Morton War Memorial
Junction of Stretton Road, Main Road and Church Lane, Morton, Derbyshire, DE55 6GS
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437844
- Date first listed:
- 13-Sept-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Morton War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- Junction of Stretton Road, Main Road and Church Lane, Morton, Derbyshire, DE55 6GS
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437844
- Date first listed:
- 13-Sept-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Morton War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- Junction of Stretton Road, Main Road and Church Lane, Morton, Derbyshire, DE55 6GS
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:
- Junction of Stretton Road, Main Road and Church Lane, Morton, Derbyshire, DE55 6GS
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Derbyshire
- District:
- North East Derbyshire (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Morton
- National Grid Reference:
- SK4081260137
Summary
First World War memorial with further names added after the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
Morton 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;
* Design: an elegant and striking Latin cross sited within its original well-executed enclosure.
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 Morton as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.
Morton War Memorial was paid for by public subscription and the land on which it stands was donated by Miss Gadsby who lived at Church Farm, adjacent to the site.
The memorial was sited in a raised paved semi-circular enclosure defined by railings and a low stone wall, mapped on the 1938 Ordnance Survey map. In 1953 money raised at Coronation festivities in the village was donated to the Memorial Committee to provide entrance gates to the memorial’s enclosure with stepped access.
A bronze plaque which carries the inscription might also have been added then as it carries the Second World War names and contemporary photographs reveal that the inscriptions were originally incised into the stone plinth.
In 2012 the memorial and railings were repaired with the help of grant aid from War Memorials Trust.
Details
MATERIALS: Rowsley sandstone.
DESCRIPTION: the war memorial comprises a Latin cross surmounting a shaft with a Sword of Sacrifice carved in relief onto its front face.
The cross rises from a tapered stone plinth which bears a bronze plaque with the names of the 21 men from the village who fell in the First World War and the 12 who fell in the Second World War. The plinth is set on a square base, which stands on a stone step above the level of the paved enclosure.
The inscription on the plaque reads: THE GLORIOUS DEAD/ 1914 – 1919/ (NAMES)/ 1939 – 1945/ (NAMES).
The memorial stands in a raised stone-paved, semi-circular enclosure, accessed by two steps. The enclosure is defined by a low stone wall as a backdrop with iron railings at the front furnished with decorative entrance gates.
Sources
Websites
War Memorials Trust, accessed 12 July 2016 from www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=939
War Memorials Register, accessed 12 July 2016 from www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/14210
Morton War Memorial, accessed 12 July 2016 from http://mortonparishcouncil.org.uk/history/war-memorial/
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 27-Jun-2026 at 14:06:54.
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.