Fretherne War Memorial

A First World War memorial, erected in about 1920; altered by the addition of two further names after the Second World War.

MATERIALS: stone.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial, about 4m high, takes the form of a Latin cross surmounted on a collared shaft which rises from a square plinth. This is set on a three-stepped base, the bottom step of which is deep and has a low step abutting its north side. The cross shaft has carved flowers running up the chamfered edges.

The north face of the plinth lists the names of the six men of the parish who died during the First World War. The east face bears the inscription (CROSS)/ TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN EVER/ GRATEFUL MEMORY OF THE MEN OF/ FRETHERNE/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR/ KING & COUNTRY/ IN THE GREAT WAR A.D. 1914-1919/ (CROSS). The south face reads (CROSS)/ 25 MEN OF FRETHERNE SERVED IN/ THE GREAT WAR/ (CROSS), while the west face reads (CROSS)/ GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN/ THAN THIS THAT A MAN LAY DOWN/ HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS ST JOHN XV 13. One name of each of the two men who fell in the Second World War is incised into the north and east faces of the top step of the base.