Memorial details

Memorial type
Trophy / Relic
District
Cheltenham
Town
Cheltenham
County
Gloucestershire
Country
England
Commemoration
Crimean War (1853-1856)
Ceremony
  • Unveiled
    Date: July 1858
    Attended by: Local Clergy/Dignitaries
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
2070

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Current location

14 yrds north of the Queens Hotel
The Promenade
Cheltenham
Cheltenham
Gloucestershire
GL50 1NN
England

OS Grid Ref: SO 94593 22011
Denomination: Undefined

View location on Google Maps
Description
It is formed of a large black rectangular cast iron plinth which used to support a cannon. Around the top of the plinth is a low barrier of metal spikes with short metal posts with spherical finals at the corners, and the area within this barrier is now used as a planter for flowers. The memorial is spanned by a decorative arch painted in gilt and green, surmounted by a lamp. Underneath the lamp, supported by the arch, is a badge containing the monogram VR. There is gilded lettering around the faces of the plinth. During World War II, the cannon were removed and melted down for munitions. One of the bases remained and was turned into a flower bed, still with the lantern on top.
Inscription
Side 1: TAKEN/ AT/ SEBASTOPOL/ 1856 Side 2, centre section: TO THE MEMORY/ OF THE MEN/ CONNECTED WITH/ CHELTENHAM/ WHO FELL IN THE/ CRIMEA Side 2, left and right hand sides: (NAMES) Side 3: THIS MEMORIAL RECORDS THE NAMES OF THOSE FROM/ THIS BOROUGH WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE CRIMEAN/ WAR. IT WAS ORIGINALLY SURMOUNTED BY A GUN/ TAKEN AT SEBASTOPOL/ DURING THE WAR OF 1939-1945 THE GUN WAS HANDED TO/ THE GOVERNMENT TO PROVIDE METAL FOR ARMAMENTS Side 4: (NAMES)
Inscription legible?
yes
Names on memorial
Baldwin, F.
Carter, J S
Conolly
Cox, William
Crofton, Gustavus St John
Didcote, John Goe.
Evans, C H
Evans, Edward
Every
Gilby, D B
See details for all 27 names
Commemorations
  • Crimean War (1853-1856)
    Total names on memorial: 27
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 27
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: rank,regiment
    Order of information: rank,regiment
Components
  • Gun
    Measurements: depth C 3000MM, height C 3000MM, width C 1500MM
    Materials: Metal
  • Base
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Cast Iron
Listing information
  • CRIMEAN WAR MEMORIAL APPROXIMATELY 14 METRES NORTH OF THE QUEENS HOTEL
  • 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
History
Over the years, the war memorial had been painted battleship grey, the metal had begun to corrode and some decorative details had been lost. In January 2008 English Heritage and the Wolfson Foundation granted £9,030 towards work to conserve the memorial and to return it as far as possible to its original appearance. The memorial was moved to a conservator’s workshop to dismantle it. Investigations showed that fourteen layers of paint had been used on the memorial over time, and the original paint scheme was black on the base, with gold lettering, archway, and flowers and green leaves. The current decorative arrow finials below the lamp, and the lamp itself were shown to be later additions. However, the old photographs available were not detailed enough to see what the originals looked like and therefore it was decided to conserve the elements as they were, rather than replace them. Other features of the archway had to be re-cast, such as the flowers and leaves. The main body of the plinth had some cracks, which were repaired by fixing metal straps over the back on the inside of the base.; 1998: The base is said to be in a poor condition as it is badly rusted.; Date unknown: Original lamps were replaced with smaller versions.
Costs

Site: C £300

Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Reference
  • Cheltenham As It Was by Beacham, Roger Unknown
  • Cheltenham Chronicle and Gloucestershire Graphic/ Sat/Dec/14/1918
  • Cheltenham At War In Old Photographs by Gill, Peter 117; 134 Published:Allan Sutton 1994 Stroud

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.

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© WMR-2070

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