Berkhamsted War Memorial
Corner of High Street and Church Lane, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 2AX
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437407
- Date first listed:
- 01-Nov-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Berkhamsted War Memorial
- Statutory Address:
- Corner of High Street and Church Lane, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 2AX
Location
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Find PhotosOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1437407
- Date first listed:
- 01-Nov-2016
- List Entry Name:
- Berkhamsted War Memorial
- Statutory Address 1:
- Corner of High Street and Church Lane, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 2AX
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- Corner of High Street and Church Lane, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 2AX
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Hertfordshire
- District:
- Dacorum (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Berkhamsted
- National Grid Reference:
- SP9932607756
Summary
First World War memorial, with later additions for the Second World War. Erected circa 1920, with the names of the Fallen of the Second World War added after 1945.
Reasons for Designation
Berkhamsted War Memorial 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: as an elegant memorial comprising a Greek cross set upon a tapering shaft, moulded plinth and stepped base; * Group value: with the Grade II*-listed Church of St Peter and adjacent Grade II* and Grade II-listed C16 houses on Church Lane and the High Street, as well as a war memorial inside the Church of St Peter.
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 Berkhamsted in circa 1920 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 names of the Fallen of the Second World War were added after 1945. In circa 1952 the memorial was moved to its current site next to the W door and S aisle of the Church of St Peter. There was originally a Celtic cross on top of the shaft but it was replaced by a Greek cross in the later C20. The memorial was restored in 2002.
Details
First World War memorial, with later additions for the Second World War. Erected circa 1920, with the names of the Fallen of the Second World War added after 1945.
MATERIALS: carved from stone.
DESCRIPTION: the war memorial stands immediately to the W of the S aisle of the Church of St Peter, adjacent to Church Lane and the High Street. It is situated opposite the Grade II*-listed medieval church and adjacent to several C16 houses, which are Grade II* and Grade II-listed.
The memorial comprises a Greek cross set at the head of a tapering octagonal shaft with a moulded base. It rises from a moulded octagonal plinth on a three-tier stepped octagonal base. On the top tier of the base is an inscription in incised lettering TO OUR GLORIOUS DEAD/ 1914-18/ NAMES. Inscribed into eight stone panels are 182 names of those that died during the First World War. The plinth is inscribed 1939-1945/ NAMES with four stone panels bearing 94 names of the Fallen of the Second World War.
Sources
Websites
Roll of Honour, accessed 5 July 2016 from http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Hertfordshire/Berkhamstead.html
The Parish Church of St Peter, Great Berkhamsted, accessed 5 July 2016 from http://www.stpetersberkhamsted.org.uk/heritage/warmemorial
War Memorials Online, accessed 5 July 2016 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/node/193380
War Memorials Register, accessed 5 July 2016 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/14580
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 16-Apr-2025 at 09:10:29.
Download a full scale map (PDF)© Crown copyright [and database rights] 2025. OS AC0000815036. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey Licence number 100024900.© British Crown and SeaZone Solutions Limited 2025. All rights reserved. Licence number 102006.006.
End of official list entry
