Brierley Hill War Memorial - 2023-07-03 - Andy Mabbett - 45

Brierley Hill War Memorial is a war memorial in Brierley Hill, Dudley, England. Erected after World War I, the memorial stands outside St. Michael's church and was unveiled on 12 November 1921. It also now commemorates the dead of World War II, the Korean War, Cyprus Emergency and

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces o ...

, on separate tablets. The memorial, based on designs by Councillor J.T. Fereday, with additional work by local industrialist and preacher Francis Lane, consists of a statue of a charging infantry soldier, in World War I uniform and carrying a rifle with

bayonet A bayonet (from French ) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.Brayley, Martin, ''Bayonets: An Illustr ...

fitted, on a square granite column which also features four relief sculptures. The column sits on a limestone terrace with metal railings, supported by brick retaining walls, at the foot of which is a cannon. The statue, panels and corner columns of the plinth are of Sicilian marble. The terrace and statue overlook the nearby Clent Hills. The statue was modelled from photographs of Stanley Harley, the first man from Brierley Hill awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal, and made by George Brown and Sons of Kidderminster. The cannon was made by the Brierley Hill firm of Bailey and Pegg in the 18th century. The four reliefs depict: *

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

tending the wounded (facing Church Street) * artillery in action (facing High Street) * soldiers going 'over the top' (facing away from Church Street) * HMS ''Arethusa'' sending out its boats to rescue German sailors from a ship it had sunk (facing away from High Street) Below the four reliefs are the inscriptions: "For freedom", "For homeland", "For righteousness", and "For kindred". Three of the four faces of the column carry the names of the dead of World War I, numbering 205 in all. The fourth, north, face carries the inscription (all in upper case): At the foot of the column are inscribed the names of four theatres of war, "France", "Flanders", "Gallipoli", and "Palestine". The memorial was afforded

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

status in January 2015, for its historic and artistic interest and sculptural value, giving it legal protection from unauthorised alteration or demolition. It was restored in 2021, with two new interpretation panels installed adjacent to it.

Notes

References

External links

{{Commons category
Blog post investigating the identity of those listed on the memorial
War Memorial Monuments and memorials in the West Midlands (county) Grade II listed monuments and memorials Grade II listed buildings in the West Midlands (county) 1921 sculptures