''Menin Gate at Midnight'' (also known as ''Ghosts of Menin Gate'') is a

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 ...

painting by Australian artist Will Longstaff. The painting depicts a host of ghostly soldiers marching across a field in front of the

Menin Gate The Menin Gate ( nl, Menenpoort), officially the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, is a war memorial in Ypres, Belgium, dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the Ypres Salient of World War I and whose graves ...

war memorial. The painting is part of the collection of the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. Longstaff painted the work after attending the unveiling of the Menin Gate memorial, at

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality c ...

in Belgium, on 24 July 1927. The memorial commemorated those men of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

, including Australia, who died in the battles of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and have no known grave. Walking around the streets of Ypres after the ceremony, Longstaff was said to have seen a "vision of steel-helmeted spirits rising from the moonlit cornfields around him". Returning to London, Longstaff was reported to have painted the work in a single session, while "still under psychic influence". The painting was immediately popular. It was purchased by

Lord Woolavington James Buchanan, 1st Baron Woolavington, (16 August 1849 – 9 August 1935), known as Sir James Buchanan, Bt, from 1920 to 1922, was a British businessman, philanthropist, and racehorse owner and breeder. Early life Buchanan was born in Brockv ...

for 2,000 guineas and presented to the Australian government. After a royal command viewing at Buckingham Palace for

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

and the Royal family, the painting was displayed in Manchester and Glasgow. It was then taken around Australia, where record crowds paid to view the work. Longstaff oversaw the making of 2,000 prints, and 400 of those were given to the nascent Australian War Memorial to sell to raise funds.

Related works

The success of this work led Longstaff to paint three later companion pieces with a similar ghostly, spiritualist theme as can be seen below:

References

External links

Painting page at the Australian War Memorial

Unveiling of the painting at Aeolian Hall in 1929
Australian paintings 1927 paintings War paintings Paintings in Australia Collections of the Australian War Memorial {{20C-painting-stub