Alderbury War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled 22 November 1919, with Second World War additions.

Reasons for Designation

Alderbury War Memorial, which is situated on a grassed area between The Green and the main road through the settlement, 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.

Architectural interest:

* an elegant wheel-head cross memorial.

Group value:

* with the Grade II-listed Memorial and Water Trough.

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 Alderbury as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

Discussions were held by the parish council in early 1919 about proposals to erect a war memorial for Alderbury. Land was donated by Lord Radnor, Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie, to extend the village green to allow for the erection of a permanent memorial on this site. The memorial was sculpted by mason Thomas Soper of Salisbury and paid for by public subscription. The choice of the wheel-head cross for the memorial is reported in a contemporary newspaper article (Salisbury Times, 28 November 1919) as the result of a compromise between those in the community who wanted a more pronounced cross and those who did not want a cross at all.

The memorial was unveiled on 22 November 1919 by Lord Radnor, and dedicated by the Reverend T H Jervis. It commemorates 26 local servicemen who died in the conflict.

The names of the 14 parishioners who fell during the Second World War were subsequently added to the memorial.

Details

First World War memorial, 1919, with Second World War additions.

DESCRIPTION: Alderbury War Memorial is located on a grassed area between The Green and the main road through the settlement; to the west on the other side of The Green is an early C20 Memorial and Water Trough (Grade II-listed).

The war memorial is of Chilmark stone and comprises a wheel-head cross above a moulded collar, which surmounts a tall, four-sided, tapering shaft. The whole rises from a narrow, square base. The principal inscriptions and names are on the cross shaft; all lettering is incised, painted black.

Both the west and east faces of the shaft have the inscription, 1914 – 1919 / THESE DIED IN WAR/ THAT WE AT PEACE MIGHT LIVE. The 26 names are recorded beneath the inscriptions, 13 to each face. The south face of the shaft reads, 1939 – 1945/ THESE DIED IN/ WAR, THAT WE AT/ PEACE MIGHT LIVE./ (14 NAMES).

To the upper surface of the base around the four sides of the shaft are the words, (west) THEIR NAME/ (south) LIVETH FOR/ (east) EVERMORE/ (north) ECCLUS XLIV. 14.

The memorial stands within a square gravelled area with small stone posts to each corner. Two small stone flower holders stand on the base to either side of the shaft.


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, 31 January 2018.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 27 October 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/57004
War Memorials Online, accessed 31 January 2018 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/242506

Other
Transcriptions of various Parish Council and War Memorial Committee Minutes dated 1919 (County Records, Trowbridge, ref 2142)
Transcription of article 'Alderbury's Memorial', from Salisbury Times, 28 November 1919 (Salisbury Reference Library)

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