Leeds War Memorial stands on Victoria Square on the

Headrow The Headrow is an avenue in Leeds city centre, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of the most important thoroughfares in central Leeds, hosting many of the city's civic and cultural buildings including Leeds Town Hall, Leeds Central Library ...

, to the east of

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

and to the south of Leeds City Art Gallery in Leeds, England. It was erected as a memorial to those who had fallen in the First World War. The memorial was designed by

Henry Charles Fehr Henry Charles Fehr Royal British Society of Sculptors, FRBS (4 November 1867 – 13 May 1940) was a British monumental and architectural sculptor active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He produced several notable public scu ...

(1867–1940) and unveiled on 14 October 1922 by Viscount Lascelles.

History

Following the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

invited sculptors to submit models for war memorials. Fehr submitted a design less conventional than the more traditional cenotaph memorials. The design was successful and adopted most notably by Leeds but also by

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...

and

Lockerbie Lockerbie (, gd, Locarbaidh) is a small town in Dumfries and Galloway, south-western Scotland. It is about from Glasgow, and from the border with England. The United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 Census recorded its population as 4,009. The town ...

. The memorial was initially erected in City Square before being relocated to Victoria Square off the Headrow.

Relocation

Until the 1930s the site now occupied by Victoria Square was occupied by buildings. From the late nineteenth century,

Leeds Corporation Leeds City Council is the local authority of the City of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in West Yorkshire and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, and provides the majority of l ...

had sought to widen Park Lane to create the boulevard now known as The Headrow. This scheme had begun with the demolition and relocation of Leeds Cathedral prior to the First World War. In 1936 it was decided as part of this scheme to create a garden of rest in front of the municipal buildings on the Headrow of the central library and art gallery. Previously this site had been occupied by Wharton's Hotel and the offices of the Leeds Permanent Building Society (which subsequently moved adjacent to the buildings now occupied by The Light). In January 1937 it was decided to relocate the memorial into the new garden of rest to accommodate new traffic arrangements on City Square. The garden of rest was officially opened by Lord Mayor of Leeds, Tom Coombs, following which the war memorial was re-dedicated.

Removal during the Second World War

A crack was found in the obelisk in 1940, following which the decision was taken to remove the memorial for repairs and it was duly taken down in 1940. Owing to concerns about potential bomb damage during the

Leeds Blitz The Leeds Blitz comprised nine air raids on the city of Leeds by the Nazi German ''Luftwaffe''. The heaviest raid took place on the night of 14/15 March 1941, affecting the city centre, Beeston, Bramley and Armley. The city was subjected to ...

the memorial remained in storage until being replaced in 1946.

Deterioration, removal again and refurbishment

Further damage was sustained from wind resulting in the angel of victory statue being removed again in 1965. In 1967 the memorial was capped with marble. The winged victory statue was then relocated to Cottingley Crematorium where it continued to deteriorate to a point beyond repair by which time it was removed in November 1988. The head of the statue is all which presently survives and is part of the Leeds Sculpture Collection. The memorial remained without a crowning statue until in 1990 it was decided a replacement should be commissioned. Rather than a replica, a more conciliatory design was favoured in the form of the statue of the Angel of Peace. This was designed by sculptor Ian Judd and was dedicated at a

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...

ceremony on 10 November 1991.

Description

The memorial is of a marble 'pyramid' obelisk topped with a bronze angel of peace holding roses. The angel was added in 1992 as a replacement for Fehr's original angel of victory with a sword and wreath which was damaged during a storm. This was similar to the angels currently atop of war memorials in Colchester and Eastbourne. The obelisk is flanked by 'Peace releasing a dove' on the north side and 'Saint George and the Dragon' on the south. The corners of the obelisk are adorned with owls; being the heraldic symbol of the City of Leeds.

Inscriptions

The memorial is inscribed on all sides *Invictis Pax (north face) *Ovr Gloriovs Dead (west face) *Honovr to the Fallen (east face) *Pro Patria (south face) *1914–1918 (north-west corner) *1939–1945 (south-west corner) File:War Memorial side.jpg, Peace releasing a dove File:St George (7004143145).jpg, Saint George and the Dragon

Today

Today the memorial is the centre of Leeds' remembrance day obligations. Adjacent to the memorial are mountings for three flag poles which are brought in for the ceremony.

Notes and references

Notes Citations {{Reflist World War I memorials in England World War II memorials in England Outdoor sculptures in England Monuments and memorials in Leeds Buildings and structures completed in 1922 Saint George and the Dragon Bronze sculptures in England Cenotaphs in the United Kingdom Military history of West Yorkshire