A new memorial in Cape Town honors 1,772 Black South African servicemen who died in non-combat roles during World War I and have no known graves. According to The Associated Press, these men, members of the Cape Town Labor Corps,

Princess Anne, President of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), on Wednesday officially unveiled the CWGC Labour Corps Memorial in Cape Town to commemorate the contribution of more than 1 700 non-combatants who died while participating in Britain’s First World War effort in Africa.

More than 1,700 Black South African servicemen who died in non-combat roles on the Allied side during World War I and have no known grave have been recognized with a memorial more than a century later.

A memorial in Cape Town recognises 1,772 Black South African servicemen who died in non-combat roles during WWI, preserving their legacies.

She is president of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) and will unveil the institution’s Cape Town Labour Corps Memorial, which honours more than 1,700 South Africans who carried out non-combat jobs and died with no known grave or commemoration.

Hundreds of South African servicemen, mostly black, who died during World War One have been honoured with a new memorial in Cape Town after going unrecognised for more than a century. The 1,772 men worked in dangerous and gruelling non-combatant roles in East Africa but until now, they had no known grave or commemoration.

Princess Anne has honoured black South African servicemen who died in non-combat roles during World War I. Anne unveiled the Cape Town Labour Corps Memorial as president of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission on Wednesday.

While South Africa has several memorials dedicated to white soldiers who died in the world wars, Black servicemen’s contributions were ignored for decades.