OLD BASING MEMORIAL CROSS

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Reference WMO/102827

Address:

St Mary's Church

Church Lane

Old Basing

Basingstoke

RG24 7BW

England

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Status: On original site
Type: Freestanding
Location: External
Setting: Within a garden/park/churchyard/enclosure/Marketplace
Description: Unknown cross
Materials:
  • Stone Portland stone
Lettering: Incised
Conflicts:
  • First World War (1914-1918)
  • Second World War (1939-1945)
  • Malayan Emergency (1948-1960)
About the memorial: Freestanding cross on a hexagonal three-stepped plinth, set within the Churchyard Hants & Berks Gazette Saturday January 15, 1921 OLD BASING; WAR MEMORIAL CROSS; The War Memorial Cross which has been set up in the churchyard at Old Basing was unveiled and dedicated on Sunday afternoon in the presence of a large assembly representing a parish united in rendering a tribute of honour to the men of Basing who had laid down their lives for their country in the Great War. Designed and erected by North Hants Stone and Marble Works, Basingstoke, the memorial stands close by the path leading up to the Church. It consists of a moulded cross in Portland Stone at the top of a tapering octagonal shaft resting on a pedestal with three octagonal stones forming the base. It is 15ft. in height. The inscription is as follows: “To the praise and glory of God, in undying gratitude to the men who gave their lives in the Great War, and in loving memory of those from this parish, 1914-1918. Then were the people glad, because they offered willingly”. To which to be added the name of Sidney Marriner Lining the churchyard paths around the memorial were relatives of the fallen, men who had served in the war, Mrs. Walter Hoare, and other ladies in Red Cross Uniform who had ministered in the hospitals, Girl Guides in the charge of Miss V. Hoare, the clergy and the choir, and a large number of the parishioners. The clergy and ministers present were the Revs. W. S. Digby Read, (Vicar of Basing), T.T. Blackley (late vicar of Basing), now chaplain of Magdalen College, Oxford), Canon Edwards (Chaplain of the Union House), F. U. Hull (Primitive Methodist Church), and Pastor N. Brewer (Congregational Church). Major W. R. Hoare took command of the parade. The ceremony began with the hymn “O God our help in ages past”, Miss Thorp presiding at the harmonium. The vicar then asked Major-General G. D. Jeffreys, C.B., C.M.G., to unveil the Memorial Cross. The distinguished officer, who was in uniform, withdrew the Union Jack which hung around the cross, and spoke a few words to the assembly. “It gives me great pleasure,”, said the General Jeffreys, “to unveil this beautiful cross, which has been erected in memory of those gallant men who went forth from this parish to fight for their country in the greatest of all the wars. I hope and trust that it will ever endure as a lasting memorial not only of these men themselves, but also of the perilous times through which we went between the years 1914 and 1918, and of the sacrifices which were made by our people, and of the victory which crowned the memory of those gallant men may be an example to all of us who come after and to our descendants to do as they did in times of trouble-that is, to give themselves as a willing sacrifice to their country. We have heard from many famous and distinguished men of the hundred causes for which this war was said to have been fought. It was said to have been fought as a war to end all wars. It was said to have been fought for the rights of small nations. It was said to have been fought to make the world safe for democracy. I venture to say that these men and thousands of other Englishmen who laid down their lives in the war, and the thousands of others who, thank you God, are still with us, fought for the love of their country and for no other cause. They know-instinct told them if nothing else did-that their country was in dire peril, and it was up to them to help her in her hour of need. An enormous majority of our young manhood did come to the help of their country in its greatest need and saved it from the fate which might have fallen it. In this beautiful village of Basing you have always amongst you in that wonderful old House or its remains an example of what war can do and of the destruction that war can effect; and yet the destruction of that House in the 17th Century was child’s play to the destruction of many villages and towns in France and Belgium today. Let us thank our God that we at any rate were saved from the terrible fate which befell Northern France and that the efforts of those gallant men who laid their lives and of the many others who fought for their country saved us from the fate of those towns and villages both in France and Belgium. It has given me great pleasure to unveil this cross, and I trust it will be a lasting memorial for ever alongside this beautiful church.” Then followed the dedication of the cross by Rev. T. T. Blockley, who afterwards addressed the assembly. “I count it no small privilege,” he said, “to be allowed to come back amongst you to take part in such a service as this. All over the country, in town and in village, memorials are being set up to those who fell in the Great War, and this afternoon we are met to dedicate this cross in memory of those brave lads who went from Basing and fell in service of their country. It is of them that we are thinking specially this afternoon, and our thoughts and prayers are following them as they live and move in closer and nearer vision of their God beyond the veil. We include also specially in our thoughts and prayers all those who have been parted from their dear ones through the cruel and bitter circumstance of war. It has been said by a great many people up and down the country that war memorials are no good to those who have passed away, and that it is the living who need our care and attention. That is perfectly true in a sense, and yet it is an objection to which if we look into it, we shall find a ready and suitable answer. I think these memorials are needed because they are practically the only way in which we can show our deep respect and profound honour to those who have made such wonderful sacrifices for us. They also provide us with a stimulus for recollection. They remind us day by day of those whose memories might possibly as years go by become dimmed and blurred. But they shall not grow old as we that are left grow old. Age shall not wither them not the years decay. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them. Memorials of this kind provide us with an incentive and stimulus to help us foster and maintain the traditional spirit of our country, that spirit which has made England what it is today. The war indeed is over, but we have not yet the peace we prayed for. Reconstruction is a long time in coming. We have not yet got that happy England which we hoped would be the outcome of the war, and the question is-What are going to do about it? War may bring out and it did bring out some of the finest qualities in men. But war is a cruel thing. It is a devilish thing. It can never be constructive. Neither is it in any use relying on the Government measures to bring about the change we want or expecting things from the statute book which the State cannot produce. Reformation must come from the changed hearts and lives of the people. “The Kingdom of God is within you”. If we desire to have a new heaven and a new earth, it must start in the hearts and lives of men. The season of Epiphany, which we are keeping now, points out to us that there must be a manifestation of Christ in His people. That and that alone will bring about what we so greatly need. The League of Nations, which tomorrow celebrates its first birthday, bids us remember that nationality does not count as much as humanity. It was just this that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ came to teach us. Let us today, as we thank God for the memory and the example of those dear lads who died for us, seek to dedicate ourselves afresh to the service of Jesus Christ and to care for the common good of our fellow men”. John S. Arkwright’s noble hymn “O valiant hearts, who to your glory came,” was then sung. The lesson (Wisdom iii.,1-6), was read by the Rev. F. U. Hull, (Primitive Methodist Church), and after the Vicar of Basing had said prayers for “our brethren who have laid down their lives for their country,” for the bereaved and sorrowing, and for the sailors and soldiers of the King, a second lesson (Rev;xxi.,1-5) was read by Pastor N. Brewer, (Congregational Church). During the singing of the hymn “The Son of God goes forth to war”, a collection was made for the War Memorial Fund, the vicar stated that a few more pounds were need to clear it. After the Blessing had been pronounced, Mr. Albert Leavey (ex-sergeant) sounded The Last Post and then The Reveille, and relatives of the fallen came forward and placed upon the base of the memorial their tributes of love and honour. Major Hoare then led the parade out of the churchyard, Lieuts. Read and Beaver bringing up the rear, and the rest of the congregation dispersed.
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See photos “To the praise and glory of God, in undying gratitude to the men who gave their lives in the Great War, and in loving memory of those from this parish, 1914-1918. Then were the people glad, because they offered willingly”.

See photos Baker, Pte. George Ilsley, Pte. Albert M. Bennet, Pte. Ernest King, Sgt. George R. Burton, Dvr. Thomas Madocks, Lt.-Col. H. J. Clark, Pte. Alfred J. Moss. Pte. Christian Cross, A. B. Albert S. Nash, Pte. Cain Cross, Pte. Henry W. Painter, Sgt. Percy Dennis, Sgt. John Smith, Pte. Fredk. R. Dodd, Std. John H. Smith, Pte. Wm. J. Ford, Pte. Henry Soper, Pte. Wm. V. George, Pte. Wm. H. Stopp, Pte. Fredk. A. Harmsworth, Pte. S. J. Tigwell, Pte. Wm. C. Hayes, Dvr. George Tigwell, Pte. George Wellsted, Capt. George W.

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Grade II (England)

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1467191

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