Wilby War Memorial
The churchyard, St Mary's Church, Church Lane, Wilby, Northamptonshire, NN8 2UG
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1440985
- Date first listed:
- 16-Jan-2017
- List Entry Name:
- Wilby War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- The churchyard, St Mary's Church, Church Lane, Wilby, Northamptonshire, NN8 2UG
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Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1440985
- Date first listed:
- 16-Jan-2017
- List Entry Name:
- Wilby War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- The churchyard, St Mary's Church, Church Lane, Wilby, Northamptonshire, NN8 2UG
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:
- The churchyard, St Mary's Church, Church Lane, Wilby, Northamptonshire, NN8 2UG
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- North Northamptonshire (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Wilby
- National Grid Reference:
- SP8670166156
Summary
First World War memorial, unveiled 1920, with later additions for the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
Wilby War Memorial, standing in the churchyard, 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 stone memorial cross;
* Group value: with the Grade II*-listed Church of St Mary the Virgin.
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: therefore the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss.
One such memorial was raised at Wilby 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 on 13 November 1920 by Sir Arthur de Capell Brooke at a well-attended ceremony. It commemorates 18 local servicemen who died during the First World War. Following the Second World War the names of four men who died in that conflict were added.
Details
The memorial stands in the south-east corner of the churchyard of the Church of St Mary the Virgin (Grade II*). It comprises a c4.5 m tall stone cross with a Latin head on a tapering square-sectioned shaft. That is set on an octagonal plinth standing on a three-stepped octagonal base.
Around the upper part of the plinth is inscribed THIS CROSS WAS ERECTED TO COMMEMORATE/ THE MEN OF WILBY WHO FELL/ IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1919. The names of those who died are recorded on the panels of the plinth. On the base of the plinth in small lettering is inscribed GREATER LOVE HATH/ NO MAN THAN THIS THAT/ HE LAY DOWN HIS LIFE/ FOR HIS FRIENDS. The date range 1939–1945, with the names of those who died in that conflict, was added to the rear of the plinth.
This List entry has been amended to add the source for War Memorials Online. This source was not used in the compilation of this List entry but is added here as a guide for further reading, 20 February 2017.
Sources
Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 31/10/2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/15023
War Memorials Online, accessed 20 February 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/216856
Other
“War Memorials”, The Northampton Mercury, 19 November 1920, p4
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 23-Jun-2026 at 05:46:28.
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.