Summary

First World War memorial in the form of a tall stone cross on a plinth, with Second World War additions.

Description

The war memorial is located in the grounds of the New Malden United Reformed Church on Malden Road. The angular-style cross, circled by a laurel wreath, rises from a slightly tapering shaft set on a plinth, square on plan, which stands on a single-stepped base.

The front face of the cross bears the inscription FOR / EVERMORE THEIR SOUL / LIVETH. The faces of the plinth bear the inscriptions. To the front 1914 - 1918 / (NAMES) / 1939 - 1945 / (NAMES). To the right ALL YOU HAD / HOPED FOR, / ALL YOU HAD YOU / GAVE / TO SAVE MANKIND, / YOURSELVES YOU / SCORNED TO SAVE. To the rear ERECTED BY THE / CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH / IN GRATEFUL / RECOGNITION OF THE / DEVOTION AND SACRIFICE / OF ITS SONS / WHOSE NAMES ARE / RECORDED HEREON / 1914 - 1918 / 1939 - 1945. To the left THESE WERE HIS / SERVANTS / IN HIS STEPS THEY / TROD / FOLLOWING THROUGH / DEATH / THE MARTYR'D / SON OF GOD. These lines are taken from the hymn 'O Valiant Hearts'.

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, 16 March 2017.

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 England. 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 at the Congregational Church in New Malden, which became the United Reformed Church (URC) in 1972, as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars.

Reasons for Listing

New Malden (URC) 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 local community, and the sacrifice it has made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Design: as an attractive and imposing stone cross war memorial.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66478621

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

• 
  Listed Buildings and Other Heritage Assets
• 
  [(Shropshire)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1958)
• 
  Berkshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pevsner's Architectural Glossary (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
• 
  Gloucestershire 1: The Cotswolds: Cotswolds Pt. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)