Summary
A First World War memorial, dating from about 1920, in the form of a stone cross, with names added after the Second World War.
Description
First World War memorial, about 1920 with names added after the Second World War.
MATERIALS: stone.
DESCRIPTION: Tacolneston war memorial is located in the churchyard of the Grade I listed All Saints Church. It is prominently situated to the left of the churchyard entrance and visible from the main road passing by. It comprises a stone Latin cross with downturned bronze sword of sacrifice to the face, on an octagonal shaft with moulded foot, atop an octagonal plinth and three-stepped octagonal base. It is in the style of Sir Reginald Blomfield’s Cross of Sacrifice. The plinth bears the inscriptions in incised and blackened lettering.
It reads: TO THE GLORY OF GOD THE GIVER OF ALL VICTORY AND IN GRATEFUL/ REMEMBRANCE OF THE MEN OF TACOLNESTON WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ FOR THEIR COUNTRY IN THE GREAT WAR 1914 – 1919/ (NAMES)/ ALSO IN PROUD AND GLORIOUS MEMORY OF THOSE WHO GAVE THEIR/ LIVES IN THE WORLD WAR 1939 – 1945/ (NAMES)
History
The concept of commemorating war dead did not develop to any great extent until towards the end of the C19. Previously, memorials were rare and were mainly dedicated to individual officers, or sometimes regiments. The first large-scale erection of war memorials dedicated to the ordinary soldier followed the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, the first major war following reforms to the British Army which led to regiments being recruited from local communities and with volunteer soldiers. However, it was the aftermath of the First World War that was the great age of memorial building, both as a result of the huge impact the loss of three quarters of a million British lives had on communities and 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.
Tacolneston, like many Norfolk war memorials, was erected within the churchyard in about 1920. The memorial commemorates nine local servicemen who fell in the First World War and six men who fell in the Second World War (one of these latter names appears to be a late addition). The memorial is in the style of Sir Reginald Blomfield’s design for the Cross of Sacrifice.
The memorial was restored in 2011.
Reasons for Listing
Tacolneston War Memorial 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:
* as a well-executed stone cross, in the style of Sir Reginald Blomfield’s Cross of Sacrifice.
Group value:
* with the Grade I listed Church of All Saints, the Grade II* listed Old Hall, the Garden Boundary Wall to its north, Old Hall Farmhouse and its adjacent Barn, as well as the Rectory behind the church, all listed at Grade II.
External Links
External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.
Recommended Books
Surrey (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
Old House Care and Repair
Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
[(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)
Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)