Summary
First World War memorial, with later additions for the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
Lydiard Tregoze Parish War Memorial, which stands on Hook 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 the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: a simple yet poignant memorial cross.
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 as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by 11 members of Lydiard Tregoze parish, who lost their lives in the First World War. The memorial had been erected by 1924, when it appears on the Ordnance Survey 1:2500 County Series map for Wiltshire. Following the Second World War the names of two men who died in that conflict were added.
Details
The rough-hewn granite memorial stands in a small enclosure at the roadside on Hook Street. It takes the form of a small wheel-head cross raised on a tall tapering shaft. The shaft rises from a tapering plinth, rectangular on plan, that stands on a two-stepped base. The base is a different stone type.
End of official list entry
