Langleybury War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, with later additions for the Second World War. Erected 1919, with the names of the Fallen of the Second World War added after 1945.

Reasons for Designation

Langleybury War Memorial, erected in 1919, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as a war memorial that has strong cultural and historic significance within both a local and national context;
* Commemorative: it forms a poignant reminder of the tragic impact of world events on the local community, and the sacrifice it made during the First and Second World Wars;
* Design: a well-crafted memorial formed of a Celtic cross and shaft enriched by carved interlace and knotwork;
* Group value: with the Grade II*-listed Church of St Paul and the Grade II-listed lych gate.

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. One such memorial was erected in 1919 to commemorate 26 residents of Langleybury who died during the conflict. It was unveiled in a ceremony attended by Bishop Suffragan of Buckingham. After the Second World War the names of eight residents that died during that conflict were added to the plinth.

The memorial originally stood on an island at the junction of Watford Road and Langleybury Lane. However, OS maps indicate that between 1958 and 1969 the junction was remodelled and the memorial was moved c9m to the W, within a fenced and paved enclosure erected against the churchyard wall. The enclosure was restored in circa 2014-15 and the fence replaced.

In 2014 the ‘Back to the Front’ Great War Commemoration Project; a community-based project to research, record and remember the men and women from Abbots Langley, Kings Langley, Hunton Bridge and Leavesden, began. It identified one man and one woman from the parish who also died during the First World War but are not included on the memorial.

Details

First World War memorial with later additions for the Second World War. Erected 1919, with the names of the Fallen of the Second World War added after 1945.

MATERIALS: carved from granite.

DESCRIPTION: the war memorial stands at the junction of Langleybury Lane and the A41, next to the churchyard of the Church of St Paul. The memorial comprises a granite cross with Celtic head and a tapering shaft that rises from a trapezoidal granite plinth and a three-tier stepped base. The cross and shaft are enriched by carved interlace and knotwork. On the front (SE) face of the plinth is the inscription TO THE HONOURED MEMORY/ OF THOSE BRAVE MEN OF THIS PARISH/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY/ AND FOR THE CAUSE OF FREEDOM AND JUSTICE/ IN THE GREAT WAR 1914 – 1918/ "THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE"/ NAMES.

On the NW face of the plinth is inscribed THE WORLD WAR/1939 – 1945/ GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN/ THAN THIS THAT A MAN LAY/ DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS./ NAMES/ REST ETERNAL GRANT THEM O LORD AND/ LET LIGHT PERPETUAL SHINE UPON THEM.

This List entry has been amended to add the source for War Memorials Online. This source was not used in the compilation of this List entry but is added here as a guide for further reading, 12 January 2017.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Register, accessed 16 June 2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/19581
Roll of Honour, accessed 16 June 2016 from http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Hertfordshire/LangleyBury.html
Back to the Front Great War Commemoration Project, accessed 20 September 2016 from http://backtothefront.org/war-memorial/Langleybury%20War%20Memorial.html
Genealogy in Hertfordshire: Abbot’s Langley, accessed 20 September 2016 from http://www.hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk/data/places/places-a/abbots-langley/abbots-langley-st-pauls-langleybury.htm
War Memorials Online, accessed 12 January 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/231344

Other
OS map 1:2500 (1958 edn)
OS map 1:2500 (1969 edn)

End of official list entry