Downham Market War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled on 21 October 1921, with Second World War additions.

Reasons for Designation

Downham Market War Memorial, which is situated at the junction of London Road and Church Road, 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 well-executed lantern cross memorial that demonstrates fine craftsmanship in the elaborately carved details to the lantern.

Group value:

* with the Grade II-listed building The Priory.

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

The memorial was paid for by public subscription and was unveiled on 21 October 1921. It was built by Mr H J Long, a local stonemason. The memorial originally commemorated 73 local servicemen who fell in the First World War, however at some point after 2005, Evelyn Irene Murrell was added to the list of names on the memorial. Evelyn Murrell was a member of the Women’s Royal Air Force; she joined in May 1918 and worked as a clerk at RAF Marham. She died of influenza on 27 November 1918, aged 23.

Following the Second World War the names of those who died in that conflict were added to the memorial; one of those remembered is a woman, Doreen Dack.

Originally freestanding in the road, it is now enclosed within a small landscaped area at the roadside. Stone plaques were affixed to the plinth and base at a later date with renewed inscriptions.

Grant funding was provided by the War Memorials Trust in 2008 to improve access to the memorial and create soft landscaping to the area adjacent to the memorial.

Details

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

DESCRIPTION: Downham Market war memorial is located at the junction of London Road and Church Road, within a semi-circular area of landscaping. To the west of the memorial is the Grade II-listed building The Priory.

It is of Clipsham stone and takes the form of a tall, lantern cross surmounted by a crocketed pinnacle. The lantern head is elaborately carved with square columns to each corner and lancet niches to each face with cusped tracery. The niches are open to the north and south sides to reveal a Latin cross within the lantern, the east and west niches are blind with painted shields attached. The lantern crowns an octagonal shaft with a square base and inverted chamfered stops. This rises from a four-sided plinth with moulded upper corners; later stone plaques have been affixed to each face of the plinth. The plinth surmounts a three-stepped base with small square posts to each corner of the middle and lower steps.

The principal inscription is to the plaque on the south face of the plinth and reads, TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN/ GRATEFUL AND LASTING REMEMBRANCE/ OF OUR BRAVE FELLOW TOWNSMEN/ WHO LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES/ FOR KING AND COUNTRY IN THE/ GREAT WAR 1914-1918. The 74 names of those who died in the First World War are on the other three plaques affixed to the plinth.

The names of those who died in the Second World War are inscribed on a plaque affixed to the south face of the upper-step of the base, WORLD WAR 1939-1945/ (24 NAMES).

All lettering is incised, painted black.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 04 January 2018 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/65100
War Memorials Online, accessed 04 January 2018 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/135458/
War Memorials Trust, accessed 05 January 2018 from http://www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=451
‘Downham Boys of World War I’, A History of Downham Market, accessed 05 January 2018 from http://www.downhammarkethistory.co.uk/world-war-i/
‘Downham Market War Memorial Photographs’, Roll of Honour, accessed 05 January 2018 from http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/DownhamMarketPhotos.html
‘Downham Market War Memorial’, Downham and District Royal British Legion, accessed 05 January 2018 from http://www.downham-rbl.org.uk/album/Downham%20Market%20War%20Memorial/index.html#

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