Barnt Green War Memorial

Summary

A war memorial, set in a brick wall with ashlar dressing, designed by the Bromsgrove Guild c.1920.

Reasons for Designation

The war memorial in the churchyard of the Church of St Andrew, Barnt Green, Worcestershire 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 war memorial, which takes the form of statues of Christ, flanked by a soldier and sailor and memorial plaques, designed by the Bromsgrove Guild, set in a brick wall with ashlar dressings;
* Group value: the memorial forms a group with the Church of St Andrew, Barnt Green, Worcestershire (Grade II).

History

The memorial was designed by the Bromsgrove Guild and originally placed in the western gable of the Church of St Andrew, Barnt Green, Bromsgrove, an early-Christian-style church of basilican appearance, designed by AS Dixon. The church was built between 1909 and 1914 and the memorial was presumably set in place at a date following the end of the war. In 2001 the church was lengthened at its (ritual) western end, as had always been the intention, and a new apsed porch, designed by Liz Jeavons-Fellows was added and the memorial was moved and set in a brick wall to the north west of the church building.

Details

A war memorial, set in a brick wall with ashlar dressings, designed by the Bromsgrove Guild c.1920.

MATERIALS & PLAN: limestone carvings set in a red brick wall laid in random bond with an ashlar coping and wrought iron railing to its south side. The monument is rectangular, with the sculptures set in niches on its south side.

DETAILS: the south face has the three sculptures formerly set in the church gable. At the centre is Christ on the cross in high relief, set against a broad stone cross which is flush with the brickwork. To either side are smaller stone niches with hoods formed of projecting tiles. That to the left shelters a sculpture of a soldier in great coat and battle dress and that to the right has a sailor with rifle. The sculptures look downwards and are clearly intended to be viewed from below. To the top of the wall are two stepped, projecting courses of bricks, supported on tiles, the topmost being a soldier course with a concrete coping above. A curved, tiled platform of three steps at ground floor level, is set behind a wrought iron fence.
To the western flank are two bronze, rectangular plaques, the upper one of which reads: '1914+ REMEMBER+1918' with names below, and at the bottom of the plaque 'MAY THEY REST IN PEACE'. Below that is another plaque which reads '1939 + 1945' with the names of the fallen from that conflict. Below this a further, small brass plaque that reads 'THIS WAR MEMORIAL / WAS RELOCATED, RESTORED / AND REDEDICATED / AS PART OF THE REFURBISHMENT OF / ST ANDREW'S CHURCH / NOVEMBER 2001'.

This List entry has been amended to add sources for War Memorials Online and the War Memorials Register. These sources were not used in the compilation of this List entry but are added here as a guide for further reading, 18 January 2017.

Sources

Books and journals
Pevsner, N, Brooks, A, The Buildings of England: Worcestershire, (2007), 122

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 18 January 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/33283
War Memorials Online, accessed 18 January 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/91061

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