Penrith Boer War Memorial

Summary

Boer War memorial, 1906 by F W Doyle Jones in the form of a bronze figure.

Reasons for Designation

Penrith Boer War Memorial by F W Doyle Jones, erected in 1906 and moved to Castle Park in 1964, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

* As a witness to the impact of the Boer War on this community, which illustrates the emergence of war memorials erected by the public as a focus for remembrance;

Architectural interest:

* A striking and well detailed example of a public war memorial erected after the Second Boer War, with a well-modelled bronze statue;

* Francis William Doyle Jones is a known sculptor and artist who created a number of memorials to commemorate the Boer War and subsequently the First World War;

Group value:
* Within a public park incorporating the adjacent Grade I listed and scheduled Penrith Castle.

History

This Boer War memorial was designed by Francis William Doyle Jones of West Hartlepool, and was built by W Grisenthwaite at a total cost of £340. It is an identical memorial to that designed by Doyle Jones for Gateshead. The memorial was unveiled at its original location outside Penrith town hall by Brigadier General M F Rimington CB at a ceremony on 1 March 1906. In poor weather a large crowd attended and a band played the ‘Dead March’ and buglers sounded the last post. The monument was moved to Castle Park in 1964.

Francis William Doyle Jones (1873-1938) was a painter and sculptor born in Ireland, who concentrated on portrait sculpture, but also made a large number of war memorials. He created a number to commemorate the Boer War, including those at Middlesborough (1904), West Hartlepool (1905) Gateshead (1905) and Penrith (1906). After the First World War he made further memorials at Gravesend, Kent and Sutton Coldfield.

Details

Boer War memorial, 1906 by F W Doyle Jones.

MATERIALS: granite; bronze figure.

The memorial is located in a prominent and elevated position within Castle Park where it forms a focal point. It takes the form of a bronze winged female figure ‘Peace Crowning the Heroes’ with arms raised holding a laurel wreath aloft. The figure stands on a scrolled step with a carved bay wreath, itself surmounting a tapered plinth with draped cartouches below a cornice. The three-stepped base, which is signed with the sculptor's name, has a bay leaf pattern torus at the step. The dedication is inscribed on the front of the pedestal in black lettering and reads:

PRO PATRIA/IN MEMORY OF THE /MEN OF THIS TOWN/AND/ DISTRICT WHO FELL IN THE/SOUTH AFRICAN WAR/ 1899-1902

Fourteen names of the Fallen are inscribed below listed by regiment, rank and surname and a further two names are inscribed on the rear. To each corner there is a low carved stone pillar.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Online, accessed 26 April 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/162763/
War Memorials Register, accessed 26 April 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/3081
Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, accessed 26 April 2017 from http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=msib2_1204843722

Other
Article in The Mancheseter Courier Friday March 2 1906 recording the unveiling of the war memorial

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