War Memorial, Perimeter Walls and Loggia, Garden of Remembrance, Manchester Old Road, Middleton

War Memorial, Perimeter Walls and Loggia, Garden of Remembrance

This war memorial and garden complex stands on Manchester Old Road in Middleton. The memorial itself dates to 1927, with the perimeter walls and loggia constructed around 1945. The materials are sandstone, orange brick, and slate.

The garden is laid out as a rectangular enclosure with a formal, symmetrical design. A brick boundary wall forms the south and west perimeters. The north side is defined by a U-shaped loggia that wraps around to meet east and west pavilions, while the east perimeter is formed by a modern metal fence (excluded from listing). The enclosed area contains grassed sections with geometric flowerbeds and formal pathways. A central axial route leads from the main south entrance toward the war memorial, positioned toward the rear and flanked by the loggia.

The south and west boundary walls are constructed in orange brick with Flemish bond, with sandstone plinths and copings. The south wall, which faces the road, has moulded coping, while the west wall has square-cut coping. At the centre of the south wall stands a grand entrance gateway, flanked by two small rectangular pavilions with pyramidal slate roofs. These pavilions have blocked window openings on their external south walls, built as a continuation of the boundary wall. The gateway wall itself is set back within the inner north corners of the pavilions. The two square brick gate piers have moulded stone caps topped by swagged urns. Four shallow stone steps rise to iron double gates, which are decorated with poppy symbols picked out in red paint. On the east elevation of the left-hand pavilion is a T-shaped granite plaque bearing an enamelled coat of arms, a cast-metal ribbon inscribed with the motto FORTIS IN ARDUIS, and metal lettering reading THE GARDEN OF REMEMBRANCE. The west wall is ramped at its south-west corner and where it adjoins the left-hand wing of the loggia.

The U-shaped loggia is raised slightly above ground level and accessed by shallow stone flag steps. It is open toward the garden, supported by square brick piers on sandstone plinths, with blind brick external walls carrying double-pitched slate roofs. Inside, the roof is ceiled and plastered with squared timber framing. At the terminal ends of the U-shape are two identical pavilions with gabled walls facing the memorial. The inner gabled faces contain wide round-headed openings, originally fitted with gates, flanked by slightly-projecting corner piers with angled capitals of narrow bricks supporting the gables. The gables are rendered with timber bargeboards, each bearing an enamelled coat of arms and motto. Both pavilions have large oval window openings on their south-facing side elevations, believed to have originally been glazed. In the north corner of the east rear wall is a round-headed doorway with an original geometrical iron gate.

The war memorial occupies a circular path linked to the main gateway by the central axial pathway. The memorial comprises a tall, slightly tapering octagonal sandstone column topped by a cross and set upon a deep octagonal plinth with a square base. The octagonal plinth is inscribed with the dates 1914-1918 and 1939-1945. Four inverted consoles support the column. A small inscribed chamfered granite plaque on the square base reads TO ALL THOSE / WHO DIED IN THE SERVICE / OF / THEIR COUNTRY. A low wall, following the curve of the circular path, is attached to both sides of the octagonal plinth. This wall is interrupted by stone steps that rise to diagonal pathways linking with a pathway around the edge of the loggia. The curved walls then continue as straight sections with ramped outer edges, aligning with the south side elevations of the loggia pavilions. On both sides, flights of stone steps rise between the wall and pavilion, also linking with the pathway around the loggia edge. The sandstone memorial wall has a plinth and moulded coping. The curved portion carries a grey granite frieze with metal lettering reading HERE IN THIS GARDEN OF PEACE WE / GRATEFULLY REMEMBER THOSE / WHO BY THEIR GREAT SACRIFICES / MADE POSSIBLE THIS FREEDOM. Beneath the frieze are inset grey granite panels with the names of First World War fallen, picked out in metal lettering. The two straight walls each bear an inset grey granite panel dated 1939-1945, beneath which are similar inset panels with the names of Second World War fallen.

A fountain stands inside the circular path, featuring a stone sculpture of a dolphin (a modern replacement) within a semi-circular pond, now planted as a flowerbed. This pond has deep stone edging and a low stone wall to its rear, detailed similarly to the memorial wall.