Summary

A stone war memorial cross of 1921.

Description

A war memorial cross of 1921 date, designed by Henry Stafford de Bertodano and constructed by Messrs Webb & Son of Chippenham.

MATERIALS: of dressed Portland, Blue Pennant and Hopton Wood stone.

DESCRIPTION: a war memorial cross on a three-stepped square base surmounted by a square tapering plinth. The Celtic wheel cross is based on the cross of St Martin on the island of Iona. It has elaborate carved Celtic designs across the cross and shaft. The plinth has moulded relief panels inscribed on the N and S faces 1914 1919/ TO/ OUR GLORIOUS DEAD/ (NAMES). The E and W faces are inscribed with names of the fallen.

The memorial stands at the centre of a road junction and its four corners are protected by painted bollards.*

* Pursuant to s1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that these aforementioned features are not of special architectural or historic interest.

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 Malmesbury 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 to the men of Malmesbury who fell in the First World War was unveiled and dedicated on 20 March 1921 at a ceremony attended by Lt Col LE Morrice and the Revd Dr Forrest Browne. It was designed by Henry Stafford de Bertodano of London as shown on his drawing of 4 February 1920. The war memorial is shown on the Ordnance Survey Map of 1921. The memorial was restored in 1988.

Reasons for Listing

Malmesbury War Memorial 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 sacrifice it has made in the First World War;
* Architectural interest: a well-crafted cross design in dressed Portland, Blue Pennant and Hopton Wood stone;
* Degree of alteration: the structure is unaltered;
* Group value: on a prominent road junction surrounded by listed buildings.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66478759

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

• 
  Harrow on the Hill: A photographic portrayal of listed buildings and structures (Historic Buildings Picture Guides)
• 
  London 6: Westminster (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England): Westminster v. 6
• 
  Surrey (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Liverpool: Pevsner City Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)