Summary
First World War memorial, approximately 1920.
Description
First World War memorial, approximately 1920.
MATERIALS: constructed from polished pink granite.
DESCRIPTION: the memorial is located in the southeast corner of All Saints Churchyard. It comprises a wheel-head cross with a tapering shaft and plinth with single-stepped base. The plinth bears the inscriptions in incised and gilded lettering.
The inscription reads: ‘TO THE GLORY OF GOD / 1914-1918 / IN HONOURED MEMORY OF / THE MEN OF THIS PARISH WHO / LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR’ followed by the names of the fallen, and ‘THEY DIED THAT WE MIGHT LIVE’. On the west face is the inscription ‘1939-1945’, followed by two 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 three quarters of a million British lives, and the official policy of not repatriating the dead: memorials, therefore, provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss.
Swinford war memorial is situated within the parish churchyard, overlooking a main road junction in the heart of the village. The memorial is presumed to have been erected within a couple of years of the end of the war, and was designed by Pullen and Sons of Northampton. It commemorates eight local servicemen who fell in the First World War. The memorial was stabilized and the incised inscription re-gilded in 2010. At the same time, it was inscribed with the Second World War casualties’ names.
Reasons for Listing
Swinford 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 sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20.
Architectural interest:
* a pared-back wheel cross in pink granite which survives intact.
Group Value:
* with the Grade II* listed Church of All Saints and other listed buildings in the village centre.
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
Dorset (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
The Listed Buildings and Other Principal Structures at the Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey
London 6: Westminster (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England): Westminster v. 6
Period Property Manual (New Ed)
Building Small Projects (New Best of Fine Woodworking)
Devon (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)