Summary
A war memorial dating to the early 1920s, standing in the graveyard of the Church of St Luke.
Description
A war memorial unveiled and blessed in 1920, standing in the graveyard of the Church of St Luke.
MATERIALS: limestone.
PLAN: square on plan.
DESCRIPTION: the memorial stands on a two-stepped base and is a tapering plinth and shaft, surmounted by a wheeled Celtic cross, itself on a moulded and projecting base. The names of the fallen are inscribed on the lower section of the plinth above the base. Around the upper step is inscribed IN MEMORY OF/ OUR GLORIOUS DEAD/ FRANCE BELGIUM. 1914-1918. The name of the soldier from the village killed in the Second World War is inscribed on the lower step.
History
The concept of commemorating war dead did not develop to any great extent until towards the end of the 19th century. Prior to then memorials were rare and were mainly dedicated to individual officers, or sometimes regiments. The first large-scale erection of war memorials dedicated to the ordinary soldier followed the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, which was the first major war following reforms to the British Army which led to regiments being recruited from local communities and with volunteer soldiers. However, it was the aftermath of the First World War that was the great age of memorial building, 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.
The Upper Broughton Memorial commemorates the eight men from the village killed in the First World War and the soldier killed in the Second World War. It was blessed by the Bishop of Southwell during a visit to the village. The church was formerly known as St Oswald's before being re-dedicated to St Luke.
Reasons for Listing
Upper Broughton War Memorial, which is situated in the Churchyard of St Luke's and was unveiled in 1920, 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 conflicts of the C20.
Architectural interest:
* as a simple but well-executed wheeled-cross memorial.
Group value:
* with the Grade I-listed Church of St Luke (List Entry: 1264583) and other listed headstones within the graveyard (LE: 1264813).
External Links
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
Gloucestershire 1: The Cotswolds: Cotswolds Pt. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper
For the Record
Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
[(Shropshire)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1958)
Suffolk: East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)