Riccall War Memorial

First World War memorial, 1921, with Second World War and C21 additions.

DESCRIPTION: Riccall War Memorial is located at the entrance to the churchyard to the north-east of the Grade I-listed Church of St Mary.

The memorial is of Portland stone and takes the form of a tall, tapering, fluted pillar with a decorative capital and moulded band below. At the base of the pillar, to all four faces, is a relief carved wreath, while directly above is a pair of carved decorative bands. There is also carved decoration within the fluting. The pillar has a moulded foot and rises from a narrow square pedestal. This surmounts a tapering, four-sided plinth with moulded foot atop a narrow, single-step chamfered base.

An inscription wraps around the pedestal in relief lettering, reading in an anticlockwise direction and starting on the north-east face, FOR GOD/ KING/ AND/ COUNTRY. The principal inscription is to the north-east face of the plinth and reads,TO THE GLORY OF GOD/ AND IN UNDYING MEMORY/ OF THE MEN FROM RICCALL/ WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR/ 1914-1918./ “GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN/ THAN THIS THAT A MAN LAY/ DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS”. Directly below is a later inscription, added in the C21 for the centenary of the First World War, which reads, TO MARK THE CENTENARY/ OF THE GREAT WAR/ 1914-1918/ NEVER FORGOTTEN. The names of the 20 men who died in the conflict are recorded on the south-east and north-west faces of the plinth. The lettering is incised and painted black.

To the south-west face of the plinth is the dedication to the Second World War, also in incised lettering, painted black, 1939-1945 (5 NAMES).