Blo Norton War Memorial

The Blo Norton War Memorial, built in 1920, commemorates the First World War and includes additions relating to the Second World War. It is located on a small green near St Andrew’s churchyard in Blo Norton, close to the Grade II-listed Church of St Andrew and the Grade II-listed Church Farmhouse.

The memorial is constructed of Doulton stone and stands on a platform of flint and red brick. It takes the form of a Latin cross, featuring flower and foliate relief carving at the end of each cross-arm. The slender hexagonal shaft arises from a hexagonal pedestal with a moulded foot and a sloped, gabled cap. Six painted heraldic shields are carved in relief on each face of the pedestal, representing the Royal Arms of King George V, East Anglia, the Diocese of Norwich, the County of Norfolk, the Duke of Norfolk, and St Andrew. The pedestal sits on a hexagonal plinth, which stands on a single step hexagonal base. The entire structure is raised upon a flint platform with red brick quoins, supported by a wide hexagonal brick foundation.

Inscriptions, carved in incised lettering and painted black, run around the plinth. The principal inscription, beginning on the north-west face, commemorates the peace of 1919 and the twenty-seven men from the village who died in the First World War. The inscription continues around the plinth, noting the contribution to final victory and crediting the inhabitants of Blo Norton for its construction. A shield with a cross design is positioned in the bottom right corner of the west face. The Second World War inscription, situated below, lists the three names of those from the village who died during the Second World War, between 1939 and 1945. The letters “T” and “H” are merged in the word "THE" on the south-west face inscription.