Summary

Kew war memorial, unveiled on 25 June 1921, located on Kew Green beside the church of St Anne (Grade II*).

Description

The war memorial is located in a prominent position at the corner of Kew Green, next to the Church of St Anne (listed Grade II*), adjacent to Kew Road which leads down some 350m from the River Thames. The memorial stands about 5m high and comprises a Portland stone cross on an octagonal tapering shaft. It has an octagonal plinth and two-stepped base.

A bronze plaque is fixed to the south-facing plinth which reads: THEIR NAME LIVETH/ FOR/ EVERMORE/ THE NAMES OF THE MEN/ OF THIS PARISH WHO DIED FOR/ THEIR COUNTRY IN THE TWO WARS/1914-1918 AND 1939-1945/ ARE INSCRIBED IN THE ADJACENT/ CHURCH OF ST ANNE/ THIS IS THE MEMORIAL OF THEIR/ HONOUR AND OF THE GRATITUDE/ OF THE PEOPLE OF KEW.

The other faces of the plinth are plain. The names of those who died are recorded on the Lady Chapel Screen of the adjacent Church of St Anne.

The modern railings around the memorial are not included in the listing.

History

Kew war memorial originally commemorated 96 men of the parish of Kew who gave their lives in the First World War.

The memorial was unveiled on 25 June 1921 by Field Marshall Sir William R Robertson BART GCB GCMG KCVO DSO (1860-1933) who was, at the outbreak of the First World War, appointed Quartermaster General to the British Expeditionary Force. He was promoted to the rank of Field Marshall in 1920. The unveiling ceremony was attended by the Mayor and Mayoress, Professor and Mrs Loney; the Rev J V Macmillan, vicar of Kew; Rev Ogilvy; Rev Spink; aldermen; councillors and children from King’s School, Kew. The Kew troop of Boy Scouts formed a guard of honour. The ceremony included an address by Robertson in which he singled out the Kew Football Club as they had a special right to be proud of their record. Of 61 members, 59 had joined up to volunteer for war by September 1914 and the last two had joined by the end of the year.

A bronze plaque was later added to the memorial's plinth commemorating those of the parish who lost their lives in the Second World War as well as the First World War.

Reasons for Listing

Kew war memorial, unveiled on 25 June 1921, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this community, and the sacrifices it has made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Design: as an elegant and well-proportioned Portland Stone cross;
* Group value: the memorial the memorial stands in a prominent position on Kew Green and has strong group value with the church of St Anne, listed Grade II*, and listed tombs in the churchyard and other listed buildings surrounding Kew Green. Adjacent is the Royal Botanic Gardens, a Grade I registered park and garden and World Heritage Site.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q27087677

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.

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