Summary

First World War memorial, dating from the early 1920s.

Description

First World War memorial, likely to have been unveiled in the early 1920s.

MATERIALS: constructed of granite.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial takes the form of a Celtic wheel-head cross which stands on a rectangular, tapered plinth and two-stepped base. The cross head and the shaft are decorated with Celtic-style interlace carvings. The N and S faces of the arms of the cross each feature a carved fleur-de-lis motif. The plinth is inscribed on the N face with IN/ GRATEFUL MEMORY/ OF THE MEN OF/ THE PARISH AND CONGREGATION/ OF S. CLEMENT’S/ WHO FELL WHILE SERVING IN/ THE GREAT EUROPEAN WAR/ 1914-1919. The W face of the plinth features the names of the 66 men from the community who lost their lives during the First World War. The S face is inscribed with ‘‘GREATER LOVE/ HATH NO MAN THAN THIS/ THAT A MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE/ FOR HIS FRIENDS’’/ S. JOHN XV 13.

This List entry has been amended to add sources for War Memorials Online and the War Memorials Register. These sources were not used in the compilation of this List entry but are added here as a guide for further reading, 6 June 2017.

History

The aftermath of the First World War saw the biggest single wave of public commemoration ever with tens of thousands of memorials erected across England. This was the result of both the huge impact on communities of the loss of three quarters of a million British lives, and also the official policy of not repatriating the dead, which meant that the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss. One such memorial was raised at the Church of St Clement, Worcester as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

The war memorial at the Church of St Clement is first recorded on the Ordnance Survey map of 1928, and is likely to have been erected in the early 1920s.

Reasons for Listing

The war memorial outside the Church of St Clement, Worcester is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this local community and the sacrifices it has made in the First World War;
* Architectural interest: as a well-executed and distinctive wheel-head cross with intricate Celtic carvings;
* Degree of survival: the memorial survives unaltered and in its original location;
* Group value: the memorial has a strong visual relationship with the Church of St Clement including gates and railings to the west (Grade II).

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66478692

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  The Victorian House Manual (2nd Edition): How They Were Built, Improvements & Refurbishment, Solutions to All Common Defects - Includes Relevant ... ... Properties (Haynes Manual) (Haynes Manuals)
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  The Listed Buildings and Other Principal Structures at the Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey
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  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
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  Warwickshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Yorkshire West Riding: Leeds, Bradford and the North (Pevsner Architectural Guides / Buildings of England)
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  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas