Sutton Coldfield War Memorial

The Sutton Coldfield War Memorial is a civic monument designed by Francis Doyle-Jones and unveiled in November 1922. It is constructed from Dalbeattie granite and a sandstone plinth, with a bronze statue and plaques affixed.

The memorial faces east and comprises a full-length bronze statue of a soldier in battle dress, standing on a granite plinth. The plinth has two granite steps leading up to it. The plinth itself is square in section, with a wider base featuring alternating projecting and recessed quoins to the corners. Bronze plaques are attached to the front and flanks. The main plaque on the east face commemorates the men of Sutton Coldfield who died in the First World War (1914-1919) and includes the inscription ‘ERECTED TO THE / GLORIOUS MEMORY / OF THE MEN OF / SUTTON / COLDFIELD / WHO GAVE / THEIR LIVES IN / THE GREAT WAR / 1914 - 1919 / THEY DIED THAT WE MIGHT LIVE’. Above this inscription are two coloured enamel armorials on crossed shields. A separate plaque below this commemorates those who fell in the Second World War (1939-1945), and another plaque at the base lists the names of the Second World War fallen. A carved oval laurel wreath with crossed torches is positioned at the top of the plinth’s east side, in relief. The flanking and rear plaques record the names of those lost in the First World War. The bronze statue depicts a soldier wearing a great coat and helmet, with a gas mask holder at the front, a water bottle to the side, and a back pack. His arms are crossed and resting on his rifle. A later addition is a square walled enclosure of squared rubble sandstone with coping, which surrounds the monument and encloses flower beds.