Back in Ireland, Robert’s father and siblings became increasingly concerned. It wasn’t until early 1941 that they heard from him, but by 1944 rumours began to circulate of Robert’s death.

The CWGC began to investigate and discovered that Robert had continued to work at Valenciennes until November 1943, when he was arrested for “striking a German who kicked flowers placed on graves by French ladies”. He was further suspected of aiding Allied soldiers and airmen to escape, and was sentenced to be shot, although this was later commuted to 15 years confinement in a German fortress.

Robert ended up at the prison fortress of Diez-Hess. Here, fellow inmates later testified that he was brutally assaulted by a guard in July 1944. He received only rudimentary medical treatment and subsequently died on 16 December 1944, having been transferred to Waldheim Camp, in Saxony, Germany.

After the war, his friends among the citizens of Valenciennes, raised a subscription for a memorial to Robert and approached the CWGC for permission to erect it in Valenciennes Communal Cemetery. The request was approved and the plaque was unveiled by the Mairie of Valenciennes on Sunday 11 July 1948, in the presence of Robert’s brother and sisters, where it remains to this day.

The local conditions required the CWGC to adapt its template for cemetery construction. Pedestal grave markers were favoured over headstones due to the risk of earthquake, and a more discreet Cross of Sacrifice, embedded into the walls of some cemeteries, was chosen in what was a predominantly Muslim country. The difficult climatic conditions made caring for the cemeteries challenging but Tasman’s staff (a mix of Turks and White Russians exiled members of the anti-Bolshevik forces) got the job done and respected him – affectionately calling him Millington Bey.

Equally delicate, at times, were relations with the Turkish authorities, but here Tasman excelled with his optimistic outlook and knowledge of the language. “By his firmness and tact he…succeeded in creating and maintaining excellent relationships with the Turkish authorities and with all with whom he has been brought into contact.”

The fact that he was an Australian helped. On one occasion, when the Commission was accused of preventing local farmers from using fields adjoining the cemeteries for grazing their sheep, the CWGC was able to respond by stating that ‘as Australians in charge we are delighted to see sheep roaming around as it gives us a feeling of home’!

As travel to Gallipoli was beyond the reach of most, Tasman and his wife sent a piece of Gallipoli back home to Australia in the form of a parcel of “historic earth” and a bundle of wild flowers.

Tasman was awarded an O.B.E. in 1934 and eventually retired in 1961. He died on 10 December 1963 and is buried in Sidcup Cemetery, Kent

He was survived by his son, who was baptised Bernard Anzac Millington on 25 April 1922 at Anzac Cove and served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

David spent most of his time hidden indoors but as time wore on he occasionally ventured outside, disguised as ‘Mademoiselle Louise’! He was sometimes accompanied by one of Madame Julie’s neighbours, a young woman called Aimee, who would one day become David's wife. David's luck eventually ran out in September 1916 when he was discovered by the Germans during a house search.

Initially suspected of spying and sentenced to death, David’s sentence was commuted, and he spent the rest of the war in a German prisoner of war camp.

After the war, David joined the IWGC and was employed as an assistant gardener, based in Le Cateau. He spent 3 years working on the cemeteries before leaving to begin a new life with his wife in Paris.

As one of the first CWGC staff to be sent to France and Belgium, he experienced first-hand some of the discomforts and difficulties facing the fledgling organisation and its personnel. Many years later, his wife, Margaret, would recall their first winter and how the family became involved in her husband’s work.

“My husband and I went out with our little daughter Philippa in September 1918(19)? I think. We lived in a Nissen hut in the camp....The first winter was so cold we used to warm the cutlery handles in hot water or our fingers stuck to the metal.

“I remember so well going out in a lorry with my husband and Philippa to find isolated graves and Philippa very often spotted them before we did and she'd say ‘eres one Daddy’.”

In those early years, the horticultural treatment of the cemeteries could vary considerably. So, in 1924, the Chief Horticultural Officer, Captain J.S. Parker, wrote to all the Horticultural Officers with a proposal to adopt a ‘certain method of decoration’ in the cemeteries. Each was invited to write a paper and to submit them anonymously to be judged.

The nine essays were submitted under code names, such as ‘Sweet Pea’, and ‘Rhetoric’, but we know Francis was the author of the winning proposal – ‘An Idea’. He suggested that ‘roses and hardwoods should be used as extensively as possible’, and that, ‘massed effects should generally be aimed at’ and ‘overcrowded planting should be avoided’. He stressed that the different variations in soil, climate and aspect, as well temperature, rainfall and even the density of the headstones need to be borne in mind, and somewhat tongue in cheek also reminded the judges that ‘the architect seems to think he must be appeased’.

Today, we follow a standard approach not that dissimilar to the one suggested almost a century ago. Francis remained with the CWGC until his retirement in 1956.

Charles took up his position as a gardener with the IWGC on 28 April 1922, working at Villers-Bretonneux. The location, synonymous with Australian service and sacrifice on the Western Front, would become his “home” for the next 40 years.

Following the construction of the memorial in 1938, Charles was seconded to the Australian Government as its caretaker. His expanded role included meeting and escorting visitors around the memorial.

One particular encounter from August 1938 has survived in the CWGC archive in the form of a letter written by the unknown ‘A Londoner’. The correspondent wrote to draw attention to the ‘vast number of “trippers” of all sorts’ who were coming to the memorial, and was particularly upset with ice cream sellers. “The gardener told me he had told the ice-cream man six times to go further away but as soon as his back was turned they came back. Mr Atkin has… no-one at the entrance to keep the “gens mal elopes” in order.”

Ice cream sellers were to be the least of Charles’ problems in the coming years, for with the outbreak of the Second World War, he had to leave his beloved memorial and evacuate his family to England.

The memorial and cemetery suffered considerable damage during the war (the memorial was used as an observation post by the French Army and suffered from shell and mortar fire), and when the site could eventually be visited in October 1944, it was found that over 1000 headstones in the cemetery had been damaged, of which ‘approximately 500 had disappeared altogether’.

Charles returned to Villers-Bretonneux in 1946, to restore and maintain the site and he remained in his post as caretaker of the memorial until his retirement in 1961.

“There is a shared passion by all those who maintain our cemeteries and memorials; I have met many colleagues around the world and whenever we sit together the subject never changes - it is always about what we do and how we do it.

“The conditions of Gallipoli have not changed much since Tasman’s time in that the ground is unstable, weather conditions are extreme, there are no water resources and the access roads to our cemeteries are still a big challenge.

“I am proud of what I am doing, and I am proud of what my staff are doing. They really work hard and when we hear compliments it makes our day. I feel proud when I meet a visitor who says we are doing a great job and especially proud because we keep memories alive and remind people of the sacrifices made. My biggest challenge is to keep the standards as high as my predecessors.”

Perhaps the biggest difference between Gautier’s work and that of his predecessor, Charles Atkin, is that Gautier is part of a mobile group – responsible for multiple cemeteries rather than just one site.

“A typical day will start with mowing and edging the borders before weeding and cutting any dead bloom, cleaning the register box and checking the register and visitors’ book. Once done, we will move onto the next cemetery and start the sequence again.”

The biggest change Gautier’s seen has been the use of mulching – returning fine clippings to the lawn rather than collecting – and climate. “We seem to be getting much longer, dryer spells for which our turf needs to be well prepared to resist scorching or dying.”

Like most CWGC staff, he is passionate about the job he does.

“I am particularly proud of the work on the Villers-Bretonneux cemetery frontage. This was an enormous task with tens of thousands of shrubs and it was very satisfying to have participated in such an excellent job.

“The appreciation from many visitors who often thank us for doing our duties is very motivating indeed.”

“I have worked in different areas including the Somme, Normandy and Egypt and have worked as Horticultural Training Officer and Head Gardener before becoming Senior Head Gardener. There have been quite a lot of changes in my time here, the main difference being more machines, but the standards are the same.

“Facilities were rudimentary back in the day. Gardeners used to sit in small sheds or ’mess rooms’ for lunch with a log burner in the corner. We had to keep repairing chimneys to make sure the smoke went outside instead of inside! Mobile phones didn’t exist, and we would get post, not emails. Today we have base sites with vans, tools, mess rooms, showers and toilet facilities.

“At Etaples we have 13 staff; the youngest is 24 and the oldest is 64. Our day starts with a quick meeting and our hours change to fit in with the different seasons and daylight hours. Our two biggest challenges are keeping on top of everything and the weather. We had the ‘Beast from East’ storm in 2018 but this spring was completely different. We look after 33,000 graves with 12,000 at Etaples and 7.5km of borders to maintain.

“I still take enormous pride in what I do and enjoy talking to veterans. It’s like seeing old mates. They tell their life stories but unfortunately they are becoming fewer but we get more schools now which is great.”

While there are a number of staff who have a long CWGC lineage – some colleagues have more than 50 years of experience and may even be the third generation of their family to work for us – the site in Gaza is unique in that its history is so closely linked to one family.

Ibrahim, the youngest member of the family says; “I’m a son of the cemetery. I’ve grown up with these men.”

The cemetery dates from the First World War and operations against the Ottoman forces in the area. Today, it contains more than 3,600 burials.

Each generation of the family have passed on their passion and knowledge. Given the difficulty in sending regular supplies into Gaza, the team have learnt to innovate and have their own nursery – using a century of knowledge to grow jasmine, bougainvillea and chrysanthemums that thrive in the climate.

On occasion, the cemetery has become embroiled in the ongoing politics and conflict of the region but the Jaradahs have stood firm and even protected their beloved cemetery from harm.

Today, Ibrahim is pleased to see the hundreds of school children who visit the site each month. They come for various reasons but always leave with one of his history lessons ringing in their ears!