Upminster War Memorial
St Laurence Church, Corbets Tey Road, Upminster, RM14 2BB
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1433648
- Date first listed:
- 18-Apr-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Upminster War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- St Laurence Church, Corbets Tey Road, Upminster, RM14 2BB
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1433648
- Date first listed:
- 18-Apr-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Upminster War Memorial
- Location Description:
- TQ5598886476
- Statutory Address 1:
- St Laurence Church, Corbets Tey Road, Upminster, RM14 2BB
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- St Laurence Church, Corbets Tey Road, Upminster, RM14 2BB
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- Havering (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ5598886476
Summary
First World War memorial, 1921, with later additions for the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
Upminster War Memorial, which stands on Corbets Tey Road, 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 conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: an intricately carved Celtic cross;
* Group value: with the Church of St Laurence (Grade I-listed).
History
Upminster War Memorial was unveiled on 8 May 1921 by Brigadier General CH De Rougemont CMG CB DSO at a well-attended ecumenical service led by the Rector, Reverend HH Holden. Paid for by public subscription, the memorial was designed by Mr C Harrap of Upminster and built by Messrs Pilgrim and Sons of Ilford. It commemorates 66 local servicemen who died during the First World War. Following the Second World War, further inscriptions were added in commemoration of 123 service personnel and 18 civilians who died as a result of that conflict. New plaques were added to the plinth at a later date.
Details
The memorial stands in a paved enclosure alongside Corbets Tey Road and at the eastern end of the churchyard of the Church of St Laurence (Grade I). The enclosure was originally fenced to the front (this is not of special interest). The memorial comprises a Portland stone Celtic cross standing on a tapering, square, plinth. The plinth is raised on a three-stepped York stone base. The front face of the cross is decorated with intricate interlace carving and, to the rear, a reversed sword carved in low relief.
The faces of the plinth bear dark stone plaques. The principal dedicatory inscription to the front reads TO THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND IN/ PROUD AND GRATEFUL/ MEMORY OF THE PEOPLE OF/ UPMINSTER/ WHO FELL IN THE/ TWO WORLD WARS/ 1914 – 1918/ 1939 – 1945/ AND SUBSEQUENT CONFLICTS/ THEY WERE A WALL UNTO US/ BOTH BY NIGHT AND DAY/ (1ST SAMUEL. XXV.16)
The plaque on the north face reads WORLD WAR 2/ FORCES (NAMES). That to the west reads (NAMES)/ MERCHANT/ SEAMAN/ (NAMES)/ CIVILIANS/ (NAMES). The south-facing plaque reads WORLD WAR I/ (NAMES). On the front face of the bottom step of the base is carved SACRED ALSO TO THE MEMORY OF/ THOSE WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1939 – 1945/ AND SUBSEQUENTLY.
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, 16 February 2017.
Sources
Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 16 February 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/12007
War Memorials Online, accessed 16 February 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/111626
Other
“Upminster”, The Chelmsford Chronicle, 13 May 1921, p2
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 04-Jun-2026 at 05:47:53.
Download a full scale map (PDF)© Crown copyright [and database rights] 2026. OS AC0000815036. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey Licence number 100024900.© British Crown and SeaZone Solutions Limited 2026. All rights reserved. Licence number 102006.006.
End of official list entry