The Memorial will form a catalyst for an on-going fundraising campaign to support military and equine charities after all memorial costs are paid. Our principal beneficiaries will be The Household Cavalry Foundation and the Mane Chance Sanctuary. Other complementary charities will also be supported.
The Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger bought this sculpture, which is one of only 100 that will be produced, for his wife Annie.
HM The Queen will be given the first maquette and others will be presented to Downing Street, The Imperial War Museum and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.
These beautiful maquettes, which are cast in the Black Isle Bronze Foundry in Nairn, in Scotland, and hand finished by the sculptor Susan Leyland, cost £20,000 each.
If you are interested in buying what we are sure will become a collector’s item then email us at
susano@thewarhorsememorial.org or telephone 07836 229208
Purple Poppy Appeal
We are reintroducing the purple poppy to support our project and our chosen charities, and are liasing with Australian War Animal Memorial charity to seek a tie-in with their important work.
The Imperial War Museum says of the purple poppy:
“The poppy is the enduring symbol of remembrance of the First World War. It is strongly linked with Armistice Day (11 November), but the poppy’s origin as a popular symbol of remembrance lies in the landscapes of the First World War.
“Other charities sell poppies in different colours, each with their own meaning but all to commemorate the losses of war. White poppies, for example, symbolise peace without violence and purple poppies are worn to honour animals killed in conflict.”
Just as the red poppy creates annual awareness and income to support The Royal British Legion, it is our intention to use the potential the purple poppy offers our project, and make it a poignant and symbolic image to represent all that The War Horse Memorial stands for. Through a variety of merchandising offers – initially badges, seeds, watercolour prints and Christmas and greetings cards – and by creating a special National Purple Poppy Day on August 23 every year, we hope to grow business and funds year on year to support our chosen charities.
Our project, we believe, will tap into the public’s generosity of spirit and humanity and patriotism, and a Pageant of the Horse in Ascot or Windsor in August 2018 will allow us to test the market on a local population before we role the Purple Poppy Appeal to a wider, national audience.
The Purple Poppy Appeal will launch with a national photocall in central London in August 2018 (date to be confirmed).
We will have Christmas cards and limited edition prints of the War Horse in a field of purple poppies available for sale by September 2018.