Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled on 27 June 1920, with further names added after the Second World War and later conflicts.

Description

MATERIALS: limestone.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial comprises a wheel-head cross decorated with Celtic-style knot work carved in shallow relief surmounting a tapering shaft.

The shaft is set upon a square tapering plinth with dedications in lead lettering on the south face reading: TO/ THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND/ THE IMMORTAL MEMORY/ OF THE MEN OF/ KIDLINGTON/ AND ITS HAMLETS/ WHO NOBLY FOUGHT AND FELL/ IN THE GREAT WARS/ 1914 – 18 and 1939 – 45. Below carved in relief are the words: LEST WE FORGET.

The east and west sides of the plinth carry 40 names.

Twenty-one names from the Second World War, one name from the Malayan crisis and one from the Falklands war are incised onto the northern side of the plinth.

The plinth is set upon a three-stepped square base.

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 the country, 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.

One such memorial was raised at Kidlington as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

The memorial was funded by local donations which were collected door-to-door with a total of £130 10 1 being raised. The memorial was designed and built by a local building firm Knowles and Sons, who also built the Bampton Cross in West Oxfordshire.

The Kidlington memorial was unveiled on 27 June 1920 by Mrs Charles Timms in recognition of her grievous loss of three sons in a four-month period of the war. The Kidlington vicar C R Freeborn took the dedication service.

After the Second World War 21 names were added onto the memorial. The words ‘Great War’ inscribed on the memorial were changed to ‘Wars’ and the dates 1914-18 and 1939-45 were added. Further names were added after the 1955 Malayan Crisis and the 1982 Falklands War.

Reasons for Listing

Kidlington and Hamlets 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 this community, and the sacrifices it has made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: an ornate and striking cross with carved Celtic-style knot work;
* Group value: with the Church of St Mary the Virgin (Grade I), Old Priest’s House (Grade II) and several chest tombs in the churchyard (Grade II).

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66478065

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

• 
  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Gwent/Monmouthshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Wales)
• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas and Monuments
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)