Little Chester War Memorial
Church of St Paul, Seale Street, Little Chester, Derby, DE1 3RT
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437467
- Date first listed:
- 18-Oct-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Little Chester War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- Church of St Paul, Seale Street, Little Chester, Derby, DE1 3RT
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437467
- Date first listed:
- 18-Oct-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Little Chester War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- Church of St Paul, Seale Street, Little Chester, Derby, DE1 3RT
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:
- Church of St Paul, Seale Street, Little Chester, Derby, DE1 3RT
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- City of Derby (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- SK3554337077
Summary
First World War memorial, unveiled and dedicated in 1920, with the addition of two Second World War memorial tablets. The stone wall into which the two Second World War memorial tablets are set is excluded from the listing.
Reasons for Designation
Little Chester War Memorial at the Church of St Paul, Derby, unveiled and dedicated in 1920, with Second World War additions, 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: as an accomplished and well-realised war memorial which takes the form of an obelisk surmounted by a Latin cross;
* Group value: with the Church of St Paul (listed Grade II);
* Relation to wider context: it makes a significant contribution to the character and appearance of the Little Chester Conservation Area, Derby.
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. One such memorial was erected outside the Church of St Paul in Little Chester (also known as Chester Green), Derby, to commemorate 75 men of the parish who fought and died. It was unveiled on 9 May 1920 by the Mayor of Derby, Councillor AJ Eggerton, and dedicated by the Archdeacon of Derby, Dr Noakes, with the vicar of St Paul's, the Reverend WH Symonds, also present. The memorial was designed and sculpted by Messrs F Garratt and Sons of Nottingham Road, Derby, and cost £300, with the money being raised by public subscription. It replaced a temporary memorial which had been erected in December 1917.
In May 1922 a second parish memorial was unveiled in the form of two new rooms and a roll of honour at St Paul's Church Schools in Mansfield Street. The roll of honour recorded the names of 141 men who fought and died along with 330 men who served and returned. Following the closure of the school in 1965, and its subsequent demolition, in 1967, the roll of honour was installed in the church.
Following the Second World War, two memorial tablets were installed alongside the First World War memorial, to commemorate the 26 men of the parish who fought and died during this conflict. It was unveiled and dedicated at a ceremony held on 7 September 1947 and was again designed and sculpted by Messrs F Garratt and Sons of Derby.
In the late-C20, as part of a road improvement scheme, the memorial was moved from its original location on the west side of Mansfield Street and re-sited c7m to the north-east, within a new paved area to the north-east of the east end of the church.
Details
First World War memorial, unveiled and dedicated in 1920, with two Second World War memorial tablets placed beside it in 1947. It was re-sited in the late C20.
MATERIALS: of granite.
PLAN: the First World War memorial is rectangular on plan and faces north-east. It stands in front of a short section of late-C20 coursed rubble stone walling within which two Second World War memorial tablets are set.
DESCRIPTION: the First World War memorial comprises a two-step base on which stands a tall obelisk which tapers in rectangular section to a moulded top. Set upon the obelisk is a plain Latin cross with the centre inscribed with the christogram 'IHS'. The north-east face of the obelisk is inscribed with the names of 75 men who died, arranged by service then by rank and surname. The dedicatory inscription is inscribed on the base and reads 'ERECTED BY THE PARISHIONERS / IN LOVING AND GRATEFUL / MEMORY, AND HIGH APPRECIATION / OF THE ABOVE; WHO LAID DOWN / THEIR LIVES IN THE / GREAT EUROPEAN WAR / 1914-1920. / ON THAT HAPPY EASTER MORNING / ALL THE GRAVES THEIR DEAD RESTORE, / FATHER, MOTHER, CHILD, AND BRETHREN / MEET ONCE MORE.’
The war memorial stands in front of a late-C20 coursed rubble stone wall within which two Second World War memorial tablets are set, flanking each side of the First World War memorial. The left-hand side tablet is inscribed with the dedicatory inscription and reads ‘KEEP IN REMEMBRANCE / THE MEN FROM THIS PARISH RECORDED HERE / THEY GAVE THEIR LIVES THAT / JUSTICE, FREEDOM, LOVE AND MERCY / SHOULD SURVIVE’. The right-hand side tablet reads ‘1939-1945' below which are the names of 26 men who died. Whilst the tablets are listed the wall itself is architecturally modest and is excluded from the listing.
Sources
Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 8 July 2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/14203
War Memorials Register, accessed 8 July 2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/58735
War Memorials Online, accessed 25 January 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/195124
Other
Derby Daily Telegraph, 10 May 1920
Derby Daily Telegraph, 27 January 1919
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
The listed building(s) is/are shown coloured blue on the attached map. Pursuant to s.1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’), structures attached to or within the curtilage of the listed building (save those coloured blue on the map: a two-step base, a tall obelisk surmounted by a Latin cross and two memorial tablets) are not to be treated as part of the listed building for the purposes of the Act.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 05-Jun-2026 at 22:26:31.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.