Summary

A war memorial cross in the grounds of the Church of St George. It was designed by Lieutenant Colonel WG Newton and unveiled in October 1920 .

Description

A war memorial unveiled in October 1920 and designed by Lieutenant Colonel WG Newton.

MATERIALS & PLAN: the war memorial cross is located in the grounds of the Church of St George (Grade II listed, list entry number 1064311). The shaft, base and plinth are of limestone with a bronze orb and cross to the top. 

DESCRIPTION: The monument consists of a plinth of two steps which each have a moulded nosing formed of a fillet, astragal and cavetto. Above these is a cuboid base supporting an octagonal column shaft with a moulded octagonal capital  On top of this is a bronze orb finial surmounted by a bronze cross. The south face of the base is inscribed 'MCMXIV / MCMXIX'.

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 Bickley as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

Bickley War Memorial was dedicated on 31 October 1920 and designed by Lieutenant Colonel WG Newton. In 2016 the memorial was conserved with the help of grant aid administered by War Memorials Trust.

William Godfrey Newton (1885 -1949) was the son of architect and former President of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Ernest Newton. Newton followed his father into architecture, designing a number of educational buildings and country houses, including the Merchant Taylors School in Hertfordshire and the Memorial Hall at Marlborough College, Wiltshire (both listed at Grade II, list entry numbers 1100829 and 1259066). Newton also wrote a number of books on architecture, including contributing to Sir Reginald Blomfield’s monograph on the work of his father, Ernest Newton.

Reasons for Listing

Bickley War Memorial which stands south of the Grade II-listed Church of St George 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 during the First World War.

Architectural interest:

* as an elegant limestone and bronze memorial cross.

Group value:

* with the Church of St George (Grade II, list entry number 1064311).

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q97324535

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.

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