Auckland military historian Herb Farrant is leading the campaign for a permanent memorial museum in the northern French town of Le Quesnoy to honor New Zealanders who served in Europe during both world wars. 12,500 New Zealander soldiers are buried in France and Belgium. Mr Farrant, who is the secretary of the New Zealand Memorial Museum Trust says New Zealand's contribution to the Great War beyond Gallipoli is not well understood or appreciated. He has been leading tours to France and Belgium for 20 years, visiting the battlefields, memorials and graves of New Zealanders who served in both world wars. The Memorial Museum Trust has been offered a stately building in Le Quesnoy, in which the museum could be established, but it needs to raise millions of dollars to turn it into a reality.
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