West Row War Memorial

The West Row War Memorial is a First World War memorial, built in 1919, with additions commemorating the Second World War. It was designed and manufactured by Messrs HG Neville and Sons of Mildenhall. The memorial is constructed from Portland stone and stands in a prominent location on Church Green, a triangular area of grassland to the east of the Church of St Peter, at the junction of Church Road and Church Lane.

The memorial is an obelisk, approximately 3.2 metres high, with a three-stepped plinth set upon a broad square base. The north faces of the upper two steps of the plinth bear dedicatory inscriptions in black painted lettering. The top step reads: “THIS MEMORIAL WAS ERECTED / IN GRATEFUL AND LOVING / MEMORY OF THE MEN OF THIS / VILLAGE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES / FOR KING AND COUNTRY / IN THE GREAT WAR, / 1914 - 1919.” The middle step continues with the quotation: "GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS, / THAT A MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS / FRIENDS (John 15:13)", followed by the Second World War dedication: "ALSO IN MEMORY OF / THOSE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE / SECOND WORLD WAR 1939 - 1945.” The lower step of the plinth lists the names of eight parishioners who died during the Second World War, and a further name is inscribed on the foundation stone as a later addition.

The remaining three sides of the plinth list the names of 35 local men who died in the First World War, arranged alphabetically by surname, along with ranks, regiments and decorations where applicable. Inscriptions on the east and west sides read: “SIDE BY SIDE WE FOUGHT TOGETHER, / THROUGH THE CONFLICTS FIERCE AND LONG, / FOR THE CAUSE OF TRUTH AND JUSTICE / AND THE DEAR ONES LEFT AT HOME.” and “NOBLY THEY DID THEIR DUTY, BRAVELY THEY FOUGHT AND FELL / AND THE SORROW OF THOSE WHO LOVED THEM, / IS OURS TODAY AS WELL.” The memorial stands within a gravelled area bordered by a concrete kerb and a late 20th-century chain link fence supported by concrete posts, which are considered non-integral to the memorial’s original design.