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St James's Church, West Derby

The memorial is located in the Grade II listed St James's Church, West Derby, Liverpool and is a mosaic of stained glass with a visual illusion of three-dimensional depth constructed in the ‘opus sectile’ technique. It is a complex scene; the principal depiction is a stone cenotaph resting on a two-stepped base. The central panel is styled as a roll of honour and is flanked by three-tiered columns. Surmounting the central panel is a top panel that is split by an arched inscribed scroll. Below the scroll is the image of a young female face with shroud that portrays the impression of mourning. Above the scroll is a shield bearing the Royal Arms of Great Britain and above this is the Royal Air Force crest. Left and right of the cenotaph are a soldier and sailor in First World War era uniform at ceremonial rest with reversed arms (rifle muzzle resting on the foot and hands resting on the shoulder plate of the stock) and heads bowed. Above the soldier is a shield bearing the Merchant Navy ensign and above the sailor is a shield bearing the Royal Navy ensign. Below this scene is a vignette of the four-stacked RMS Lusitania at sea (the Cunard passenger ship whose next port of call was Liverpool, sunk off the coast of Ireland in 1915 by German U-boat with the loss of over 1,100 lives), under which is an inscription panel, and flanking both are reversed swords. The mosaic is set in a sandstone surround, the sill of which is inscribed. The stained glass panel is dedicated to World War I and the stone surround is for World War II.

In 2008, a special grant of £4,500 was offered through the Small Grants Scheme towards cleaning and restoration works and re-installation of the memorial. This was a complex conservation project as works to stained glass involve many stages of recording to ensure all the individual pieces are put back into their original location.

Due to being located on a damp wall, the memorial was in poor condition as the back panel warped and split causing a number of glass pieces to either fracture or become detached from the mounting mortar substrate. The first major task was to record the location of each piece of glass through mapping out a grid then allocating a unique number to each piece. Once the glass pieces had been removed a better understanding of the original manufacture techniques was obtained. The glass pieces were first mechanically cleaned with excess mortar being removed by scalpel blade. Fewer than ten percent of the mosaic pieces required re-gilding using 23 carat gold leaf. Next the broken sections were re-bonded and small gaps and chips were in-filled with a solution of Paraloid B72, industrial methylated spirits, acetone and micro-balloons (glass micro spheres) and larger missing areas were replaced. A backing of Hexlite 620 was used as this is resistant to the corrosive atmosphere and affords protection to the mosaic as a barrier between it and the wall. As variously coloured mortar was used on the original to enhance the translucent colours of the glass, corresponding areas of the new backing were coloured with Cryla colours. The glass pieces were then re-mounted in their original position using a bonding solution of Paraloid B72 in acetone and a grout. Following the works the memorial was re-installed in the Church.

There is little information known about the memorial. It was commissioned and constructed shortly after the First World War and the sandstone frame was added after the Second World War. The memorial, after the addition of the sandstone frame, was unveiled in 1947. On 8th November 2009 the memorial was re-dedicated following the service of Remembrance.

The scroll dividing the top panel bears the inscription:

“In memoriam”

The central panel roll of honour is inscribed with eighteen names of those killed in the First World War.

The panel below the vignette is inscribed:

“To the glory of God, & in honour of the
Men of this Church who laid down their lives
for King & country, fighting for justice &
freedom in the Great War. * * 1914-1919”

The sill of the sandstone frame is inscribed:

“1939 + 1945”

Underneath there are inscribed thirty-five names of those who fell in this conflict.

Further information

War Memorials Trust reference WM1066
UK National Inventory of War Memorials: 15762

War Memorials Online

The National Heritage List for England record for the Church

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

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