Charlotte Rampling furious after discovering headstone of war hero grandfather was one of 800 crushed into gravel for drainage ditch in 'utterly shameful' desecration

Published: 23:54, 8 August 2026 | Updated: 23:57, 8 August 2026 Hollywood royalty Charlotte Rampling has joined growing condemnation of the British Army's decision to destroy more than 800 gravestones belonging to soldiers who fought in Iraq during the two world wars. The film star - whose grandfather is one of those whose headstone was removed, ground into gravel and used to make a drain - described the desecration at Basra War Cemetery in southern Iraq as 'utterly shameful'. Ms Rampling, 80 - who learned about the scandal after reading the Mail on Sunday's exclusive report - backed calls from ex-Army chiefs for the Ministry of Defence to replace the gravestones, removed during the war in Iraq in 2003. The Army claimed that the gravestones and 80 panels engraved with the names of the war dead were removed amid fears that they could be destroyed or vandalised by locals. It appears they were to have been returned after the war - but within 18 months they were instead ground down and used to make a drain in an Army base nearby. Ms Rampling's grandfather, Horace Johnson Rampling, died from heatstroke in 1917 during the First World War and was buried at the cemetery, but his grave is now one of around 3,000 that are unmarked. She joined calls from former defence chiefs and MPs for the cemetery to be restored - or for a new memorial to be commissioned in its place. Lord Richard Dannatt, a former head of the Army, and Field Marshal Lord Richards of Herstmonceux, the former Chief of the Defence Staff, were both critical of the decision to destroy the headstones. British actress Charlotte Rampling poses on the red carpet before the screening of the movie 'L'Ordine Del Tempo' The British First and Second World War cemetery in the Southern Iraq city of Basra where it is said Iraqi Militia used the headstones for target practice Ms Rampling, who shot to fame in Georgy Girl in 1966, told The Mail on Sunday: 'I think the desecration of these graves is utterly shameful and I support any effort to create a lasting memorial to include the names of the soldiers who gave their lives for our freedom.' Ms Rampling - nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for 45 Years in 2015 - also revealed that she had recently been reunited with a so-called 'death penny', a bronze plaque sent to the next of kin of fallen British Empire soldiers. The coin had been lost for more than 100 years but was found by a collector in Texas, who reunited it with the actress. She added: 'My grandfather's death penny is back in the family after maybe 100 years. 'It turned up in Austin, Texas, where it was bought by an antiques dealer who tracked me down and shipped the penny to us free of charge so that it could be reunited with the family. 'The world is not all bad. There are still some beautiful random acts of kindness out there.' Among those whose gravestones were destroyed was Victoria Cross recipient Major George Godfrey Massy Wheeler, of the 7th Hariana Lancers. He was posthumously awarded Britain's highest gallantry honour in April 1915 after fighting the Turks near Shaibah, which, ironically, is the same location where his gravestone was destroyed. Pictured: Charlotte Grampling's grandfather Major George Godfrey Massy Wheeler Horace Johnson Rampling death penny, which ended up in the US, but was traced back to Charlotte's family and returned. Ben Obese-Jecty, pictured talking on Robert Peston's political TV show on June 3 During the First World War, up to 45,000 British Empire troops died fighting or from illness in Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq. A further 5,000 died during the Second World War. Across Iraq, tens of thousands of Commonwealth servicemen who died during the two World Wars and the intervening years are buried or commemorated in war cemeteries and on memorials. Since the publication of The Mail on Sunday article, relatives of other soldiers who died fighting in Mesopotamia have reacted with a mixture of anger and disbelief. The decision to destroy the gravestones was exposed by Ben Soppitt, whose grandfather, Gunner Joseph Soppitt, was also buried in Basra War Cemetery. Mr Soppitt managed to obtain details from the Ministry of Defence through a series of Freedom of Information requests containing material the Government did not want to publish. The Information Commissioner ordered the MoD to release the information. He believes that the cemetery could be fully restored now that relative peace has returned to southern Iraq. He said: 'There are detailed maps identifying all of the graves. There is no reason why the cemetery could not be restored to what it once was.' Mr Soppitt has made a High Court application for Judicial Review into the decision, with the aim of holding the MoD accountable. Tory MP Ben Obese-Jecty, a former Army officer who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, said he would table questions in the House of Commons to establish the reasons behind the destruction of the gravestones. He said: 'The removal and destruction of the headstones from Basra War Cemetery in Iraq, not by vandals, thieves or a hostile power, but by the British Army itself 20 years ago, simply beggars belief. 'The decision to crush the headstones and use them as rubble to fill a ditch should shame us. 'It's essential that we ensure the memory of our war dead is preserved. We cannot afford to let that commitment fall short because it is inconvenient or difficult.  'The new Secretary of State must put right this mistake in his capacity as chairman of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.' Lord Richards, who served as Assistant Chief of the General Staff at the time the gravestones were destroyed, told The Mail on Sunday: 'I am deeply saddened by what happened to this cemetery. With the benefit of hindsight there is of course no excuse.  'However, I have no doubt that in the dangerous and febrile environment of Basra at the time, the officers who took this decision thought they were doing the right thing.' The MoD has refused to comment on the MoS revelations, saying it is unable to do so because of the High Court action.