The Livesey Hall War Memorial, in

Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in the London Plan as one of ...

, Greater London, commemorates the fallen of

World War I 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 ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

who had been employed by the South Suburban Gas Company of London. It is also a tribute to those employees who served in the wars. The monument was designed and executed by the British sculptor Sydney March, of the March family of artists.

Location

The Livesey Hall War Memorial is located in the

Sydenham Sydenham may refer to: Places Australia * Sydenham, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Sydenham railway station, Sydney * Sydenham, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne ** Sydenham railway line, the name of the Sunbury railway line, Melbourne ...

area of

, Greater London, England. The locality is also referred to as

Catford Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green and Catford South wards. The population of Catford, includ ...

. It is positioned on Perry Hill, in the

Bell Green Bell Green is predominantly a residential area of in the north east of Coventry, West Midlands, England about 2.5 miles from the city centre. It was once home to over 50 different types of shops but due to the current economic climate and the c ...

neighbourhood, in front of Livesey Memorial Hall. Both structures take their name from the philanthropist Sir George Livesey (1834–1908), former chairman of the South Metropolitan Gas Company, as did the Livesey Museum for Children.

Design

The monument includes a bronze winged female figure with outstretched arms held aloft and wings spread horizontally. The triumphant

Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...

statue stands on a bronze globe encircled with serpents and set on a bronze wreathed base. This is all set on a semi-circular stone base to which a small bronze plaque was attached. Three steps lead to a backdrop of vertical limestone slabs on which three bronze plaques were affixed, two on the front and one on the back. The inscriptions on the left hand panel on the front and the smaller panel in the centre dedicated the memorial to the partners and employees of the South Suburban Gas Company who died in the two world wars. The inscriptions on the right hand panel on the front listed the names of the fallen. The panel also included a quote from English poet Rupert Brooke: "If I should die, think only this of me: that there's some corner of a foreign field that is forever England. There shall be in that rich earth a richer dust concealed." The bronze plaque on the back of the monument lists the partners and employees of the company who served during World War I.

Dedication

The Livesey Hall War Memorial, sometimes referred to as the Sydenham or Livesey War Memorial, was unveiled by

Lord Robert Cecil Edgar Algernon Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 1st Viscount Cecil of Chelwood, (14 September 1864 – 24 November 1958), known as Lord Robert Cecil from 1868 to 1923,As the younger son of a Marquess, Cecil held the courtesy title of "Lord". However, he ...

(1864–1958) on 4 June 1920. The British statesman helped draft the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

Covenant in 1919 and won the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

in 1937.

National Heritage List for England

The monument is a

listed building 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 ...

. It was added as a Grade II structure on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, a ...

on 25 April 1995. Its listing was amended on 30 August 1996. George Livesey's statue by F. W. Pomeroy is also on the National Heritage List for England as is Livesey Memorial Hall itself.

Sculptor

The Livesey Hall War Memorial was designed and sculpted by the British artist Sydney March. The son of George and Elizabeth March, he was born in 1876 in Stoneferry, a suburb of Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. He was the second of nine children, eight of whom became artists. As a child, Sydney March worked as a monumental sculptor's apprentice. Later, he attended the

Royal Academy Schools 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 purpo ...

, where he won first prize in 1900. March exhibited thirteen times at The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts between 1906 and 1932. His family established studios at their home of Goddendene in Farnborough, Kent after 1901. Sydney March was a prolific artist whose primary focus was war memorials, as well as sculptures of British royalty and other contemporary figures. He and his siblings completed the National War Memorial (Canada), National War Memorial of Canada after the 1930 death of their brother, sculptor Vernon March. Other monuments for which he is renowned include the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers South African War Memorial in Northern Ireland, the United Empire Loyalists, United Empire Loyalist Monument in Canada, and the Lancaster Monument in England. Smaller-scale pieces include the portrait busts of King Edward VII and Cecil John Rhodes, both in the National Portrait Gallery, London, National Portrait Gallery in London. Sydney March died in 1968 at the age of 92. His ashes were interred in the family plot at St Giles the Abbot Churchyard in Farnborough. In 1922, Sydney had sculpted the bronze angel monument that marks the March plot.

Theft of plaques

In October 2011, the three bronze plaques from the front of the monument were stolen. Police in the Greater London area reported in late 2011 that Metal theft in the United Kingdom, incidents of metal theft began about 2006, and had increased since then. Thieves were not only stealing memorial plaques from monuments and cemeteries, but also other sources of metal such as roofs, manhole covers, and railway cable.

References

External links

Map of Livesey War Memorial
{{Portal bar, London, Visual arts, World War I, World War II Victory monuments Military memorials in London Grade II listed monuments and memorials World War I memorials in England World War II memorials in England Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Lewisham