Hunmanby War Memorial, Hunmanby, North Yorkshire

Summary

First World War memorial, 1921, with Second World War additions.

Description

First World War memorial, 1921, with Second World War additions.

MATERIALS: Yorkshire stone, lead lettering

DESCRIPTION: Hunmanby War Memorial is situated adjacent to the Grade II-listed Denmark House and in close proximity to the Market Cross, and Osgoodby House (also listed Grade II). The memorial takes the form of an obelisk with a Latin cross bearing a sword in relief; it rises off a pedimented tapering pedestal, placed on a three-stepped plinth, with a square slab base. Each of the four pediments contain a carving in relief; the east elevation has an infantryman within a laurel wreath, flanked by an 18-pounder quick-firing gun to the left and a 60-pounder breech-loading gun to the right. The north pediment has a scrolled cartouche, displaying the motto: READY AYE READY, above an anchor and beneath a naval crown. The cartouche is flanked to each side by a white ensign and a pennant, one reading: JUTLAND and the other: HELIGOLAND. The west pediment bears a laurel wreath, within which were formerly the words: PRO/ PATRIA, reduced to: .../ PA..IA; the wreath is flanked by billowing ribbons bearing the words: AUXILIARY FORCES. Finally, the south pediment has a winged RAF emblem. The pedestal has a plain cornice terminated by a torus moulding, and each elevation bears a carving of a Yorkshire rose, under which are the inscriptions in lead lettering.

The dedication on the east elevation reads: IN/ HONOUR/ OF/ HUNMANBY MEN/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR/ FREEDOM/ KING AND COUNTRY/ IN THE/ GREAT WAR/ 1914 – 1918./ LIVE THOU FOR FREEDOM/ WE FOR FREEDOM DIED; the names of the 33 Fallen from the First World War are recorded on the remaining sides of the pedestal. Each plinth step has a chamfered upper surface and the east elevation of the top step reads: IN/ HONOURED MEMORY OF/ THOSE MEN WHO/ LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE/ WORLD WAR 1939 – 1945, with the names of the nine Fallen from this conflict recorded on the step below. The names from the First World War are recorded in order of surname, initial, and regiment, or the name of their warship; however, the names of the men who served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War are simply recorded as: ROYAL NAVY.

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 Hunmanby, as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by 33 members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War.

Hunmanby War Memorial was erected on a gently sloping grassed bank, facing out over the market place on Cross Hill, abutting the walls of the grounds of Hunmanby Hall. A section of walling to its rear was demolished and re-built to form an apsidal space behind the monument. It was unveiled by Lady Readett-Bayley of Hunmanby Hall, on the 20 March 1921 at a well-attended memorial service, led by the Reverend A Brooke-Jackson, Vicar of Hunmanby, who was assisted by the Reverend A Dumbarton, and the Reverend W Moore, the Nonconformist ministers of the parish. Following the Second World War a further dedication was added to the memorial, together with the names of the nine servicemen killed in that conflict. Sometime during the mid-C20, the setting of the memorial was changed by the construction of a podium/memorial garden, with brick setts pathing and low brick walls, approached by a short flight of steps from the east and by a gateway in the south wall. Later still, sometime before 1971, a sub-rectangular paved area was laid to the front of the podium.

Reasons for Listing

Hunmanby War Memorial, erected 1921, 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 quality memorial in the form of an obelisk with a Latin cross bearing a sword in relief, crafted in ashlar limestone, with detailed carvings representing the three armed services.

Group value:

* it benefits from a spatial group value with the listed Grade II Denmark House, and the Market Cross.

External Links

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