NZ Remembrance Army member and Te Awamutu resident Rowan Miller
An unexpected window of sunshine doused Hautapu Cemetery on Sunday as a new headstone was unveiled for decorated WW1 soldier, Sergeant Adam Cunningham.
Standing at Sgt Cunningham’s new gravestone are, from left, Cambridge RSA vice-president George Pringle, Cambridge RSA president Graham Johns, RNZRSA district president (Waikato, King Country, Bay of Plenty) Jon Broadley, RNZRSA national president Tony Hill, and New Zealand Remembrance Army’s Alan Sherris and Rowan Miller. Photo: Viv Posselt
Cambridge News 23 April 2026
The unveiling, more than 80 years after his death, marked the culmination of efforts by the New Zealand Remembrance Army (NZRA) and Cambridge RSA to restore Cunningham’s name and story to public memory. Until Sunday, he lay in an unmarked grave.
The highly decorated soldier served with the First Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade. His courage during WW1 is said to have helped turn the tide of the war on the battlefields of France and earned him both the Military Medal (MM) and the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM).
NZRA man, Cambridge’s Alan Sherris, said Cunningham was a man of extraordinary courage … “yet for decades his grave told nothing of who he was or what he gave. The headstone puts his name back where it belongs and ensures his service is never forgotten.”
Sgt Adam Cunningham.
Cunningham earned the MM at Heburterne, France, on July 15, 1918. On the night before an assault, he volunteered to patrol alone to map German positions and report back with critical intelligence that shaped the next day’s attack. When his platoon was pinned down, Cunningham ordered covering fire, crawled forward under heavy fire and confronted the enemy machine-gun crew at bayonet point, forcing their surrender. He then turned the captured weapon on retreating enemy troops, allowing his men to advance safely.
Later the same year, he received the DCM after leading a bold charge with just 12 men against a heavily occupied trench following an enemy counterattack. His audacity caught the Germans by surprise, resulting in the surrender of 50 enemy soldier with minimal New Zealand casualties. He was wounded on November 6, 1918, shortly after the attack on Le Quesnoy. His service ended just days before the Armistice was signed on November 11 of that year.
Sharing his story at Hautapu Cemetery was Te Awamutu-based NZRA member, Rowan Miller.
Members of the Hamilton Cadet Corps and the Musical Allsorts during the service. Photo: Viv Posselt
Some of those who attended the unveiling on Sunday. Photo: Viv Posselt
She said Sgt Cunningham was born in Scotland on May 20, 1897, and came to New Zealand around 1909. He went on to fight in the battles of the Sommes, Messines and Passchendaele, and when injured, spent time recuperating in England. It was during this time that he also married in Scotland.
Once the war was over, he returned to New Zealand and worked on the Karāpiro hydro-electric project. He was killed in a workplace accident on January 1, 1941, aged 53, and was buried in Cambridge without a headstone.
Alan Sherris said unmarked graves are common in New Zealand cemeteries, which is why the NZRA works to identify and commemorate veterans buried without recognition.
“Sergeant Adam Cunningham survived the horrors of the Western Front only to die building New Zealand’s future,” he said. “He deserves to be remembered, not just in archives, but in stone and in the living consciousness of our community.”
Taking part in the service were members of the Hamilton Cadet Corps, the Musical Allsorts, RSA bugler Doug Rose, and Cambridge and Districts Pipe Band member Gerard Rooney.
Some of those who attended the unveiling on Sunday. Photo: Viv Posselt
NZ Remembrance Army member and Te Awamutu resident Rowan Miller telling Sgt Cunningham’s story at the Hautapu Cemetery unveiling. Photo: Viv Posselt
