Daily Photo – Farm Field on Otaio Cemetry Road

Usually I pass through Otaio and do not give the place much thought, apart from noticing the cemetery sign and wondering what it is like. On this occasion I decided to have a look. It was small, not far from the coast, and tucked between two farm fields. I strolled around for a bit, admiring the view, and read the inscriptions on the headstones, many of which were for those who never returned from World War I or World War II.

New Zealand’s contribution to the Allied war effort in World War I was massive. For a country with a population of less than one million, close to 20 percent of those eligible were recruited to serve, a higher proportion than any country except Britain. Around 100,000 New Zealand soldiers were sent to the battlefields, 17,000 of whom were killed and more than 41,000 wounded. There was barely a town or community in the entire country that was not affected. In cities, towns, and villages across New Zealand, war memorials were erected to honour the fallen. Hardly a surname was not represented, and some families lost all of their sons to the war.

George and Helen Lyall of South Canterbury had four sons who served in World War I: Gordon, William, Angus, and Hugh. Of the four who went to the battlefields, only Angus and Hugh came home. Gordon was killed in Belgium in 1917, and a year later his younger brother William lost his life in France. For the Lyalls, it was a huge family sacrifice. Four sons went overseas to serve, two were killed in action, and two returned. It was a heavy toll on one family, and one that was typical of many New Zealand households during the Great War.