Showcase result

Brenchley

The war memorial in the village of Brenchley in the weald of Kent is a Hollington stone solid wheel cross with a decoration of oak leaves on the front elevation around the head and down the shaft. An undecorated cross-piece of stone divides the cross from the shaft. There are hemispherical pieces of stone on the ends of three arms. The memorial stands on a three-stepped plinth on a grassed area at the junction of the High Street and Holly Bank. There are inscriptions on the two highest steps.

By 2001 the letters on the memorial had become illegible because of the amount of moss covering them. In 2001/2 English Heritage offered a grant of £400 towards work to clean the memorial using a low pressure water jet. It was also surmised that the cleaning would expose any faults in previous repairs to the memorial and assist in identifying areas for re-cutting, which could be taken forward in a separate application at a later date.

The dedication on the front of the memorial reads

"In memory of
the men of the parish who died
in the Great War 1914- 1918
and the World War 1939 – 1945

Greater love hath no man than this
That a man lay down his life for his friends"

The names of the fallen of both world wars are inscribed around the top two steps of three sides of the memorial.

The memorial was commissioned by Major H C Corlette, architect, of Lincoln’s Inn and was unveiled in the early 1920s.

Further information

War Memorials Trust reference WM440
UK National Inventory of War Memorials: 41267

Heritage Gateway listing record: 431798

If you have a concern about this memorial please contact the Trust on conservation@warmemorials.org

Return to search results | Start a new search