High Etherley War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, 1920, with later additions for the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

High Etherley War Memorial, which stands in the churchyard of the Church of St Cuthbert, 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: an elegant obelisk in the Classical style;
* Group value: with the Church of St Cuthbert (Grade II-listed).

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

The memorial was unveiled in August 1920 by Sir Arthur Pearse, in commemoration of 26 local servicemen who died in the First World War. It was provided by W Allison of Bishop Auckland at a cost of £170. Following the Second World War the names of 19 men who died in that conflict were added and unveiled on 11 November 1947 by Councillor TE Thompson, Chairman of the Parish Council.

Details

The memorial stands in the churchyard of the Church of St Cuthbert (Grade II-listed), to the west of the church tower. It takes the form of a tall granite obelisk, square on plan, that rises from the pedimented top of a pedestal. The pedestal stands on two sandstone steps. The monument is enclosed by a low square kerb.

The principal dedicatory inscription on the front face of the pedestal reads “VICTORY THROUGH SACRIFICE”/ IN HONOUR/ AND TO THE MEMORY OF/ THE MEN OF/ ETHERLEY, TOFT HILL,/ MORLEY, AND WINDMILL,/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR/ THEIR COUNTRY/ IN THE GREAT EUROPEAN WAR/ 1914 – 1918. The east face of the pedestal records the First World War names followed by “THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE.” On the west face, below the dates 1939 – 45, are recorded the Second World War names, two of which are on the pedestal foot.

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, 23 November 2017.

Sources

Websites
North East War Memorials Project, accessed 27/07/2016 from http://www.newmp.org.uk/detail.php?contentId=7493
War Memorials Register, accessed 7 February 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/10352
War Memorials Online, accessed 23 November 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/253800

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