Hellesdon War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, with Second World War additions. Wheel-head grey granite cross on a two-stage plinth with two-stepped base below.

Reasons for Designation

Hellesdon War Memorial, which is situated adjacent to St Mary’s 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 sacrifices it made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: as a simple but well-executed granite memorial cross;
* Group value: with the Grade II*-listed Parish Church of St Mary and the scheduled Cross in the churchyard.

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 at Hellesdon 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 commemorates 15 local servicemen who died in the First World War and 22 men who died in the Second World War. It is likely that the lower tier of the plinth bearing the names of the Second World War casualties was an addition to the original memorial. Originally the memorial stood in the north-west corner of the churchyard (where is appears on the Ordnance Survey County Series 25” map published in 1955) but it has since been moved to a position to the south of the church. A wide, paved walk to the memorial from the churchyard gateway was laid down c2009.

Details

Hellesdon war memorial stands adjacent to the churchyard of the Parish Church of St Mary (Grade II*). It is prominently situated on a small green plot of land. In rough-hewn granite, it comprises a c4m tall wheel-head cross on a two-stage tapering plinth with two-stepped base below. The plinth bears the inscriptions in attached metal lettering.

The principal dedicatory inscription to the front face of the upper stage of the plinth reads: TO THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND IN LOVING MEMORY OF/ THE MEN OF HELLESDON WHO/ FELL IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914 - 1918/ (15 NAMES), and continues below on the lower stage: 1939 - 1945/ (22 NAMES).

The cross is surrounded by a rectangular pavement of slab paving*.

* Pursuant to s1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that this aforementioned feature is not of special architectural or historic interest.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 29 March 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/19674
War Memorials Online, accessed 29 March 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/104365/

Other
Ordnance Survey Map, 25" County Series for Norfolk (1955).

End of official list entry

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