Ramsbury War Memorial

High Street, Ramsbury, Wiltshire, SN8 2QP

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Explore this list entry

Overview

First World War memorial with further names added after the Second World War.
Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1437832
Date first listed:
13-Sept-2016
List Entry Name:
Ramsbury War Memorial
Statutory Address:
High Street, Ramsbury, Wiltshire, SN8 2QP
User submitted image
Contributed by David Lovell This photo may not represent the current condition of the site. Over 400,000 images and stories have been added to the Missing Pieces Project so far. Share your story.
View all

Location

Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places. 

There is a problem

Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.

What is the National Heritage List for England?

The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.

The list includes:

Icon Buildings
Icon Scheduled monuments
Icon Parks and gardens
Icon Battlefields
Icon Shipwrecks

Find out more about listing

Local Heritage Hub

Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.

Discover more

Official list entry

Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1437832
Date first listed:
13-Sept-2016
List Entry Name:
Ramsbury War Memorial
Statutory Address 1:
High Street, Ramsbury, Wiltshire, SN8 2QP

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.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

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.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

Statutory Address:
High Street, Ramsbury, Wiltshire, SN8 2QP

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:
Wiltshire (Unitary Authority)
Parish:
Ramsbury
National Grid Reference:
SU2736871542

Summary

First World War memorial with further names added after the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

Ramsbury 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 the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: a simple yet dignified limestone memorial cross;
* Group value: with the Church of the Holy Cross (Grade I) and 27 High Street opposite (Grade II).

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, both as a result of the huge impact the loss of three quarters of a million British lives had on communities and 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 Ramsbury as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

It commemorates 65 local servicemen who died during the First World War. Following the Second World War, a dedication was added to commemorate the nine fallen of that conflict. 

In 2012 the memorial was conserved with the help of grant aid from War Memorials Trust.

Details

MATERIALS: limestone.

DESCRIPTION: Ramsbury War Memorial consists of a plain Latin cross with tapering shaft rising from a tapered plinth and two-stepped base.

The inscription is incised and painted black on the front face of the plinth and reads REMEMBER/ THE MEN OF RAMSBURY/ WHO DIED IN THE/ GREAT WARS/ TRUE LOVE BY LIFE, TRUE LOVE BY DEATH, IS TRIED:/ LIVE THOU FOR ENGLAND, THESE FOR ENGLAND DIED. Two of the other faces of the plinth are incised with the names of the fallen from the First World War.

The fourth face of the plinth is inscribed: 1939-1945 and underneath are nine names of those who lost their lives in the Second World War.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Trust, accessed 12 July 2016 from www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=963
War Memorials Online, accessed 12/07/2016 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/99967
War Memorials Register, accessed 12/07/2016 from www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/24163

Legal

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.

Ordnance survey map of Ramsbury War Memorial

Map

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 08-Jun-2026 at 08:02:39.

Download a full scale map (PDF)
© Crown copyright [and database rights] 2026. OS AC0000815036. Use of this mapping is subject to Terms and Conditions.

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.

Previous Overview
Next Comments and Photos