Guarlford War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial with later additions following the Second World war.

Reasons for Designation

Guarlford 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 the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20.

Architectural interest:

* as an accomplished and well-realised war memorial, which takes the form of a granite cross on a tapered shaft with base and stepped plinth.

Group value:

* the cross forms a group with the Church of St Mary, Guarlford, which is listed (Grade II).

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, 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.

The war memorial at Guarlford appears to date from about 1920, with additions made after the Second World War. Names of the fallen are recorded inside the church on wooden boards installed in 2015.

Details

A village war memorial of about 1920 with additions and alterations from around 1945.

MATERIALS: rock-hewn granite with applied bronze ornaments and inset lead lettering.

DESCRIPTION: the cross stands in the north-western corner of the churchyard of the church of St Mary, Guarlford (Grade II), by the gate, on a platform of raised earth that allows it to be seen above the churchyard wall which, effectively forms part of its structure. The cross and shaft stand on a base of three steps and the plinth is contiguous with the top of the churchyard wall.

The road front faces north east. The cross has a Celtic circle head with a tapered shaft which shows a sword in relief. At the bottom of the shaft is a bronze laurel wreath in relief. The three steps have smooth rectangular panels at their centres which bear inscriptions. The topmost says: ‘TO THE GLORY OF GOD / AND IN UNDYING MEMORY / OF THE MEN OF GUARLFORD’. The next step reads: ‘WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR / 1914 – 1918’. Below this are crossed laurel fronds in bronze relief, and below that the words: ‘AND IN THE WORLD WAR / 1939 – 1945’. The lowest step is inscribed ‘MAY THEY REST IN PEACE’. In front of this, and set into the top of the wall, which forms the plinth, is a metal trough for flowers. The sides and rear of the memorial are bare and there are no names recorded on the monument.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials website, accessed 08/01/2018 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/229110/

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