Wimbledon Common War Memorial
Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields, Wimbledon Common, London, SW15 3EH
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1458959
- Date first listed:
- 12-Sept-2018
- List Entry Name:
- Wimbledon Common War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields, Wimbledon Common, London, SW15 3EH
Have you got a photo to share?
Join the Missing Pieces Project. We want you to share your photos and memories.
Location
Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.
Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.
What is the National Heritage List for England?
The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.
The list includes:
 |
Buildings |
 |
Scheduled monuments |
 |
Parks and gardens |
 |
Battlefields |
 |
Shipwrecks |
Local Heritage Hub
Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.
Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1458959
- Date first listed:
- 12-Sept-2018
- List Entry Name:
- Wimbledon Common War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields, Wimbledon Common, London, SW15 3EH
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:
- Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields, Wimbledon Common, London, SW15 3EH
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- Wandsworth (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ2195172161
Summary
A First World War memorial, designed by Madeline Agar and erected in 1921, refurbished in 2006.
Reasons for Designation
Wimbledon Common War Memorial, of 1921, designed by Madeline Agar assisted by Brenda Colvin, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Architectural interest:
* a well constructed and little altered memorial, unusual for its large planting compartments on the base and the rarity of having been designed and executed by a female landscape designer and architect, assisted by the nationally important landscape designer, Brenda Colvin.
Historic interest:
* as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this local community and the sacrifice it made in the First World War.
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 Wimbledon Common, as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War. This memorial was unveiled in 1921.
It was funded by the Wandsworth and Wimbledon Memorial Garden Fund, whose chairman was Richardson Evans. It was designed by the landscape designer Madeline Agar, who was responsible for work on Wimbledon Common, and her site assistant was the landscape architect Brenda Colvin.
The memorial was refurbished by the Wimbledon and Putney Commons Conservators in Spring 2006.
Details
A First World War Memorial, designed by Madeline Agar and erected in 1921, refurbished in 2006.
MATERIALS: constructed of rock-faced stone with marble inscription panels.
PLAN: octagonal.
DETAILS: the memorial consists of a wide octagonal base divided into compartments, six to contain plants, the other two sides providing five steps up to a platform. This bears a narrower octagon of three steps bearing a moulded plinth with attached inscribed marble tablets, surmounted by a tall Latin cross with vertical carved strips.
One marble tablet is inscribed:
NATURE PROVIDES / THE BEST MONUMENT / THE PERFECTING OF / THE WORK MUST BE LEFT / TO THE GENTLE HAND / OF TIME, BUT EACH / RETURNING SPRING WILL / BRING A FRESH TRIBUTE / TO THOSE WHOM IT / IS DESIRED TO KEEP IN / EVERLASTING / REMEMBRANCE.
The opposite tablet is inscribed:
THE LAND AROUND / 42 ACRES / IS DEDICATED / TO PUBLIC USE / IN MEMORY OF ALL / THOSE WHO HAVING / BEEN RESIDENT OR / BELONGING TO FAMILIES / RESIDENT IN THE / ADJOINING DISTRICTS / GAVE THEIR LIVES / IN THE GREAT WAR /1914-1918.
The other six marble tablets bear the names of the 115 local men who gave their lives in the First World War.
Sources
Other
War Memorials Trust no. 111189
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 20-Jun-2026 at 05:12:38.
Download a full scale map (PDF)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.