Memorial details

Memorial type
Allegory (eg: Victory)
District
Luton
Town
Luton
County
Bedfordshire
Country
England
Commemoration
First World War (1914-1918), Second World War (1939-1945)
Ceremony
  • Unveiled
    Date: 10 December 1922
    Attended by: Lady Ludlow performed the unveiling.
  • Unveiled
    Date: 10 November 1957
    Attended by: The Mayor of Luton unveiled the WW2 plaques on the memorial.
  • Dedicated
    Date: 10 November 1957
    Attended by: Canon William Davison (Vicar of Luton) dedicated the WW2 plaques
  • Dedicated
    Date: 10 December 1922
    Attended by: Reverend C Molian Williams, Vicar of Luton, performed the dedication.
  • Show More (3)
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
7563

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Current location

Town square edged by Manchester Street
St George Street
and Upper George Street
Luton Town Hall
Manchester Street
Luton
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 2BQ
England

OS Grid Ref: TL 09024 21316
Denomination: Undefined

View location on Google Maps
Description
Robed, winged female figure apparently representing Peace, right arm raised holding a palm frond, standing on a cenotaph with four-stepped base. WW1 names inscribed on cenotaph and WW2 names on plaques mounted on base steps. (During the construction of this memorial, a copy of the Luton WW1 Book of Remembrance was deposited within it by the Mayor of Luton. The official copy of that Book, which lists the details of 1284 men of Luton who died in WW1, is now in Wardown House Museum and Gallery - see our reference WMR 99722).
Inscription
6 o'clock face: (Names)/ 1922/ ERECTED/ BY/ PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION/ (Names) 9 o'clock face: (Names)/ GREATER LOVE HATH/ NO MAN THAN THIS/ THAT A MAN LAY/ DOWN HIS LIFE/ FOR HIS FRIENDS./ (Names) 12 o'clock face: (Names)/ BOROUGH OF LUTON/ IN MEMORY OF/ THE MEN OF LUTON/ WHO FELL/ IN THE GREAT WAR/ THE TABLETS ON THE LOWER PLINTH COMMEMORATE/ THE MEN AND WOMEN OF LUTON WHO FELL IN THE / SECOND WORLD WAR/ AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN AND IN THE MORNING WE WILL REMEMBER THEM/ (Names) 3 o'clock face: (Names)/ THEY GAVE THE MOST THAT MAN/ CAN GIVE LIFE ITSELF FOR GOD/ FOR KING AND COUNTRY FOR/ LOVED ONES HOME AND EMPIRE/ FOR THE SACRED CAUSE OF/ JUSTICE AND FREEDOM/ OF THE WORLD
Inscription legible?
yes
Names on memorial
Abbott, E
Abbott, H
Abbott, H
Abbott, H
Abbott, R
Abrahams, H H
Abrahams, H W
Abrahams, W E
Abrahams, W R
Adcock, G
See details for all 943 names
Commemorations
  • First World War (1914-1918)
    Total names on memorial: 1285
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 1284
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Surname, forename, decorations
    Order of information: Alphabetically
  • Second World War (1939-1945)
    Total names on memorial: 672
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 672
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Surname, forename, decorations
    Order of information: Alphabetically
Components
  • Cenotaph
    Measurements: height 16500 mm
    Materials: Stone - Portland
  • Figure
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Plaque
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
Listing information
  • War Memorial
  • Grade II
  • This memorial is protected, and listed on the National Heritage List for England maintained by Historic England. View list entry
  • More about listing and the protection of historic places can be found on the Historic England website
  • Historic England
Condition
Costs

Memorial: £4,100

Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Public
Responsibility
Luton Borough Council
Reference

This record comprises all information held by IWM’s War Memorials Register for this memorial. Where we hold a names list for the memorial, this information will be displayed on the memorial record. Please check back as we are adding more names to the database.

This information is made available under a Creative Commons BY-NC licence.

This means you may reuse it for non-commercial purposes only and must attribute it to us using the following statement:

© WMR-7563

For queries, please contact [email protected].