Prescot War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, 1916, sculpted by Samuel Welsby of Widnes. Re-dedicated in 1946 to commemorate those lost during the Second World War. Aberdeen granite and polished granite. Columnar memorial surmounted by a soldier from the South Lancashire Regiment

Reasons for Designation

Prescot war memorial is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impacts of world events on this community, and the sacrifices it made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Design interest: it has an elegant and distinguished design incorporating a tall classical column surmounted by a soldier from the South Lancashire Regiment, from whose ranks the fallen of Prescot were from;
* Historic interest: it is one of the earliest permanent war memorials in England, having been proposed in July 1915 and erected in September 1916;
* Group value: it has group value with the neighbouring Grade I listed St Mary's Church.

History

Prescot war memorial was commissioned by Councillor William John Lucas JP in 1915 whilst the First World War was ongoing. The memorial, which was sculpted by Samuel Welsby of Widnes, was unveiled on 9 September 1916 by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Henry Webb MP, Commander of the Prescot Barracks, for the Earl of Derby in front of a crowd of approximately 4000 people.

Of the four commemorative panels that form part of the memorial, only the dedication panel was engraved at the time of the memorial's unveiling, with the remaining three left blank to be engraved at the end of the war with the names of the fallen. The memorial was re-dedicated on 10 November 1946 to commemorate those lost during the Second World War.

Originally the memorial was located on Church Street, but following the road's widening it was moved to its present location on a plateau to the south of the Grade I listed St Mary's Church.

Details

First World War memorial, 1916, sculpted by Samuel Welsby of Widnes. Re-dedicated in 1946 to commemorate those lost during the Second World War. Aberdeen granite and polished granite. Columnar memorial surmounted by a soldier from the South Lancashire Regiment

The memorial has a square base with each face adorned with a polished granite plaque; that to the west face has engraved lettering that reads 'THIS MONUMENT/ WAS PRESENTED TO THE TOWN BY/ COUNCILLOR WM. JOHN LUCAS J.P./ DURING HIS TERM OF OFFICE AS CHAIRMAN/ OF THE COUNCIL 1915-1917/ IN MEMORY/ OF PRESCOT MEN WHO HAVE SACRIFICED THEIR/ LIVES FIGHTING FOR THEIR COUNTRY DURING/ THE GREAT EUROPEAN WAR OF 1914-1919/ UNVEILED BY LIEUT. COL. SIR HENRY WEBB BART M.P./ FOR THE EARL OF DERBY 9TH SEPTEMBER 1916'. The remaining three panels are engraved with the names of the fallen. Below the west panel is relief bronze lettering that reads 'ALSO IN MEMORY OF THOSE WHO FELL IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR 1939-1945/ DEDICATED NOV. 10TH 1946.', and below this are the names of the Second World War fallen, also in relief bronze lettering. The main body of the memorial is a tall banded-rusticated column incorporating an engaged anta (square column) to each face with a polished-granite shaft and grooved frieze (triglyph) at the top and bottom. At the base of the west anta is a carved relief of the Prescot coat of arms. Surmounting a dentilled cornice at the top of the memorial is a figure of a soldier from the South Lancashire Regiment holding a rifle, the tip of which, including a bayonet, has been removed. The bottom part of the rear of the figure, below his backpacks, is left roughly hewn as though he is stood in front of a rocky outcrop.

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, 27 January 2017.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 27 January 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/1229
War Memorials Online, accessed 27 January 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/121282

End of official list entry

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