Sandown War Memorial

The Sandown War Memorial is a First World War memorial, erected in 1921, designed by Percy Stone, with later additions for the Second World War. It is situated on a specially constructed semi-circular bastion with iron railings that extend towards the sea from the esplanade.

The memorial is made of Cornish granite and faces north-west towards the Esplanade. It features a tall cross that stands on a curved plinth, which is set on a two-stepped base. The cross is adorned with knot carving and has a wheel that bears a quotation from the book of Ecclesiasticus: ‘THEIR / NAME / LIVETH FOR EVERMORE'. The shaft of the cross has panels inscribed with the phrases, ‘EACH / GAVE / A / LIFE FOR YOU AND ME’ (from the ‘Ballads of Battle’ by Lance Corporal Joseph Lee) and ‘A MEMORIAL / TO THE / SANDOWN/ MEN / WHO GAVE / THEIR LIVES / IN THE / GREAT WAR / 1914-1920’.

On the front of the plinth, there is a recessed panel with metal lettering that reads, ‘REMEMBER THE LOVE OF THEM/ WHO CAME NOT HOME/ FROM THE WARS’. Below this panel, the dates ‘1914-18 – 1939-45’ have been added. The names of those who lost their lives in the First World War are inscribed on the other sides of the plinth, and a granite plaque listing the Second World War dead has been added to the face of the top step.