University of Massachusetts Boston (a centre for peace, social action, public policy and the arts), was looking for somewhere to store it. Someone at the Cathedral suggested the Transport Museum might be able to help.
When I met Lewis Randa, I found him a fascinating character. He told me about the original memorial stone at the Peace Abbey, unveiled by Muhammad Ali in 1992, and how other stones were being taken to parts of the world that had suffered the loss of civilians in war. Coventry was the latest to receive one.
At the time, I was exhibitions officer at the Transport Museum, and I had a temporary gallery space where the caisson could be displayed until arrangements were made to ship it back to the Peace Abbey for its next journey.
There was just one problem: the caisson was still outside the Cathedral. It had no engine, and the people who had been pulling it had long since departed—so how were we going to move it? I asked Tom from the workshop to take Lewis and me over in the museum van. We attached a tow rope and set off, with Lewis perched on the seat to steer.
What Tom didn’t realise was that the caisson had never travelled faster than walking pace—and it only had a single brake. He took us onto the ring road. When I turned to check on Lewis, I could see him bouncing up and down on the seat, as the caisson had solid tyres and no suspension at all. By the time we arrived—after what is, in reality, quite a short journey—he looked thoroughly windswept.
The caisson went on display at the museum alongside material explaining its journey and the story behind it. It was well received, and many visitors went on to the Cathedral to see the memorial stone itself.
The original idea had been to place a Memorial Stone for ‘Unknown Civilians Killed in War’ at Arlington National Cemetery, as a counterpoint to the national Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. In 1999, a team from the Peace Abbey mounted a one-ton stone on a specially built two-ton caisson and pulled it 500 miles to Arlington. As it passed through towns and cities along the east coast, people joined in—cheering, offering water, or taking a handle and helping to pull.
However, when the stone reached Arlington, it was not allowed into the cemetery. Political pressure halted it, as the memorial was considered too controversial—particularly at a time when the phrase ‘collateral damage’ was being used to describe the accidental killing of civilians. The stone was taken back to the Pacifist Memorial in Sherborn, Massachusetts where it now serves as a touchstone where prayers for peace are offered and commitments to peace-making are strengthened.
However, a copy of the stone was made and toured many other cities in the USA, Ireland and England before being installed beneath the walls of the ruined Coventry cathedral in 2001.
Another stone was made and American peace activists participated in pulling it over 375 miles from Nagasaki to Hiroshima, expressing sorrow at the loss of life and injury caused by the bomb. It arrived on the 60th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb.
In recent years the Stonewalk initiative has expanded to include other global tragedies. In 2021, a new memorial stone was introduced to commemorate victims of pandemics throughout history, including COVID-19.
The Peace Abbey is dedicated to creating models for society that empower individuals to follow paths of nonviolence, peace-making and cruelty-free living. It offers programmes and resources that inspire people to speak out and act on issues of peace and social justice. Faith in action is at the heart of its work, and activist pacifism is its guiding principle. Today, the Peace Abbey’s materials and holdings have been incorporated into the University of Massachusetts Boston.
To find out more about other monuments and works of art in Coventry dedicated to peace and reconciliation, explore the Peace Trail.
