Eastwood Ambulance Training Corps War Memorial

Eastwood Ambulance Training Corps War Memorial

This war memorial garden is situated on the north-west side of the junction of Nottingham Road and Edward Road. The garden is enclosed by coursed and coped stone walls on the north-east and south-west sides. The front wall on the south-east side is formed of stone blocks carved with the inscription SO THEY PASSED OVER AND ALL THE TRUMPETS/ SOUNDED FOR THEM ON THE OTHER SIDE either side of the garden gate. Raised beds within the garden are defined by coursed stone walls.

The central memorial, erected in 1920, comprises a tall stone wheel-head cross in the Celtic style. The front face of the cross head and shaft features a reversed sword carved in low relief. At the foot of the cross shaft, a shallow shield encloses an arrow in flight, also carved in low relief. Below this, the inscription NON SIBI (meaning 'Not for self') is carved in low relief. The cross rises from a tapering pedestal standing on a plinth, the whole raised on a large concrete base and approached by a flight of stone steps to the front.

The principal dedicatory inscription is recorded in gilded incised lettering on a slate plaque inset into the front face of the pedestal. It reads TO THE GLORIOUS MEMORY OF THE/ CADETS OF THE EASTWOOD AMBULANCE TRAINING CORPS,/ WHO VOLUNTEERED FOR SERVICE AND FELL IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1918, followed by the names of the fallen with their rank, regiment, and the places where they served and died. A second slate plaque, inserted into the front face of the plinth, bears an incised inscription commemorating those who died in the Second World War.

At the south-west corner of the garden, a trapezoidal stone pedestal built into the walls bears a plain Latin granite cross. On its front face, flanked by two plain stone pillars, is mounted a large bronze plaque commemorating the Sherwood Foresters. The plaque reads ON CRICH HILL A MONUMENT IS ERECTED/ IN MEMORY OF/ 11,409 OF ALL RANKS OF/ THE SHERWOOD FORESTERS/ (NOTTINGHAMSHIRE AND DERBYSHIRE REGT)/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ FOR THEIR KING AND THEIR COUNTRY/ IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1919, and continues to honour the 140,000 soldiers of the same regiment who served across 32 battalions. The inscription includes 45TH FOOT and 95TH FOOT flanking the regimental badge at the top. Below the bronze plaque, a small slate plaque with an ogee curved top is let into the stone plinth, ornamented with an incised reversed dagger and shield enclosing an arrow in flight, and inscribed NON SIBI/ THIS MEMORIAL WAS/ ERECTED BY THE/ EASTWOOD AMBULANCE/ TRAINING CORPS/ AD 1927.

A stone bench is set into the north-west end of the south-west wall and accessed from the street. It includes a replacement slate plaque dated 2002 recording the charitable work of Jane Roberts. Below the Eastwood coat of arms, the incised and gilded inscription reads THIS SEAT WAS PLACED HERE BY THE EASTWOOD AMBULANCE TRAINING CORPS/ IN MEMORY OF JANE ROBERTS/ WHO RAISED OVER ONE HUNDRED POUNDS FOR THE CORPS FUNDS/ BY DEVOTING HER LEISURE TIME FOR MANY YEARS TO MAKING SMALL ARTICLES/ AND SELLING THEM FOR A FEW PENCE/ SHE WAS BORN IN EASTWOOD AND DIED DECEMBER 1922, AGED 74 YEARS.

The memorial garden is constructed of freestone and granite crosses, slate and bronze plaques, and stone walls.