Memorial details

Memorial type
Allegory (eg: Victory)
District
City Of Westminster
Town
Hyde Park
County
Greater London
Country
England
Commemoration
First World War (1914-1918), Regimental Memorials
Ceremony
  • Unveiled
    Date: 10th May 1925
    Attended by: FM HRH Prince Arthur Duke of Connaught KG
  • Dedicated
    Date: 10th May 1925
    Attended by: Chaplain General to the Forces
  • Show More (1)
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
2129

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Current location

Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park
City Of Westminster
Greater London
W1J 7NS
England

OS Grid Ref: TQ 28485 79877
Denomination: Undefined

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Description
Statue of David- trophies and wreaths in Bronze and pedestal in Portland stone. The memorial to the fallen of the Machine Gun Corps is embodied by a statue known as the ‘Boy David’; the Biblical figure who proved his worth after slaying the fearsome giant, Goliath. Although we tend to associate David with heroism and triumph over adversity, his representation in this case is naked; something which suggests a sense of vulnerability. The statue’s plinth includes a quote from the Book of Samuel; “Saul hath slain his thousands but David his tens of thousands”; a grim nod to the impact which the Machine Gun Corps had on the course of the war. On either side of the statue sit two ‘Vickers’ machine guns, each encircled with laurel wreaths. These fearsome weapons are actually real models… so it is some comfort that they are now encased in bronze. The rear of the statue provides a brief history of the Corps:
Inscription
Front left hand panel: MCMXIV Front centre panel: ERECTED TO/ COMMEMORATE/ THE GLORIOUS/ HEROES/ OF THE MACHINE GUN/ CORPS/ WHO FELL IN/ THE GREAT/ WAR/ Saul hath slain his thousands/ but David his tens of thousands Front right hand panel: MCMXIX SIDE: THE MACHINE GUN CORPS./ OF WHICH HIS MAJESTY KING/ GEORGE V WAS COLONEL-IN-/ CHIEF WAS FORMED BY THE WARRANT DATED THE 14TH DAY/ OF OCTOBER 1915./ THE CORPS SERVED IN/ FRANCE, FLANDERS, RUSSIA, ITALY,/ EGYPT, PALESTINE, MESOPOTAMIA,/ SALONICA. INDIA. AFGANISTAN/ AND EAST AFRICA./ THE LAST UNIT OF THE CORPS/ TO BE DISBANDED WAS THE/ DEPOT AT SHORNCLIFFE ON THE/ 15TH DAY OF JULY 1922. THE/ TOTAL NUMBER WHO SERVED IN/ THE CORPS WAS SOME 11,500/ OFFICERS AND 159,000 OTHER/ RANKS OF WHOM 1,120 OFFICERS/ AND 1,671 OTHER RANKS WERE/ KILLED AND 2881 OFFICERS AND /45377 OTHER RANKS WERE WOUNDED, MISSING OR PRISONERS/ OF WAR.
Inscription legible?
yes
Commemorations
  • First World War (1914-1918)
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
  • Regimental Memorials
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
Components
  • Sculpture
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Bronze
  • Pedestal
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Portland Stone
Listing information
Condition
Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Public
Details: REGIMENT
Responsibility
English Heritage
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.

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© WMR-2129

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