Summary

First World War memorial, erected by June 1920, with Second World War additions.

Description

First World War memorial with Second World War additions.

MATERIALS: Portland stone.

DESCRIPTION: Fincham war memorial is located in the churchyard of the Church St Martin (Grade I-listed). It is prominently situated by the churchyard retaining wall (Grade II-listed), facing the road and visible to passers by.

The memorial takes the form of a short Latin cross with a sword of sacrifice carved within it. The cross rises from a square pillar with a simple moulded foot, on top of a two-stepped plinth and square base. The pillar is gabled to all four sides, each with tracery detail and a finial at the apex; it carries the inscriptions and names in leaded lettering.

The principal inscription is on the south face and reads: TO THE GLORY OF GOD,/ AND IN AFFECTIONATE AND/ GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE/ OF THE MEN OF THIS PARISH,/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914-1918. The east face has 11 names; beneath each one are the details of whether the men were killed, wounded or missing in service during the First World War, the related location and date. The west face is the same and carries the names and details of 12 men. The north face has the Second World War inscription: 1939-1945/ (5 NAMES).

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: The memorial stands within a small, square gravelled area enclosed by four small, decorative metal posts painted black and joined by chains.

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: therefore the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss. One such memorial was raised at Fincham as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

Like many Norfolk war memorials, Fincham's is situated within the churchyard. The memorial was erected by June 1920 and commemorates 23 local servicemen who served in the First World War and five men who died in the Second World War.

The memorial was restored about 2012. The black chains surrounding the memorial were stolen by metal thieves in June 2013 and replaced with unpainted ones.

Reasons for Listing

Fincham war memorial, which is situated in St Martin’s churchyard, 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;

Architectural interest:
* As a simple yet dignified Portland stone Latin cross memorial influenced by funerary monuments and ecclesiastical architecture;

Group value:
* For its relationship with the Grade I-listed Church of St Martin and the Grade II-listed churchyard retaining wall.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66478833

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

• 
  This Old House: Restoring, Rehabilitating, and Renovating an Older House
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1968)
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  Suffolk: East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northamptonshire: Buildings of England Series (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair