Summary

A First World War memorial, built after 1927.

Description

The memorial stands on a grassed area beside the Old Chester Road.

The memorial comprises an obelisk with a gently tapering square plinth and roughly-carved square base. The south face of the obelisk bears a relief-carved laurel wreath within which in raised lettering is the inscription 1914/1919. Beneath this in raised lettering is inscribed PRO PATRIA.

The main inscription is on a slate plaque on the south face of the plinth and reads:
TO THE GLORY/ OF GOD/ AND IN MEMORY OF THOSE/ WHO GAVE THEIR SERVICES/ AND OF/ (1 NAME)/ WHO FELL/ IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914 – 1919/ THIS STONE IS ERECTED BY/ THE INHABITANTS OF/ HOO BROOK.

Further inscriptions in incised lettering read on the west face 18 names; east face 18 names; and on the north face 2 names.

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 750,000 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 Hoobrook in Worcestershire, commemorating Private Francis Perry who lost his life in the First World War, and 38 other members of the local community in memory of their services in that war. The memorial was originally erected to the west of its present location, across Old Chester Road South. The date of its relocation is unknown.

Reasons for Listing

Hoobrook War Memorial, which stands beside the Old Chester Road, 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 sacrifice it made in the First World War.

Architectural interest:

* as a simple yet evocative example of an obelisk type of memorial.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q66480080

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
• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Staffordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)