Wimblington War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, 1922, with later additions for the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

Wimblington War Memorial, which stands in the churchyard of the Church of St Peter, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

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

Architectural interest:

* as an elegant and well-executed winged Victory memorial in Italian marble.

Group value:

* with the Church of St Peter (Grade II).

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 Wimblington 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 unveiled on 22 June 1922 attended by the Rev R B Hill, Rector of Wimblington. It commemorates 25 local servicemen who fell during the First World War. 

Following the Second World War, a dedication was added to commemorate the nine fallen of that conflict. The concrete base was added in 1947; the memorial originally stood on a gravel base. The iron posts and chains were also probably added then.

In c.1970 an attempt was made to conserve the inscriptions but the corrosion of the lead and adjacent marble was found to be beyond repair and therefore new marble plaques were fixed over the existing faces. This was when the spelling error of 'Parishoners' instead of 'Parishioners' was made.

The memorial has since been conserved and repaired on numerous occasions.

Details

First World War memorial, 1922, with later additions for the Second World War.

MATERIALS: Italian marble.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial stands in the churchyard of St Peter’s Church. It comprises a 3m high white marble statue of a winged Victory, rewarding the worthy victors with glory and fame, symbolized by holding a wreath of laurel leaves in her left hand, and with her right hand pointing upwards to heaven. The statue is set upon a white marble square plinth on a square base. The plinth and base have plaques fixed to their faces which carry the inscriptions.

The plaque on the front face of the plinth carries the dedication THIS STONE/ IS ERECTED BY THE/ PARISHONERS OF WIMBLINGTON/ ALSO THE WINDOW AND THE TABLETS/ IN THE CHURCH AND CHAPELS/ IN LOVING AND REVEREND MEMORY OF/ THE MEN FROM THIS PARISH/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ FOR THEIR COUNTRY/ IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914 – 1918/ GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS/ THAT A MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE/ FOR HIS FRIENDS. The plaque on the base below is inscribed 1939 – 1945/ (NAMES). The other faces of both the plinth and base bear the lists of the fallen.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Online, accessed 28/04/17 from www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/node/119162
War Memorial Register, accessed 28/04/17 from www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/3487

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