War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor
War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor, Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses, York, YO24 1QG
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1454164
- Date first listed:
- 16-Mar-2018
- List Entry Name:
- War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor
- Statutory Address:
- War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor, Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses, York, YO24 1QG
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1454164
- Date first listed:
- 16-Mar-2018
- List Entry Name:
- War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor
- Statutory Address 1:
- War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor, Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses, York, YO24 1QG
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:
- War Memorial at the Church of St Edward the Confessor, Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses, York, YO24 1QG
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- York (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- SE5876349710
Summary
First World War memorial, 1922, by Brierley and Rutherford, with later additions for the Second World War.
Reasons for Designation
The war memorial situated in the churchyard of the Church of St Edward the Confessor, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Historic interest:
* as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this local community, and the sacrifice it has made in the conflicts of the C20.
Architectural interest:
* a high quality design by the notable architect, Walter Brierley.
Group value:
* with the adjacent church, 34 Tadcaster Road and the Cross Keys Hotel.
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 in the grounds of the Church of St Edward the Confessor in York 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 faculty license to erect a war memorial at the church was granted in April 1922. It was designed by the notable architect Walter Brierley who was also a church warden at the church, and was built by the masons George W Milburn and Son. The unveiling and dedication ceremony took place on 30 September 1922, attended by the Suffragan Bishop of Beverley and the Earl of Harwood. The memorial includes the names of 29 men who died in the First World War, with a further six names being added after the Second World War.
Walter Henry Brierley (1862-1926) was known as the Yorkshire Lutyens. He designed over 300 buildings between 1885 and 1926. These include the York board schools, a number of public buildings and a series of large houses including, Bishopsbarns (Grade II*) and Goddards (Grade I).
Details
First World War memorial, 1922, by Walter Brierley, with later additions for the Second World War.
MATERIALS: Portland stone.
DESCRIPTION: located within the churchyard of the Church of St Edward the Confessor, facing Tadcaster Road to the west, this is an elaborately carved lantern cross with a gabled canopy and pointed trefoil niches. The west facing niche contains a sculpture of the crucified Christ, the southern niche contains St George and the Dragon, the northern has a sculpture of St Edward the Confessor. The lantern is set on an octagonal shaft that rises from a four-sided, tapering plinth mounted on a square base of quarry-faced stone with finely dressed quoins and capping.
The plinth carries the inscriptions in incised lettering. The west side carries the principal inscription on inset panels and reads IN PROUD AND LOVING/ MEMORY OF THE MEN OF/ DRINGHOUSES WHO LAID/ DOWN THEIR LIVES FOR GOD/ AND COUNTRY IN THE GREAT/ WAR 1914 -1918. Below are the names of 29 men arranged in two columns in alphabetical order.
The Second World War inscription is more simply presented, inscribed on the south face 1939-45/ (6 NAMES)/ LEST WE FORGET.
Sources
Books and journals
Pevsner, N, Neave, David, Buildings of England, Yorkshire: York and East Riding, (2005), pp 90-1
Websites
Imperial War Museum. War Memorials Register, accessed 30 November 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/30797
War Memorials Trust. War Memorials Online, accessed 30 November 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/251562
St Edwards York, accessed 30 November 2017 from http://www.dringhouses-church.org.uk
Wikipedia, accessed 23 January 2018 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Brierley
Dictionary of Scottish Architects, accessed 23 January 2018 from http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/architect_full.php?id=204404
Other
Parish records of St Edward, Dringhouses (The Borthwick Institute Archives)
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 28-Jun-2026 at 02:07:12.
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