Memorial details

Memorial type
Board / Plaque / Tablet
District
Oxford
Town
Oxford
County
Oxfordshire
Country
England
Commemoration
First World War (1914-1918)
Ceremony
  • Unveiled
    Date: 21st December 1921
    Attended by: General Sir Harry Walker DSO performed the unveiling; attendees included the Chief Constable and serving officers, plus relatives of the deceased
Lost
Lost
WM Reference
63260

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Previous locations
  • On right-hand side of the entrance
    Oxfordshire Constabulary Headquarters
    New Road (junction of Tidmarsh Lane)
    Oxford
    Oxford
    Oxfordshire
    OX1 1NS
    England

    OS Grid Ref: SP 50905 06255
    Denomination: Undefined
Description
Rectangular landscape memorial, with a stone-frame and marble inset panel. (This memorial, which was installed at the Oxfordshire Constabulary HQ in New Road, Oxford in 1921, was subsequently lost when that premises was demolished in 1969. A separate memorial, bearing the same wording and names of casualties, was installed in St Mary's Church, Horse Fair, Banbury, where it remains on display - see our reference WMR 90659).
Inscription
IN MEMORY/ OF THE MEN OF THE/ OXFORDSHIRE CONSTABULARY WHO GAVE/ THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1918/ (Names)
Inscription legible?
yes
Names on memorial
Admans, Arthur
Hake, Frederick G
Hunt, William
Joines, Edward G
Painter, Henry
Rhymes, Lewis
State, Albert
Wilkins, Arthur H. S.
Williams, Harvey
See details for all 9 names
Commemorations
  • First World War (1914-1918)
    Total names on memorial: 9
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 9
    Exact count: yes
    Information shown: Rank, forename, surname, military unit
    Order of information: Listed alphabetically by surname
Components
  • Tablet
    Measurements: Undefined
    Materials: Stone, Marble
Condition
History
1969: Oxfordshire Constabulary's former H.Q. building in New Road was demolished, at which time their WW1 and WW2 War Memorials were both lost./ 1/4/1968: Oxfordshire Constabulary merged with Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Constabularies plus Oxford City Police and Reading Borough Police to form Thames Valley Constabulary (now known as Thames Valley Police)./ August 1965: Oxfordshire Constabulary Headquarters relocated to Kidlington, leaving the Force's WW1 and WW2 memorials behind, fixed to the walls of their former H.Q./ 21/12/1921: Oxfordshire Constabulary's WW1 memorial was unveiled at their Headquarters in New Road, Oxford. (That building had been the Constabulary's HQ since 1857, having previously been the site of the Oxfordshire Militia Armoury and Drill Hall).
Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Other
Reference
  • Oxfordshire Weekly News 28/12/1921 (page 3) printed a lengthy report of the unveiling of the memorial, which it described as made "of stone with a marble centre". The report mentioned that 53 members of the Constabulary had served in the Armed Forces during the War, of whom nine had died, two had returned unfit for Police duty, and honours received had included two Distinguished Service Medals, two Military Service Medals , one Military Medal, one Medaille Militaire and one Croix de Guerre.
  • "Castle, Canal and College", by John Rhodes and Julien Munby (2008): pages 13 and 16 refer to the Oxfordshire Constabulary's former HQ at New Road, which was demolished in 1969. (Macclesfield House was later built on that site).
  • Banbury Guardian 22/12/1921 (page 5) reported that the memorial had been unveiled the previous day.
  • The Thames Valley Police website has information re Oxfordshire Constabulary's history, and biographical data re the nine casualties named on the WW1 memorial, see www.thamesvalley.police.uk/police-forces/thames-valley-police/areas/au/about-us/who-we-are/thames-valley-police-museum/world-war-one-centenary/ww1---oxfordshire-constabulary/

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-63260

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