Woughton-on-the-Green WWI War Memorial 21Mar21
Grade 2 listed World War One war memorial by the church in Woughton-on-the-Green, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.
info from HistoricEngland and Buckinghamshire remembers websites -
Name: Woughton on the Green War Memorial Cross
Designation Type: Listing
Grade: II
List UID: 1458153
Reasons for Designation
Woughton on the Green War Memorial Cross, which stands on Newport Road, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Historic interest:
* as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the First World War.
Architectural interest:
* a simple yet poignant granite memorial cross, in the Celtic style; * unusually, the war memorial has not been adapted for Second World War commemoration, and thus retains its original design intent.
Group value:
* with the Church of St Mary (Grade II*-listed), numerous Grade II-listed buildings surrounding The Green, and the scheduled area of Woughton on the Green shrunken medieval village.
History
The aftermath of the First World War saw the biggest single wave of public commemoration ever with tens of thousands of memorials erected across England. This was the result of both the huge impact on communities of the loss of three quarters of a million British lives, and also the official policy of not repatriating the dead which meant that the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss.
One such memorial was raised at Woughton on the Green as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by four members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War. The local newspaper reported on 23 July 1921 that the memorial had been unveiled by Colonel Bowles, a local resident, and dedicated by Reverend Canon Whittaker. The names of those 18 men who served and returned are recorded on the lychgate (unlisted), c12m to the south.
The memorial was cleaned and re-lettered in 2014 to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.
Details
The granite memorial cross stands on the verge on the east side of Newport Road and aligned to the west tower of the Church of St Mary (Grade II*-listed). It comprises a simple wheel-head cross with decorative roundels incised into the cross-head. The cross-shaft stands on a tapering pedestal and single granite step. The dedicatory inscription to the front face of the pedestal reads FOR RIGHT AND LIBERTY/ 1914 + 1918 (4 NAMES).
Frank Leonard Beckett.
Name Frank Leonard BECKETT
Rank/Number Private 266253
Regiment Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry 2/1st Bucks Battalion
Enlisted Aylesbury
Age/Date of death 32 22 Aug 1917
How died/Theatre of war Killed in action France & Flanders
Last known address Fenny Stratford
Cemetery New Irish Farm Cemetery, Ieper, Belgium
Grave or Memorial ReferenceXIX.B.11
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1885 Waddesdon
Date/Place of baptism
Pre-war occupation of Casualty cowman
Parents Thomas & Jane Isabella Beckett nee Beckett
Parent's occupation manager on farm
Parents' Address (last known) 1901: The Green, Woughton
Wife Eleanor Beckett nee Warner
Wife's Address (last known)
Notes also Service Number OBLI 8500
Alfred Knopp.
Name Alfred KNOPP
Rank/Number Driver T/28255
Regiment Army Service Corps RAMC attd 23rd Field Amb
Enlisted London
Age/Date of death 27 20 Oct 1918
How died/Theatre of war Died France & Flanders
Last known address Kensington W
Cemetery Mazargues War Cemetery, Marseilles, France
Grave or Memorial ReferenceIV.B.27
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth 29 Aug 1891 Hackney, London
Date/Place of baptism 16 Sep 1891 Mile End, London
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
Parents Alfred & Fanny Knopp nee Bacon
Parent's occupation drayman
Parents' Address (last known) Walthamstow
Wife Harriett Knopp nee Crannis
Wife's Address (last known) 59 Peel St, Kensington, London
William Charles Mansfield.
Name William Charles MANSFIELD
Rank/Number Private 146722
Regiment Machine Gun Corps 18th Battalion
Enlisted Maidstone
Age/Date of death 19 22 Aug 1918
How died/Theatre of war Killed in action France & Flanders
Last known address Sundridge
Cemetery Vis-en-Artois Memorial, Pas de Calais, France
Grave or Memorial Reference Panel 10
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1899 Girton, Cambridge
Date/Place of baptism
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
Parents W Charles & Mary Ann Esther Mansfield
Parent's occupation stockman on farm
Parents' Address (last known) Holly Tree Farm, Woughton Green, Bletchley
Wife
Wife's Address (last known)
Notes initially served with the London Regiment
Ernest Purcell.
NameErnest PURCELL
Rank/Number Private 23806
Regiment Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry 7th Battalion
Enlisted Bletchley
Age/Date of death 36 13 May 1917
How died/Theatre of war Died of wounds Salonika
Last known address Woughton
Cemetery Sarigol Military Cemetery, Kriston, Greece
Grave or Memorial ReferenceB.277
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1881 Woughton
Date/Place of baptism 15 May 1881 Woughton on the Green
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
ParentsJob & Naomi Purcell
Parent's occupation waggoner on farm
Parents' Address (last known) 1901: Chapel Lane, Woughton
Wife Rose Purcell
Wife's Address (last known) Woughton
Woughton-on-the-Green WWI War Memorial 21Mar21
Grade 2 listed World War One war memorial by the church in Woughton-on-the-Green, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.
info from HistoricEngland and Buckinghamshire remembers websites -
Name: Woughton on the Green War Memorial Cross
Designation Type: Listing
Grade: II
List UID: 1458153
Reasons for Designation
Woughton on the Green War Memorial Cross, which stands on Newport Road, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Historic interest:
* as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the First World War.
Architectural interest:
* a simple yet poignant granite memorial cross, in the Celtic style; * unusually, the war memorial has not been adapted for Second World War commemoration, and thus retains its original design intent.
Group value:
* with the Church of St Mary (Grade II*-listed), numerous Grade II-listed buildings surrounding The Green, and the scheduled area of Woughton on the Green shrunken medieval village.
History
The aftermath of the First World War saw the biggest single wave of public commemoration ever with tens of thousands of memorials erected across England. This was the result of both the huge impact on communities of the loss of three quarters of a million British lives, and also the official policy of not repatriating the dead which meant that the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss.
One such memorial was raised at Woughton on the Green as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by four members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War. The local newspaper reported on 23 July 1921 that the memorial had been unveiled by Colonel Bowles, a local resident, and dedicated by Reverend Canon Whittaker. The names of those 18 men who served and returned are recorded on the lychgate (unlisted), c12m to the south.
The memorial was cleaned and re-lettered in 2014 to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.
Details
The granite memorial cross stands on the verge on the east side of Newport Road and aligned to the west tower of the Church of St Mary (Grade II*-listed). It comprises a simple wheel-head cross with decorative roundels incised into the cross-head. The cross-shaft stands on a tapering pedestal and single granite step. The dedicatory inscription to the front face of the pedestal reads FOR RIGHT AND LIBERTY/ 1914 + 1918 (4 NAMES).
Frank Leonard Beckett.
Name Frank Leonard BECKETT
Rank/Number Private 266253
Regiment Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry 2/1st Bucks Battalion
Enlisted Aylesbury
Age/Date of death 32 22 Aug 1917
How died/Theatre of war Killed in action France & Flanders
Last known address Fenny Stratford
Cemetery New Irish Farm Cemetery, Ieper, Belgium
Grave or Memorial ReferenceXIX.B.11
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1885 Waddesdon
Date/Place of baptism
Pre-war occupation of Casualty cowman
Parents Thomas & Jane Isabella Beckett nee Beckett
Parent's occupation manager on farm
Parents' Address (last known) 1901: The Green, Woughton
Wife Eleanor Beckett nee Warner
Wife's Address (last known)
Notes also Service Number OBLI 8500
Alfred Knopp.
Name Alfred KNOPP
Rank/Number Driver T/28255
Regiment Army Service Corps RAMC attd 23rd Field Amb
Enlisted London
Age/Date of death 27 20 Oct 1918
How died/Theatre of war Died France & Flanders
Last known address Kensington W
Cemetery Mazargues War Cemetery, Marseilles, France
Grave or Memorial ReferenceIV.B.27
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth 29 Aug 1891 Hackney, London
Date/Place of baptism 16 Sep 1891 Mile End, London
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
Parents Alfred & Fanny Knopp nee Bacon
Parent's occupation drayman
Parents' Address (last known) Walthamstow
Wife Harriett Knopp nee Crannis
Wife's Address (last known) 59 Peel St, Kensington, London
William Charles Mansfield.
Name William Charles MANSFIELD
Rank/Number Private 146722
Regiment Machine Gun Corps 18th Battalion
Enlisted Maidstone
Age/Date of death 19 22 Aug 1918
How died/Theatre of war Killed in action France & Flanders
Last known address Sundridge
Cemetery Vis-en-Artois Memorial, Pas de Calais, France
Grave or Memorial Reference Panel 10
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1899 Girton, Cambridge
Date/Place of baptism
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
Parents W Charles & Mary Ann Esther Mansfield
Parent's occupation stockman on farm
Parents' Address (last known) Holly Tree Farm, Woughton Green, Bletchley
Wife
Wife's Address (last known)
Notes initially served with the London Regiment
Ernest Purcell.
NameErnest PURCELL
Rank/Number Private 23806
Regiment Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry 7th Battalion
Enlisted Bletchley
Age/Date of death 36 13 May 1917
How died/Theatre of war Died of wounds Salonika
Last known address Woughton
Cemetery Sarigol Military Cemetery, Kriston, Greece
Grave or Memorial ReferenceB.277
Location of memorial Woughton on the Green St Mary
Date/Place of birth c1881 Woughton
Date/Place of baptism 15 May 1881 Woughton on the Green
Pre-war occupation of Casualty
ParentsJob & Naomi Purcell
Parent's occupation waggoner on farm
Parents' Address (last known) 1901: Chapel Lane, Woughton
Wife Rose Purcell
Wife's Address (last known) Woughton