November 11 reminds us of the contributions Bermudian servicemen and women made to the cause of peace through two world wars, even sometimes paying with their lives, but after the annual parade at the Cenotaph, the memories - and gratitude - tend to be forgotten by the general public until the following year.

Part of the problem has been that there has been no ready, collective source of information and memorabilia where the public could learn about Bermuda's and Bermudians' contributions to the wars. In fact, it is probably fair to say that most of the population have no real knowledge of the overall subject of the Island's defence down through time. Until now, that is.

Following years of research, collaboration and the accumulation of contributions from war veterans and their kin, a new, permanent exhibition has opened on the ground floor of Commissioner's House, which is part of the Bermuda Maritime Museum at Dockyard.

While curator Charlotte Andrews admits that it is by no means complete, and she intends to build on its content as more and more people contribute stories, photographs and memorabilia, as well as building up the data base, the exhibition is nonetheless a start.

Entitled 'Bermuda's Defence Heritage', it is spread over twelve restored rooms, all of which are air-conditioned. Collectively, they trace the entire history of Bermuda's military aspects from 1612 to the present day. Individual rooms, many sponsored, focus on various chapters of the overall history.

One room, for example, deals with early colonial forts from 1612-1808, while another is devoted to Imperial Defences and the British military presence here from 1809-1865, and so on up to the present day.

In addition to a host of fascinating artifacts, including weaponry, military uniforms and equipment such as gas masks and tin helmets, there are telegrams, letters, ration books, pilot's logs, demobilisation papers and photographs, and much more.

In each room mounted text gives a condensed history of what its the theme is. Unlike many museums, this one provides material which is informative and interesting without overtaxing the reader, and the type size is large.

"Visitors will come away with a better appreciation of the Island's military strategy and history, historic treasures, and the great sacrifice made by former generations of Bermudians," Miss Andrews says.

Running continuously in a room of its own is a video in which war veterans recall their wartime experiences, and these make poignant listening. They also remind us just how brave these people and countless others were, many of them in the prime of their young lives. It is impossible to leave this room without being deeply touched, or reflecting on the foolishness of war when the world would be better served striving for peace.

Adjacent is a room devoted exclusively to the role women played in war: as Red Cross workers, censorettes and serving officers in the Royal Air Force. In all, 29 Bermuda women served overseas in the Second World War.

Special attention is paid to the local regiments in a room entitled, 'Local Forces and Bermudians, 1894 to the Present'. This includes the racially segregated Bermuda Militia Artillery (BMA), the Bermuda Militia Infantry (BMI), the Bermuda Volunteer Engineers (BVE's) and Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps (BVRC), as well as the Bermuda Rifles and finally the amalgamated Bermuda Regiment. Photographs uniforms, and other memorabilia make this section particularly relevant to today's viewers, but Miss Andrews would like more material.

This room also displays two cedar plaques, one recording the names of BVRC members who served overseas in the First World War, and the other recording the names of nearly all those who were killed in the Second World War. However, since the plaques do not record all of the war dead and other service personnel, the museum has rectified this by modern, additional plaques on either side of the originals to ensure that everyone is represented.

"People can come and get an appreciation for the whole history of the Bermuda regiments, which started in the 1890s," Miss Andrews says. "This is a force with an incredible history behind it and it is based on something very considerable. We are happy to bring that to people's attention. Younger generations may not appreciate the sacrifices made by so many Bermudians, both during the war and in peacetime. We think it is a long overdue for a tribute to be done to the vets, and this is a nice, quiet place where people can come to pay their respects and share in the memories."

Another room with great relevance to today's Another room with great relevance to today's viewers is 'Bermudians in the Second World War, 1939-45'. Again, memorabilia, uniforms, photographs, letters and more recall the surviving veterans who served as airmen, marines and infantry, each of which is enhanced by brief profiles with photographs. Many of their stories are intriguing, such as that of former Bermuda Militia Artillery recruit Randolph Richardson who later joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) and was an air gunner flying missions over Germany, and RAF pilot (now Sir) Richard Gorham, who flew missions in Italy, and was one of only two surviving pilots from his 22-strong squadron. Other stories are sad, such as the death of young William Cardy Hollis Hallett, who served in the RAF and lost his life in 1942 on the day before his parents' wedding anniversary; Daisy Vallis, who also served in the RAF, was killed not in battle but on her way home at war's end; and the Bermudians who joined the British Merchant Navy and were torpedoed and lost at sea.

In all 114 Bermudian men and one woman died in the two world wars, and while the story is not complete, at least it is a start. In summing up this aspect of the exhibition, the Curator says: "This is our first take. Like all our exhibits, they are always growing and developing, but we need help because we are not working from pre-gathered collections. These are subjects which have not been pursued as they should have been before, but better now than never. We want to develop the exhibits further with more detail and insight, not only into the services and the lives of the service people, but through anecdotes, etc., and as things grow it will be a changing exhibit to some extent so that we can highlight as many individuals as possible. Meanwhile, we are really grateful to the contributors, and particularly the surviving vets, for sharing their memories and their items with us."

All the artifacts and memorabilia in the world, however, are nothing without the research and hands to collate and restore them, and Miss Andrews has the highest praise for all who assisted in this project.

"We had terrific volunteers to help us over the years, and surviving veterans and next-of-kin have played essential roles in the production of the exhibit," she says.

For those who may wonder why there is so little on exhibit relating to the BVE's and the BMI, Maritime Museum executive director Dr. Edward Harris explains that this is because their history was short, and artifacts and memorabilia have not really been forthcoming.

"In discussions with museums it is clear that you have substantial problems of time and place and details of organisations, which means your artifacts base is smaller to begin with, and even smaller when people die and don't pass the material on. The BMA and BVRC, for example, were in existence for 60 years or more before they amalgamated, whereas the BVE's came in the 1930s and basically disappeared with the war. This is a problem when you are collecting things."

Children will no doubt delight in the weaponry on display, including a Vickers machine gun, a rare rifled muzzle loader from the 1870s, and in particular a mini-fort in the 'Early Colonial Forts' room. Entitled 'Fort Lynross', it includes two little cannon, and an imaginative painting by local artist Graham Foster, in which the sponsors of this room,William and Ann Westerfield, and their grandchildren are incorporated.

In fact, many of the rooms have been sponsored, two by companies and others by private individuals.

Since its rebirth in 2000 after a more than 20-year restoration campaign, Commissioner's House has introduced Museum visitors to numerous heritage exhibitions which aim to capture the spirit and history of the Bermudian people, and this latest - complete with telescopic sea views viewed through oval windows let into the 12-foot thick walls - has all the hallmarks of a perennial winner.

Certainly Dr. Harris could not be more pleased - so much so, in fact, that a book is in the offing.

"A number of war veterans have been hoping for an exhibit of this nature for many years, and being in the centre of the military establishment in Bermuda in the Royal Naval Dockyard, it was highly appropriate to use the ground floor of Commissioner's House for that purpose. We are absolutely delighted with the response from war veterans and their families, and it was a privilege to be able to work with those service personnel who are still with us to complete this very large exhibit," he said. "We would like the public to understand that we are continuing to collect memorabilia on the subject of Bermuda's military heritage, and as the response thus far has been so great, we are looking to produce a large book on the subject in a few years' time. So we would really like to thank all of those people and the donors who are the foundations of what has become a very, very successful and much appreciated exhibit."

For further information on contributing to the data base or exhibits, contact Miss Andrews at (234-1333 ext. 105, fax 234-1735, or e-mail curatorbmmibm.bm