Harrogate War Memorial

The Harrogate War Memorial is a First World War memorial erected in 1923, with the names of those who fell in the Second World War added after 1945. It is constructed from Portland stone and incorporates a bronze Roll of Honour.

The memorial is a tall, Portland stone obelisk set upon a square plinth, which is itself positioned on a shallow platform featuring stepped entrances on the east and west sides. The monument is encircled by ten bollards connected by lengths of chain.

The obelisk's upper faces each display a carved laurel wreath in relief. The north and south faces feature the coat of arms of Harrogate in relief, while the east and west faces depict a longsword pointing downwards.

Bronze plaques affixed to the east and west faces of the plinth display the Roll of Honour. The north face of the plinth presents a sculptural scene showing a soldier standing before an Ordnance QF 18 pounder field gun on a trench parapet, in a dynamic pose holding a flag and about to blow a bugle, with numerous bayonets at his feet representing troops preparing for attack. The south face depicts a figure representing Peace or Britannia, standing with outstretched arms, holding a longsword and a laurel wreath, with the helmeted heads of soldiers at her feet, rifles with fixed bayonets in hand. A serpent impaled by a bayonet curls around her feet, symbolizing the defeated enemy, and a dove of peace flies overhead. The soldiers' heads are bowed in mourning, however one rifle is held aloft in victory.

The east face of the monument is inscribed "OUR / GLORIOUS DEAD / 1914 – 1918 / 1939 – 1945 / PRO PATRIA / 1914 – 1918 / (NAMES)". The west face is inscribed "PRO PATRIA / 1914 – 1918 / (NAMES) / 1939 – 1945 / (NAMES)". The lists include the names of several women, including a nurse, a Women’s Land Army volunteer, a YMCA volunteer, a Queen Mary’s Army Auxiliary Corps volunteer and a munitions worker, alongside several Auxiliary Territorial Service workers from the Second World War.

A small plaque below the sculpture of Peace on the south face is inscribed: “TO ALL MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE GIVEN / THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY / IN VARIOUS HOSTILITIES SINCE THE SECOND WORLD WAR / WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.”

Two smaller plaques located between the bollards on the south side of the monument are inscribed: “HARROGATE BORN RECIPIENTS / THIS PLAQUE IS DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF THE MEN / WHOSE SERVICE TO THEIR COUNTRY / EARNED THEM THE HIGHEST MILITARY HONOUR / THE VICTORIA CROSS / REMEMBER / (NAMES).”