Birkenhead

Birkenhead - Taken by Leslie Scarborough 01 Jan 1990

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Birkenhead - Taken by Leslie Scarborough 01 Jan 1990

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Name Plaques - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 May 2008

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Name Plaque - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 21 Aug 2008

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Birkenhead cenotaph - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 01 Nov 2010

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Birkenhead cenotaph - showing damage caused by vandalism in June 2013 - Taken by Peter Jackson-Lee 26 Jun 2013

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Birkenhead Town Hall & War Memorial, 17/07/2015 - Taken by David Lovell 17 Jul 2015

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Birkenhead Cenotaph - Taken by David Hearn 26 Oct 2016

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Birkenhead Cenotaph - Taken by David Hearn 26 Oct 2016

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Birkenhead Cenotaph - Taken by David Hearn 26 Oct 2016

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Wirral VCs - Taken by John Morrison 14 Nov 2019

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Wirral VCs (2) - Taken by John Morrison 14 Nov 2019

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Reference WMO/121252

Address:

Hamilton Square Gardens

Hamilton Square

Birkenhead

CH41 5AT

England

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War Memorials Trust case: War Memorials Trust needs to avoid Contributors changing location/description details as we help to protect and conserve this war memorial through our casework. You can still add photographs, update condition and use the tabs below. If you believe any of the information you cannot edit is wrong or information is missing, please make a note of the reference number and include it in your email when you contact us.

Status: On original site

Type: Freestanding

Location: External

Setting: Within a garden/park/churchyard/enclosure/Marketplace

Description: Cenotaph

Materials:

Metal Iron
Stone Portland stone
Stone Slate

Lettering: Inscribed on a plaque

Conflicts:

First World War (1914-1918)
Second World War (1939-1945)
Falklands Conflict (1982)

About the memorial: Historic Englan entry - The memorial stands in Hamilton Square, created when Birkenhead’s grid-plan was laid out. It is constructed in Portland stone with Westmorland green slate relief figures and name panels. The memorial is in the form of a pylon, supported on a moulded pedestal and plinth, standing on a three-tier stepped platform. The structure is crowned with a sarcophagus on a scrolled base. The memorial stands within a paved area enclosed by granite kerbs. The longer east and west sides carry polished green stone slabs carved with the 1,293 names of the fallen, each set within a projecting frame beneath an entablature with a festooned frieze. On the pedestal below are carved emblems of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Merchant Navy. Above the cornice on the east side is the inscription: IN MEMORY OF THE MEN OF BIRKENHEAD / WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR, and on the west side: ALL THESE WERE HONOURED IN THEIR GENERATIONS / AND WERE THE GLORY OF THEIR TIMES (Ecclesiasticus 44:7). The base of the pedestal on the east side is carved: 1939 – 1945 WAR/ THE BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE MAY BE INSPECTED IN THE TOWN HALL. The shorter north and south faces have carved stylised female figures in Egyptian dress: that to the north displaying the Next of Kin plaque carved: HE DIED FOR FREEDOM AND HONOUR; that to the south holding a laurel wreath and a palm branch. These are set within pilastered surrounds with entablatures matching those to the longer sides. The parapets have carved oval escutcheons inset with the borough arms, and are carved to either side 1939 and 1945. The re-entrant angles of the pedestal are inset with scroll and festoon ornament. The pedestal fronts carry polished green slate slabs which are carved with further names. The shafts of the two cast-iron flagpoles have heavy moulded bases with festoon ornament. They stand on octagonal stone bases carved with inset panels, on a stepped plinth. These form an integral part of the composition. .

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Date Submitted:

Work Proposed:

Cleaning because the inscriptions cannot be read, because the dirt/pollution is causing damage to the memorial or to help identify if additional work is needed

Status:

Rejection reason:

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Comments:

Now I have left Wirral, I thought it worthwhile to add a little bit of history to the memorial page.

Peter Jackson-Lee, the War Memorials Officer for Wirral arranged for the Cenotaph was cleaned and all names on the Westmoreland Slates were repainted by Birkenhead monumental to allow the now faded names to be fully visible for the centenary of the First World War.

Attempted theft of one of the roundels on the garden side of the Cenotaph. The roundel was removed but thankfully not damaged and was successfully replaced by Birkenhead monumental with the addition of steel dowels to ensure it could not be removed again. No subsequent action was taken against the offender by the Police.

There was a planning application put in to increase the raised area around the cenotaph to allow wheelchair users to move around and physically tough the Cenotaph. This was to have been part of the works to install the Victoria Cross stones but was sadly not taken up.

Upon the decision to place the VC stones at the base of the Cenotaph, I wanted to extend the base and include a ramp to allow wheelchair access. Planning was applied for but the planning department requested that it be withdrawn.

The paving stones were all lifted to allow for the Victoria Cross and new contrasting paving stones to be laid, Mr Jackson-Lee arranged for the cenotaph to be illuminated by four large lamps. These are remote controlled and can allow for the changing of the colour of the light upon the cenotaph.

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Suggest information

Listing grade:

Grade II* (England)

Listing URL:

http://list.historicengland.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1218058

Unique listing reference number:

1218058

Conservation area:

Information Required

Local list / Historic environment record:

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Claim Custodianship

Custodian name:

Wirral Council

Custodian website:

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