The quote "Lest we forget" from the poem "Recessional" by Rudyard Kipling is located on the War Memorial in Chesterton Memorial Park, a public park located in the former mining village of Chesterton.
"Recessional is a poem by Rudyard Kipling. It was composed for Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, in 1897.
“Recessional” contains five stanzas of six lines each. As a recessional is a hymn or piece of music that is sung or played at the end of a religious service, in some respects the title dictates the form of the poem, which is that of a traditional English hymn.
Initially, Kipling had not intended to write a poem for the Jubilee. It was written and published only towards the close of the Jubilee celebrations, and represents a comment on them, an afterword. The poem was first published in The Times on July 17, 1897.
The poem went against the celebratory mood of the time, providing instead a reminder of the transient nature of British Imperial power. The poem expresses both pride in the British Empire, but also an underlying sadness that the Empire might go the way of all previous empires. "The title and its allusion to an end rather than a beginning add solemnity and gravitas to Kipling's message." In the poem, Kipling argues that boasting and jingoism, faults of which he was often accused, were inappropriate and vain in light of the permanence of God.
God of our fathers, known of old,
Lord of our far-flung battle line,
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine —
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
The tumult and the shouting dies;
The Captains and the Kings depart:
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
Far-called, our navies melt away;
On dune and headland sinks the fire:
Lo, all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!
Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
If, drunk with sight of power, we loose
Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe,
Such boastings as the Gentiles use,
Or lesser breeds without the Law—
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
For heathen heart that puts her trust
In reeking tube and iron shard,
All valiant dust that builds on dust,
And, guarding, calls not Thee to guard;
For frantic boast and foolish word—
Thy Mercy on Thy People, Lord!"
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The memorial is a square obelisk that stands on a plinth with a two stepped base. There are wreaths in relief at the top of each side of the obelisk.
Measurements: depth 1200MM, height 5000MM, width 1200MM
Materials: Stone - Sandstone
Inscriptions:
Lest we forget, Be just and fear not, They died that we might live, To our glorious dead.
The inscriptions on each face of the obelisk read as follows;
Face 1
LEST WE FORGET
1914 - 1918
Names A-C
At the base
1939 - 1945
Names on the top step.Face 2
BE JUST
AND FEAR NOT
1914 - 1918
Names C-G
At the base
1939 - 1945
Names on the top step Face 3
THEY DIED THAT
WE MIGHT LIVE
1914 - 1918
Names H-P
At the base
1939 - 1945
Names on the top stepFace 4
TO OUR
GLORIOUS DEAD
1914- 1918
Names P-Y
At the base
1939 - 1945
Names on the top step.First World War (1914-1918): There are a total of 137 names engraved on the memorial, details of the names can be seen at the following link: (
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Second World War (1939-1945) : There are a total of 34 names recorded on the top steps of the memorial.
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