Summary

First World War memorial, with later additions for the Second World War.

Description

The memorial stands at the south-west corner of the green in the centre of Minstead village. It is situated next to a well, which is marked on the earliest Ordnance Survey 1:2500 map of the area (published in 1869). The well is capped, at ground level, by a square wooden cover with ornamental wrought iron hinges and handle. The memorial and well are surrounded by an octagonal area of paving and an oak post-and-rail fence.

The memorial is approximately 3m tall and is made of Bath stone. It comprises a floriated cross set on a hexagonal shaft, which rises from a moulded base. The base stands on a square plinth which bears the inscriptions. The plinth stands on a low, square step.

The inscription on the front of the plinth, carved in relief, reads 'IN MEMORY OF/ THE MEN FROM/ THIS PARISH/ WHO DIED FOR/ KING & COUNTRY/ IN THE GREAT/ WAR 1914 - 1919/ 1939 - 1945.' The back of the plinth carries the inscription 'THE NAMES OF THE FALLEN/ ARE INSCRIBED ON A MARBLE/ TABLET IN THE PARISH CHURCH.'

This List entry has been amended to add the source for War Memorials Online. This source was not used in the compilation of this List entry but is added here as a guide for further reading, 6 December 2016.

History

Minstead Memorial Cross was probably erected during the first phase of memorialisation in the 1920s, to commemorate the men of the parish who had died whilst fighting during the First World War. An inscription for the Second World War was added at a later date.

Reasons for Listing

Minstead Memorial Cross, which stands on the village green, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reason:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on the local community, and the sacrifices it has made in the conflicts of the C20.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26677364

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)
• 
  Gwent/Monmouthshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Wales)
• 
  Somerset: South and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)
• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)