Summary

A stone war memorial, featuring an octagonal column with a crucifix at its summit, commemorating soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars.

Description

A stone war memorial, featuring an octagonal column with a crucifix at its summit, commemorating soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars.

MATERIALS: the war memorial is constructed of stone and set on a concrete base.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial is comprised of a stepped, octagonal column, topped with a crucifix bearing the slumped body of Christ wearing a crown of thorns. The column stands on an octagonal, stepped plinth, and is set on a square base.

Seven of the eight faces of the column are inscribed with leaded lettering. The front face reads: 1914-1918/ TO THE DEAR/ MEMORY OF OUR FALLEN. The rear face reads: 1939-1945/ (NAMES). The remainder of the inscribed faces carry the names of the fallen.

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, as a result both of the huge impact the loss of three quarters of a million British lives had on communities, and of 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.

The construction of Lutton War Memorial was approved of by the Roads and Bridges Committee in January 1920, as reported in the Spalding Guardian. It was unveiled and dedicated on 15 October 1922 in the attendance of Mrs H S Dixon-Spain, Revd Hubert Craufurd Dixon-Spain and the local parishioners. It cost £200 to construct and was positioned to the south of the Church of St Nicholas. There are twenty names commemorating soldiers who died in the First World War, with a further three added later in memory of soldiers from the Second World War.

A memorial service was held at the memorial in November 1937, conducted by Rev L G Perry. A wreath was laid by Mr Chapman in the presence of several branches of the British Legion from the district.

The memorial was recorded as being cleaned and the lettering repainted in 1931 and 1987.

Reasons for Listing

Lutton 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 sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20.

Architectural interest:

* as a well-executed memorial in the form of an octagonal column with crucifix.

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