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Latitude: 51.4427 / 51°26'33"N
Longitude: -0.1977 / 0°11'51"W
OS Eastings: 525352
OS Northings: 173067
OS Grid: TQ253730
Mapcode National: GBR CD.W9F
Mapcode Global: VHGR4.JZBW
Plus Code: 9C3XCRV2+3W
Entry Name: Southfields War Memorial
Listing Date: 29 June 2017
Grade: II
Source: Historic England
Source ID: 1444117
ID on this website: 101444117
Location: St Barnabas' Church, Southfields, Wandsworth, London, SW18
County: London
District: Wandsworth
Electoral Ward/Division: Southfields
Parish: Non Civil Parish
Built-Up Area: Wandsworth
Traditional County: Surrey
Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Greater London
Tagged with: War memorial
War Memorial, unveiled 1919, in the form of a stone cross set on a plinth.
Tall granite cross, with a sculpted Christ with INRI scroll. At the bottom of the shaft is the inscription: "THIS / HAVE I DONE / FOR THEE". This rests on a rectangular stone block, bearing the inscription: TO THE GLORY OF GOD / AND IN GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE / OF THE OFFICERS / NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS AND MEN / OF THIS CHURCH AND DISTRICT / WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR / 1914 - 1919. This in turn rests on a much larger cuboid block, each side of which bears the names of the Fallen arranged by year, with another rectangular block bearing further names on the front, right and left faces. The whole rests on a stone platform standing in a small rockery bordered by grey stones.
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, 20 July 2017.
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. 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 in Southfields as a permanent testament to the sacrifices made by the members of the local community. It was designed by Whitehead and Sons of Kennington, and was carved from a block of Cornwall granite at a cost of £240. The memorial was unveiled in a ceremony held on 4 October 1919; in attendance were Lieutenant-Colonel R Hue-Williams, the Bishop of Kingston upon Thames, soldiers from the Coldstream Guards and a large crowd of local residents. The vicar of the church, Reverend J Warren, commented thus: ‘So there it stands – this beautiful representation of the supreme sacrifice, with its silent but eloquent appeal to all who pass by.’
Southfields 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 sacrifices they made in the First World War;
* Design: as a dignified and imposing stone cross war memorial.
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