Grove Park War Memorial

War memorial and sculpture of 1922, by Alfred Drury RA, with 1940s memorial plinths attributed to Walter Cave.

MATERIALS: a bronze sculpture on a Portland stone plinth and pedestal with bronze plaques. The 1940s plinths are also of stone.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial sculpture is a winged Victory standing on a globe with her arms outstretched. She holds a small olive branch in her right hand. The octagonal pedestal column has scrolled feet at each corner, and a moulded cap. Front face, upper plaque reads: THESE DIED/ THAT WE MIGHT LIVE/ TO THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND IN MEMORY OF THE/ MEN OF WESTON SUPER MARE/ UPHILL AND KEWSTOKE WHO/ FELL IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914-1919/ (Names)/ THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE. The lower plaque reads: REDEDICATED / TO THE HONOURED MEMORY OF/ ALL THOSE OF THE/ BOROUGH OF WESTON SUPER MARE/ WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE WAR/ 1939-1945. The other faces have names of others fallen in the First World War (402 in total on the memorial), with moulded stone wreaths below.

The memorial stands within a paved rectangle and is prominently sited in a memorial garden within Grove Park, close to and intervisible with the bandstand (qv).

20 metres to the north is a memorial wall in three sections with Moderne-style moulded caps and the names of those killed in the Second World War placed on bronze plaques. The central section is inscribed: 1939 1945/ H.M. FORCES with 186 names below. An enamelled crest of Weston Super Mare has been placed in between the dates. The sections to each side are inscribed CIVILIANS with113 names below. Two additional plinths have been placed either side of it for additional names. The memorial also includes the names of casualties in the Korean War (1), Egypt and the Suez Crisis (1), Northern Ireland (1) and Twentieth Century Wars (3).