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Summary
Portland stone wheeled cross war memorial, unveiled 1919.
Reasons for Designation
St Mary Cray War Memorial 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 sacrifices it made in the First World War;
- *Design: as a simple yet dignified Portland stone cross war memorial;
- *Group value: with the Grade II* listed St Mary's Church.
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 the country.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 in St Mary Cray at St Mary's Church as a permanent testament to the sacrifices made by the members of the local community. It was unveiled on 29 December 1919 by the Archdeacon of Rochester D Tait, the Vicar of St Mary's Reverend AH Stevenson, and one Mrs RB Berens. It was made by Messrs. Watts and Co of Baker Street, London at a cost of circa £85. By 1996 the original inscription on the plinth has eroded so badly as to be unreadable, so an inscribed metal plaque was attached by Bromley Council.
Details
Wheel headed cross on a tall shaft, which sits atop a slightly trapezoidal plinth, all of Portland stone. The front face originally bore an inscription which has since eroded so badly as to be illegible; according to sources it read:
THE GREAT WAR 1914 - 1918
TO THE GREAT AND IMPERISHABLE MEMORY OF
THOSE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THE LASTING
WELFARE OF THEIR COUNTRY
LIFT UP YOUR HEARTS:
WE LIFT THEM UP UNTO THE LORD.
Over this there is now a metal plaque, which reads:
THIS MEMORIAL WAS ERECTED TO
THE MEMORY OF OFFICERS AND MEN
WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN
THE GREAT WAR
1914 - 1918
(THEIR NAMES ARE COMMEMORATED
IN FULL INSIDE THE CHURCH).
The plinth rests upon a stone platform.
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