Bognor Regis and District War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, 1921, with later additions for the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

Bognor Regis and District War Memorial, which stands at the junction of Clarence Road and Belmont Street, 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: a memorial pillar in the Classical style;
* Group value: with Bognor Regis Town Hall (Grade II).

History

A temporary First World War memorial was erected in 1919 on the High Street, Bognor Regis. The permanent stone memorial, erected in Waterloo Square, was unveiled by Major-General Sir J F Daniell KCMG on 11 November 1921 at a ceremony attended by local dignitaries and clergy. Mr Bridges RIBA, the Town Surveyor, and Mr Tillott Barlow collaborated in the design and the memorial was built by Messrs Seymour. Cartage for the materials was donated by Captain R W Angell and the Urban District Council provided the land: public subscriptions collected on 13 December 1920 covered the remaining costs.

The memorial was moved to its current position in front of the Town Hall in 1929. An inscription was added following the Second World War to mark that conflict and tablets with commemorated names were constructed either side of the First World War memorial.

Details

MATERIALS: Cornish grey granite.

DESCRIPTION: The memorial is set back from the road on the corner of Belmont Street and Clarence Road, in front of Bognor Regis Town Hall (Grade II-listed). The memorial comprises a tall pillar, rectangular on plan, capped with a decorated entablature. The pillar stands on a plinth that is raised on a three-stepped base.

Four margents appear to hang from the entablature, one at each corner of the pillar. A wreath carved in low relief on the front of the pillar encloses the dates 1914/ 1918. Below this an inscription reads TO THE MEMORY OF THE/ GLORIOUS DEAD/ OF BOGNOR & DISTRICT/ 1939/ 1945.

On the front face of the plinth an inscription reads “SONS OF THIS PLACE LET THIS OF YOU BE SAID/ THAT YOU WHO LIVE ARE WORTHY OF YOUR DEAD/ THESE GAVE THEIR LIVES THAT YOU WHO LIVE MAY REAP/ A RICHER HARVEST ERE YOU FALL ASLEEP.”. This is taken from Reverend Royds’ ‘Inscriptions Suggested for War Memorials’. A small bronze plaque is attached to the uppermost step of the base, reading THE NAMES OF THOSE WHOSE MEMORY IS/ HERE COMMEMORATED WILL BE FOUND ON THE/ TABLET IN THE VESTIBULE OF THE/ WAR MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: Four small flower vases are placed one on each corner of the memorial’s bottom step. Two freestanding stone walls either side of the memorial display Welsh slate panels bearing 260 names of the fallen from the Second World War. These features are not of special 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, 5 December 2016.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 05/12/2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/16629
War Memorials Online, accessed 05/12/2016 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/107295

Other
The Chichester Observer, 1 December 1920
The Observer & West Sussex Recorder, 16 November 1921

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