Dorking War Memorial

Dorking War Memorial

War memorial erected in 1921, extended after 1945. Designed by Thomas Braddock. Portland stone ashlar.

The memorial stands on a raised platform set against a wall retaining an upper road. It takes the form of an aedicule with plain pilasters, a moulded cornice and triangular pediment featuring a central cartouche. Three slightly recessed panels are inscribed with the names of the fallen, above which the words "IN MEMORY OF DORKING MEN WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR" are engraved in large capital letters. The plinth bears a smaller inscription reading "They were a wall unto us both by night and by day 1 Sam XXV 16". Each pilaster features roundels bearing the dates 1914 and 1919.

Attached to either side of the main 1914-1919 memorial are low splayed projections in the form of pedestals, their inner-facing panels displaying the names of those who died in the Second World War. At the end of each projection are the dates 1939 and 1945, each circled by a wreath. Two flagpoles attached to the retaining wall on either side of the earlier memorial are part of the original design.

The memorial was unveiled in 1921 to commemorate the men of Dorking who lost their lives in the Great War. Thomas Braddock, who won a competition to design the memorial, was later Member of Parliament for Mitcham between 1945 and 1950. He was also part of the team that designed cinemas in London for the Odeon chain, including Leicester Square.

The memorial originally incorporated a bandstand, iron railings and wooden seating. During the Second World War the railings were taken for the war effort. After the war the seating was removed and two low walls were added to either side of the memorial to commemorate the dead of the Second World War. The two flanking flagpoles, originally positioned near the base of the memorial on the retaining wall, were moved to a higher position to accommodate these extensions. Spotlights attached above the cornice are modern additions.