Dr Arthur Anderson Martin was appointed surgeon at Palmerston North hospital in 1904 and became the Chief Medical Officer by 1913. He had served in the South African Field Force 1901, British Expeditionary Force and later served as a surgeon in the First World War. when he died of wounds at the Somme, 17 September 1916. He was the author of 'Surgeon in Khaki'.
After his death and while in England, Arthur's wife Margery commissioned the Bronsgrove Guild of Art to create a memorial tablet to be hung at All Saints' Church in Palmerston North. The tablet was cast in bronze and mounted on oak with a bas relief of the head of Dr Arthur Martin. The bottom of the tablet reads: 'This tablet is dedicated to his loving memory by his wife Margery. "In arduis fidelis"' (faithful in difficult times). The tablet is still in place on the northern wall of the church. Orginally the tablet also had a flag above it. This flag had flown over the military hospital at Bapume, where Arthur had worked. The flag became fragile and is now at Waiouru Army Museum.
