Appleby Cemetery War Memorial Obelisk

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled on 23 September 1921, with Second World War additions.

Reasons for Designation

Appleby Cemetery War Memorial Obelisk, which stands in the municipal cemetery, 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 memorial obelisk in a local limestone, standing in a prominent position in the cemetery, in the Classical style.

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 cemetery at Appleby-in-Westmorland as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by 58 local men and one woman, Nurse Hilda Hodgson VAD (d1918), who died during the First World War.

The initial proposal for a war memorial in the town was to erect a memorial cross in the churchyard outside the Church of St Lawrence. However, the local Branch of The National Federation of Discharged Soldiers and Sailors objected strongly to the location. Due to the disagreement it was eventually determined that the town would have two memorials: the cross in the churchyard and another memorial in the municipal cemetery that had been opened before the war. More names are recorded on the cemetery obelisk than the churchyard cross.

The war memorial in the cemetery was unveiled on 23 September 1921 by Colonel JW Weston, MP for Westmorland, and dedicated by the Reverend G Wheelhouse, the vicar of St Michael's Church. The limestone for the obelisk came from a quarry near to Crosby Ravensworth, around 11km to the south-west of Appleby.

Following the Second World War, the dates of that conflict and the names of 9 casualties were subsequently added to the memorial.

Details

The limestone memorial is located at the centre of Appleby Cemetery. It takes the form of an obelisk, square on plan, standing on a tall plinth with a moulded cap incorporating relief-carved wreaths within round-headed pediments to each side. It terminates in a chamfered, square block foot. That surmounts a four-stepped, square base.

The plinth carries the inscriptions in applied metal lettering. The principal dedication to the front face reads TO/ THE GLORIOUS DEAD/ IN HONOUR AND LOVING APPRECIATION/ OF THOSE FROM THE PARISHES OF/ APPLEBY S. LAWRENCE AND APPLEBY/ S. MICHAEL WHO LEFT HOME AND/ KINDRED AND IN THE CAUSE OF FREEDOM/ MADE THE SUPREME SACRIFICE./ "NO HATE WAS THEIRS NO THIRST FOR FAME/ WHEN FORTH TO DEATH BY HONOUR SENT/ LIFE BECKONED SWEET THE GREAT CALL CAME/ THEY KNEW THEIR DUTY AND THEY WENT."/ 1914 – 1918

The later Second World War dedication to the front face of the foot below reads 1939 - 1945/ (9 NAMES). The commemorated First World War names are listed on the remaining faces of the plinth.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 9 march 2018 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/3055
War Memorials Online, accessed 9 March 2018 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/168196/
‘The Appleby Legion.’ Appleby-in-Westmorland Society, accessed 9 March 2018 from http://www.appleby-in-westmorland-society.org.uk/article_item.php?id=85
'The Women Left Behind.' Appleby-in-Westmorland Society, accessed 1 May 2018 from http://www.appleby-in-westmorland-society.org.uk/article_item.php?id=79

Other
‘War Memorials’, The Yorkshire Post, 26 September 1921, p9

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