Willaston War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial of 1921 with later additions and alterations.

Reasons for Designation

Willaston War Memorial, 1921 with later additions and alterations, 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:

* for the strong design interest of the square pillar with angle buttresses, and octagonal domed turret surmounted by a bronze Latin cross.

Group value:

* with Christ Church (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. 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 Willaston as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by 34 members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

Willaston War Memorial was designed by Mr Ronald C Ashworth, with the stonework carried out by Griffiths and the metalwork cast from the foundry of Mr Roberts. £1,130 was subscribed towards the cost of the memorial, which was unveiled on 27 February 1921 by Lt Gen Sir Henry de Beauvoir de Lisle and dedicated by Rev W Francis.

Following the Second World War the names of the Fallen from that conflict were added to the memorial with a plaque on the east face. In the 1980s the memorial was cleaned and re-pointed. After the theft of the two plaques on the south and east faces of the memorial in 2011, these were replaced by a new plaque on the south face which combined the inscriptions on both of the two former plaques. A man was jailed for the theft after trying to sell the plaques, but they were never recovered.

The memorial is thought to stand in the former location of an oak shrine to Arthur Graham, the son of a prominent local family. Pte Graham is named on this memorial, and the faculty for its erection mentions the relocation of the shrine (now lost) to a position close to the church porch. Many temporary memorials, probably thousands, were erected during and after the First World War. Some indicated what a permanent public memorial might look like, and they provided a physical, public encouragement to donate funds or prompt to submit names for inclusion. Others provided a focus for the grief of individual families before public memorials were agreed on. Only one extant example of a temporary memorial structure is known, which is the Prestwich (Bury, Greater Manchester) temporary memorial, which was relocated after permanent memorials were built (Grade II - List entry 1440259).

Details

A First World War memorial of1921 by Ronald C Ashworth with later additions and alterations.

MATERIALS: Storeton sandstone, bronze.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial takes the form of a square pillar with angle buttresses, from which rises an octagonal domed turret surmounted by a bronze Latin cross. The pillar stands on a three-stepped square base. A bronze plaque on the south face of the memorial reads: IN GRATEFUL MEMORY OF/ THOSE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ FOR THEIR KING & COUNTRY/ DURING THE GREAT WAR 1914-19/ THEIR NAMES SHALL LIVE FOR EVER/ (34 NAMES)/ IN SACRED MEMORY OF/ (9 NAMES)/ WHO FELL IN THE WAR/ 1939-1945.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Online entry, accessed 14/11/19 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/node/248073
Imperial War Museums register etnry, accessed 14/11/19 from https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/9946

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