Barlaston War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled on 23 April 1926 and designed by Frederick Landseer Maur Griggs. Second World War additions.

Reasons for Designation

Barlaston War Memorial, which is situated at the junction with Longton Road and Station Road, 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:

* a well-executed Greek cross memorial;

* designed by the renowned etcher, illustrator and architect, Frederick Landseer Maur Griggs.

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 Barlaston 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 was unveiled on 23 April 1926 by Private William Lowe and dedicated by the Reverend AC Oliver. The memorial was designed by Frederick Landseer Maur Griggs of Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire and built by Robert Bridgeman and Sons, Lichfield. It originally commemorated 18 servicemen who died in the First World War, with an additional name included at a later date.

A further seven names were added to the war memorial following the end of the Second World War for those who died in that conflict.

In 2001 the memorial received grant funding from the War Memorials Trust for minor repair work.

Frederick Landseer Maur Griggs (1876-1938) was an important etcher, illustrator and architect known for his Arts and Crafts style, including designing his own house the Grade II*-listed New Dover’s House (1927-37). An early member of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, Griggs played a central role in founding the Campden Society in 1925, which sought to protect the town’s heritage. He designed the war memorial in Barlaston without charge. His numerous other war memorials include those at Chipping Campden and Painswick, Gloucestershire, and Broadway (Worcestershire) (all Grade II-listed).

Details

First World War memorial, 1926, with Second World War additions.

DESCRIPTION: Barlaston war memorial is located on the village green to the west of Longton Road at the junction with Station Road.

It is of red sandstone and takes the form of a Greek cross with cusps at the angles between the cross arms. The cross crowns a tapering octagonal shaft with a moulded collar and terminates in a square foot with inverted chamfered stops. The shaft rises from an octagonal corniced plinth with moulded foot. That surmounts a four-stepped octagonal base.

The main inscription is carved in relief around the frieze of the plinth, reading in an anticlockwise direction and starting on north-east face: TO THE GLORY/ OF GOD AND IN/ MEMORY OF ALL/ WHO FELL IN THE/ GREAT WAR OF/ MCMXIV-XVIII AND/ ESPECIALLY THOSE/ OF THIS PARISH. The 19 names of those who lost their lives during the First World War are incised beneath the carved inscription on the plinth faces.

The south face of the top step of the base bears the inscription 1939-1945 with the seven names of those who died in the Second World War incised on faces of the step directly below.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Online, accessed 19 March 2018 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/110241/
War Memorials Register, accessed 01 March 2018 from https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/13560
Hawkins, E J, ‘More Memories of Barlaston’, Barlaston Parish Council website, accessed 19 March 2018 from http://www.barlaston.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Ernest-2.pdf
Hopkins, J, ‘Griggs, Frederick Landseer Maur’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, accessed 19 March 2018 from https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/59238
‘F L Griggs’, Chipping Campden History Society, accessed 19 March 2018 from http://www.chippingcampdenhistory.org.uk/content/new-contributions/f_l_griggs
War Memorials Trust, accessed 19 March 2018 from http://www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=318

Other
‘Barlaston War Memorial’, Staffordshire Advertiser, (1 May 1926), p5

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

Print the official list entry