St Edward's War Memorial, Leek

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled on 6 March 1922, with later additions for the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

St Edward’s War Memorial, Leek, unveiled on 6 March 1922, 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 and ornate wheel-head cross with Celtic-style carved decorative details;
* Group value: with the Parish Church of St Edward the Confessor (Grade II*), churchyard lych gate, railings, and gates (Grade II), and medieval churchyard crosses (Grade II and scheduled monument).

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 Leek 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 and associated plaque at St Edward’s Church, Leek were both funded through public subscription at a cost of £800. A service of dedication was held on 6 March 1922 during which the memorial cross was unveiled. The service was conducted by the Reverend E Spink, a former vicar of St Edward the Confessor Parish Church, and attended by civic dignitaries and the officers and men of the 3rd Staffordshire Battery (Territorial Force), Royal Field Artillery. The brass plaque inscribed with the names of the fallen was subsequently mounted on the rear wall of the church and was dedicated on 29 October 1922.

In 2010 the memorial was repaired with the help of grant aid from War Memorials Trust.

Details

MATERIALS: Roche limestone.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial consists of a Celtic-style wheel-head cross with shortened cross-bar arms that rises from a tapering shaft. Both cross and shaft are rectangular in plan.

The front and rear faces of the cross and upper two-thirds of the shaft are recessed resulting in a border in relief that is flush with the lower third of the shaft. The side faces of the shaft are similarly recessed. The front face of the cross and shaft are decorated with Celtic-style carved interlacing motifs with the ‘IHS’ Christogram at the centre point of the cross arms in relief. The rear face bears a carved Sword of Sacrifice in relief. The shaft rises from a rectangular block plinth of broad frontage with rounded upper edges which is set upon a three-stepped square base.

The front face of the plinth is inscribed 1914 – 1919/ TO THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND IN HONOURED MEMORY OF THOSE/ WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR/ THEIR NAMES ARE GRATEFULLY RECORDED/ ON THE TABLET IN THE CHURCH./ ‘GRANT THEM LORD ETERNAL REST’.

The left face of the plinth read: ALSO/ IN HONOURED MEMORY/ OF THOSE WHO FELL IN/ THE WORLD WAR/ 1939 – 1945.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Online, accessed 21 July 2016 from www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/node/74132
War Memorials Register, accessed 21 July 2016 from www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/51210
War Memorials Trust, accessed 21 July 2016 from www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=826

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