New Malden War Memorial
High Street, New Malden, Surrey, KT3 4HE
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1444427
- Date first listed:
- 15-Mar-2017
- List Entry Name:
- New Malden War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- High Street, New Malden, Surrey, KT3 4HE
Location
Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.
Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.
What is the National Heritage List for England?
The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.
The list includes:
 |
Buildings |
 |
Scheduled monuments |
 |
Parks and gardens |
 |
Battlefields |
 |
Shipwrecks |
Local Heritage Hub
Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.
Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1444427
- Date first listed:
- 15-Mar-2017
- List Entry Name:
- New Malden War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- High Street, New Malden, Surrey, KT3 4HE
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:
- High Street, New Malden, Surrey, KT3 4HE
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- Kingston upon Thames (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ2139068491
Summary
First World War memorial with later additions for the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
New Malden War Memorial is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this local community, and the sacrifice it has made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Design: as an attractive and imposing cenotaph war memorial.
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 in New Malden as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War. It was unveiled in a ceremony held on 8 November 1924 and attended by Private F Jackson, a local soldier who had been blinded in the war. The memorial was slightly damaged when a bomb fell nearby on 16 October 1940. It was re-dedicated to honour the Fallen of the Second World War in 1952, and then again on 3 May 1998 in a ceremony attended by Councillor Chrissie Hitchcock and Group Captain Peter Whalley.
Details
New Malden War Memorial is situated on the pavement adjacent to the High Street, New Malden.
The memorial comprises a tall, three-tiered cenotaph on a plinth and two-stepped base. The whole is surrounded by a chain supported by short posts. The front face of the upper tier of the cenotaph bears a laurel wreath carved in relief and it is topped with anti-pigeon spikes. The middle tier bears a bronze sword. The lower tier bears the inscription IN / GRATEFUL MEMORY OF / THOSE WHO GAVE / THEIR LIVES / FOR KING AND COUNTRY / IN THE GREAT WAR / 1914 - 1918. Resting on the join between the lower tier and the plinth is a plaque which reads AND THE / 1939 - 1945 WAR. The front face of the plinth bears a plaque which reads THIS PLAQUE IS TO COMMEMORATE THE CENTENARY OF / THE GREAT WAR 1914 - 1919 / AND / IN MEMORY OF ALL MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES / INCLUDING POLICE FIRE AND AMBULANCE SERVICES / WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF OUR COUNTRY / SINCE THE END OF BOTH WARS / LAID BY THE MALDEN AND COOMBE BRANCH OF THE / ROYAL BRITISH LEGION / WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.
The right and left faces of the cenotaph are inscribed with the names of the Fallen; on the lower tier these have been overlaid with bronze plaques bearing a fuller list of names. The right-face plaque commemorates Armed Forces casualties of the Second World War, there being also a smaller, newer plaque commemorating Lieutenant HOB Firman, VC. The left-face plaque honours the Fallen of the First World War, and the rear-face plaque Civilian casualties of the Second World War. The rear-face of the plinth bears a plaque reading DAMAGE TO THIS MEMORIAL / WAS CAUSED BY A GERMAN BOMB / WHICH FELL TWENTY FEET AWAY / ON 16TH. OCTOBER 1940.
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, 16 March 2017.
Sources
Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 3 February 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/12101
War Memorials Online, accessed 16 March 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/111553
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 29-Jun-2026 at 00:22:05.
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.