Eynsham War Memorial
Eynsham War Memorial, The Square, Adjacent to St Leonards Church, Eynsham, Oxfordshire, OX29 4HW
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1448172
- Date first listed:
- 11-Jul-2017
- List Entry Name:
- Eynsham War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- Eynsham War Memorial, The Square, Adjacent to St Leonards Church, Eynsham, Oxfordshire, OX29 4HW
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Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1448172
- Date first listed:
- 11-Jul-2017
- List Entry Name:
- Eynsham War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- Eynsham War Memorial, The Square, Adjacent to St Leonards Church, Eynsham, Oxfordshire, OX29 4HW
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:
- Eynsham War Memorial, The Square, Adjacent to St Leonards Church, Eynsham, Oxfordshire, OX29 4HW
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Oxfordshire
- District:
- West Oxfordshire (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Eynsham
- National Grid Reference:
- SP4330509238
Summary
First and Second World War memorial. Erected in 1921 with the names of the Fallen of the Second World War added after 1945.
Reasons for Designation
Eynsham War Memorial, erected in 1921, 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;
* Design: a granite wheel headed cross bearing a bronze longsword mounted point downwards, reminiscent of Sir Reginald Blomfield’s Cross of Sacrifice;
* Group value: with the Church of St Leonard (Grade II*), the scheduled market cross, the Red Lion (Grade II), the Bartholomew Room (Grade II) and the Grade II listed houses around The Square.
History
The aftermath of the First World War saw an unprecedented wave of public commemoration with tens of thousands of memorials erected across the country, 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.
One such memorial was unveiled at Eynsham on 2 April 1921, 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 commemorates 50 local servicemen who died during the First World War – 17% of the population of the village. The memorial also names 3 members of the Eynsham Morris Men. Following the Second World War, a dedication was added to commemorate the 18 fallen of that conflict. The land the memorial is located on was purchased through a subscription fund from the nearby public house.
The memorial was conserved in 2008 with the help of grant aid from War Memorials Trust.
Details
First World War memorial. Erected in 1921. Architect unknown.
MATERIALS: granite memorial cross with bronze sword and lead lettering.
DESCRIPTION: Eynsham War Memorial comprises a granite wheel-headed cross with a bronze reversed sword on its front face. The cross rises from a tapering shaft which sits on a square plinth and two stepped base.
The front face of the plinth carries the main dedication TO THE GLORY OF GOD / AND / IN PROUD MEMORY OF / THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS / NON – COMMISSIONED OFFICERS / AND MEN OF THIS PARISH / WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES / IN THE GREAT WAR / 1914 – 1918 / “DYING AND BEHOLD WE LIVE” / (NAMES) / AND 1939 – 1945. On the two sides of the plinth and the front faces of the steps are the names of the fallen.
Sources
Books and journals
Golby, J, "Oh What A Lovely War": Patriotism And Recruitment In Eynsham, August – December 1914 in Eynsham Record, Vol. 23, (2006), 16-20
Chandler, K, Morris Dancing in the English South Midlands, 1660 - 1900, (1993), 158 - 162
Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 8 June 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/31536
War Memorials Online, accessed 8 June 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/92781/
Information from Eynsham Parish Council, accessed 8 June 2017 from http://eynsham-pc.gov.uk/org.aspx?n=Eynsham-Heritage&id=984
Information from the War Memorials Trust, accessed 8 June 2017 from http://www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=489
History of Eynsham Morris Men, from the Eynsham Morris Men website, accessed 9 June 2017 from http://www.eynshammorris.org.uk/Early_20th_century.php
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 09-Jun-2026 at 22:50:14.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
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