Strelley War Memorial

Summary

First World War Memorial.

Reasons for Designation

Strelley War Memorial is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Historic interest: it is 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: it is a well detailed memorial designed by Cecil Greenwood Hare, the pupil and partner of G. F. Bodley, who has ten listed buildings to his name;

* Group value: it has group value with the nearby All Saints Church (Grade I) and Strelley Hall and stables (both listed at Grade II).

History

The concept of commemorating war dead did not develop to any great extent until towards the end of the 19th century. Prior to then memorials were rare and were mainly dedicated to individual officers, or sometimes regiments. The first large-scale erection of war memorials dedicated to the ordinary soldier followed the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, which was the first major war following reforms to the British Army which led to regiments being recruited from local communities and with volunteer soldiers. However, it was the aftermath of the First World War that was the great age of memorial building, 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.

The war memorial in Strelley commemorates the fallen from the First World War. It was designed by Cecil Greenwood Hare (1875-1932) who specialised in ecclesiastical buildings and church interiors. Hare was a pupil of George Frederick Bodley (1827-1907) whom he joined as a partner in 1907. After Bodley’s death, Hare continued to work in the Bodleian idiom.

Details

First World War Memorial

MATERIALS: sandstone.

PLAN: the memorial is located in the extended churchyard on the south-west side of Main Street opposite the Church of All Saints.

EXTERIOR: the memorial is in the form of a canopied calvary. It has a circular three-stepped base and a square, moulded pedestal with four recessed limestone tablets bearing inscriptions. One face is inscribed: REMEMBER BEFORE GOD/ THE GALLANT DEAD WHOSE NAMES/ ARE WRITTEN HERE THOUGH THEIR/ BODIES LIE IN OTHER LANDS/ AUGUST 1914-1918/ GRANT THEM O LORD ETERNAL REST/ AND LET LIGHT PERPETUAL SHINE/ UPON THEM. Another face is inscribed: THEY LOVED NOT/ THEIR LIVES UNTO/ THE DEATH. The other two faces contain dedications to four men including their name, rank, age, place and date of death, and place of burial.


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, 23 November 2017.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 13 January 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/26892
War Memorials Online, accessed 23 November 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/253709

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