Croydon Cenotaph

MaterialOpening date21 October 1921 (1921-10-21)Dedicated toWar dead

Croydon Cenotaph is a war memorial, in Croydon, London, England. It is located outside the Croydon Clocktower arts complex (historically Croydon Town Hall), on Katharine Street in Croydon.^[1][2]

The cenotaph, made from Portland stone, was designed by James Burford ARIBA and was unveiled on 22 October 1921,^[2] to commemorate local victims of the First World War.

It is framed by two bronze statues of seated figures by Paul Raphael Montford, cast at the M. Maneti foundry.^[2] One depicts a soldier of the East Surrey Regiment, dressing his own wounded arm; the other a woman holding a child in her left arm and a letter in her outstretched right hand: her distress is evident, and "[w]e must presume that the news of her husband's perhaps fatal wounds has just reached her".^[1][3][4] The figure of the soldier was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1921.^[3]

The cenotaph's inscription reads:^[2]

1914 ⋅ 1918
1939 ⋅ 1945

AND IN MEMORY OF THOSE

WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN
WARS AND CONFLICTS SINCE

A TRIBUTE TO THE MEN
AND WOMEN OF CROYDON

WHO DIED AND SUFFERED

The dates "1939 ⋅ 1945" were added after the end of the Second World War. The lines "AND IN MEMORY ... SINCE" were added in 1997.^[2]

The cenotaph was granted Grade II listed status on 19 November 1973, both in its own right^[2][3] and as part of a group of municipal buildings, legally protecting it from unauthorised modification or demolition.^[2][5] Its status was upgraded to Grade II* on 27 July 2017.^[3]

A roll of honour is kept in the library.^[1]

See also

• Grade II* listed war memorials in England

References