Summary

First World War memorial, erected around 1920, with Second World War additions.

Description

First World War memorial, erected around 1920, with Second World War additions, restored in 2014.

MATERIALS: of granite.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial stands on a small traffic island at the junction of Church Road, Shop Road and Bentley Road. It comprises a single-step base on which stands a tapering, trapezoidal, rock-faced plinth which supports the tapering shaft of a wheel-head cross.

The First World War tablet is on the plinth’s north side and reads: TO THE MEMORY OF THE MEN / OF THIS VILLAGE WHO DIED FOR / US IN THE WAR. 1914-1919. / REMEMBER, O LORD THE BRAVE / AND TRUE, WHO DIED THE DEATH / OF HONOUR/ [Names] / MAKE THEM TO BE NUMBERED WITH / THY SAINTS, IN GLORY EVERLASTING.

On the south side of the plinth is the Second World War tablet which reads: ALSO OF THE MEN WHO FELL / IN THE 1939-1945 WAR/ [Names] / IN REMEMBRANCE. The head of the cross bears the inscription R.I.P.

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: the memorial stands on a paved area enclosed by a chain-link fence supported by concrete posts.

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, 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.

One such memorial was raised around 1920 at Little Bromley, Essex, as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by 19 members of the local community who lost their lives during the conflict.

Following the Second World War, a dedication was added to commemorate the three local men who fell in that conflict.

The memorial was restored in 2014 by Little Bromley Parish Council and Amenities Group.

Reasons for Listing

Little Bromley War Memorial, erected around 1920, with Second World War additions, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

* as an eloquent witness to the tragic impacts of world events on this community, and the sacrifices it made in the conflicts of the C20.

Architectural interest:

* as an accomplished and well-realised war memorial which takes the form of a wheel-head cross atop a trapezoidal plinth.

Recommended Books

• 
  Old House Care and Repair
• 
  Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas and Monuments
• 
  Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and The Forest of Dean: Vale and Forest of Dean Pt. 2 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  London 3: North West: North West v. 3 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Drawing up a Local Listed Building Consent Order: Historic England Advice Note 6
• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)