St. Peter's Church
The church is the centrepiece of the town and has many war memorials of it's own. The town's official memorial stands in the grounds, as do two others. The largest of these memorials is in the form of a crucifix and was erected by the church as a shrine where relatives might lay tributes to their loved ones. This memorial was the cause of a deep rift between members of the Church. One parish in particular objected to what they felt was a Catholic icon in an Anglican churchyard. The dispute ended at the Consistory Court in Lichfield where it was finally decided that the memorial should remain. I took this photograph early on a bright spring morning.
(c) Express & Star
Recently, St Peter's Gardens were overhauled. The memorials were cleaned and the memorial described below was moved. The iron railings which were removed during the second world war for scrap iron were replaced. Here are two new images of the gardens.
My personal favourite among the memorials of the Church is the one to Able Seaman Harris. This is a fine example of a single memorial and to me, serves to provide two important messages about the Great War.
The first message is in the face of this young seaman who died at his post, continuing to enter messages in the log while his ship was being attacked. Here was a young man with his whole life ahead of him. He was sadly typical of so many of the victims of War. The other important message comes from the action in which he died. To so many, the Great War conjures up images of the Western Front. This sailor died in the Adriatic as a result of an attack by the Austrian Navy. This fact is a reminder that the Great war was in fact a World War. On the rear on this memorial is the following panel upon which, the gratitude of the Italian Navy is expressed. My thanks to Peter Farrell-Vinay for his translation.
To Douglas Morris Harris AB
The sailors of His Imperial Italian Majesty's (ship) Libia with thanks and admiration 26th of May 1919To learn more of the action in which this young sailor lost his life (and in which a Victoria Cross was won) Follow this Link
For details on the Victoria Cross won by the Skipper of one of the vessels involved Follow this link
Inside the Church
There are many interesting memorials inside the church itself. They range from individual memorials, erected by friends and family, to magnificent stained glass windows.
This window is the town's memorial to it's own, the territorial soldiers of the South Staffordshire Regiment, in particular, the 1/6th, 2/6th and 3/6th battalions. On the ledge beneath the window is a book of remembrance which contains the names of the officers and men of the battalions who made the supreme sacrifice.
To the right of the memorial window to the 6th South Staffs, there is a memorial tablet to another local unit, also based at the Drill Hall in Stafford Street.
A fine example of an individual memorial can be found along the west wall of the church.
This memorial to a single soldier is typical of so many in churches all around the country.
St. Peter's also has a fine memorial to a single soldier in the form of a stained glass window. The memorial is to a Lt. Archibald SMITH of the Coldstream Guards who died at the age of 23 near YPRES in August 1917. The badge of the Coldstreams shines like a beacon through the church.
This is an example of how difficult research can be on Great War Casualties. If you search through the records for Lt. Archibald Smith the data is inconsistent with this memorial. However, this officer is listed in the casualty records as Lt Archibald Alan FISHER-SMITH. who died on the 1st of August 1917.
He is buried in Artillery Wood Cemetery, which was captured by the Guards Division during the battle of Pilckem Ridge on 31 Aug 1917, and is about 4 miles North of Ypres.
The church has a War Memorial Chapel which contains roll's of honour from both world wars. The roll from the Great War is set into a small wooden frame. Since the names are not in alphabetical order, I assume that this was a "working" memorial which was added to as the war progressed. The name of William Steen WHITTLE (from the above memorial) also appears on this scroll.
This memorial; chapel houses what must be the oldest war memorial in the town. The memorial is in the form of the tomb of a soldier from the English Civil War. According to the latin inscription, John Lane should have been "buried among kings" in Westminster Abbey, such was the esteem in which he was held by the King.
The Boer War Memorial bears the names of just 9 volunteers
4th Squadron Staffordshire Imperial Yeomanry
Sgt William Lomas
Trooper W.H. Bakewell
Trooper J. Mapp
Trooper W. Stubbs
3rd Volunteer Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment
Lance Sgt R. Jones
Cpl H.St G. Walker
Pte A. Wright
Pte C.C. Whitlock R.A.M.C.
Bethune's Mounted Infantry
Trooper William Garfield
For more information on memorials to the fallen of the Boer Wars, The Anglo-Boer Wars Memorials Project has details.
The Story of the Official Town Memorial
The official memorial has no names, it is a simple cenotaph. It is executed in red Hollington stone and has four statues set into the top. One statue for each major branch of the armed forces, and the fourth representing St. George, the patron saint of England. It's location, in the shadow of the imposing St. Peter's Church is altogether fitting. The Church itself is home to many memorials - the oldest dating back to the English civil war, and the central location underlines it's value to the town. What we see today however is far from what was intended in 1919 when a committee was formed to discuss a permanent monument to the town's fallen.
Almost a year after the armistice, the Mayor, Councillor T.A. Henn addressed a public meeting on the 3rd of November 1919. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss options for the raising of a memorial to those who had lost their lives in the Great War. It was resolved that a committee should be formed for the purpose of devising a scheme for such a memorial. A provisional committee sat on the 11th of November and a decision was made to form a Grand Committee of "50 Gentlemen". On the 11th of December the Grand Committee sat for the first time. The Mayor was elected chairman and made a statement. He said of their work:-
"It is a desirable and necessary task, for the honour and merit of the town was at stake until something worthy and suitable was done to perpetuate the memory and deeds of those who fell in the war."
The committee decided to form a suggestions sub-committee which sat on the 5th of January 1920. It was decided that the committee would solicit ideas from the people of the town through advertising in the local press and to ask other town councils what their plans were in respect of war memorials. Over time it became clear that the town was sharply divided on the opinion of what would form a suitable memorial.
For a long time the council had wanted a hall which could be used for public meetings, political gatherings and concerts - a civic hall in fact. It was suggested in a letter to the Wolverhampton Express & Star that the provision of such a hall could serve as a memorial which would have a practical benefit for the people of the town. This idea met with strong support on the committee. Having a memorial hall would have solved a considerable problem for the council since the cost might be met from public subscription rather than from the rates. There were a number of letters to the committee in support of this idea.
Mr. R.W. POUNCE, of 31 Park Road East suggested that the hall should be built at the bottom of Darlington Street, Mr. M.F. WESTWOOD of 14 Balfour Crescent being the Hon Sec of the Wolverhampton New Choral Society was enthusiastic. He offered the full assistance of his committee in the raising of the necessary funds.
A deputation from the Discharged and Demobilised Sailors and Soldiers Federation was not so enthusiastic however. They said that their members were wholly opposed to a place of amusement and entertainment being made to serve as a memorial to their comrades. The suggested that a garden city would be much more fitting. Letters of opposition to the hall were also received from the public. Mr. E. PAINTER of 185 Stafford Street suggested that a Cenotaph at the rear of the fountain in Lichfield Street would be better since it would provide a place for relatives to lay tributes, that the site would be most suitable due to it's location, that the need for housing being so great it would not be policy to employ labour on the building of a hall and that the cost of a hall would be prohibitive.
At the same time as responses from the citizens of the borough were being received, information was arriving from other town and city councils. The majority seemed to be favouring a central monument of some kind together with various benevolent schemes ranging from scholarships for the children of casualties to housing at reduced rents. Smethwick council were also considering a memorial hall but they noted that the response to their appeal was disappointing and that the scheme would probably have to be revised. The Wolverhampton committee should have taken more notice of this response and saved themselves some time.
They did not take notice however, and decided to forge ahead with plans for a memorial hall and a sites sub-committee was formed to review and recommend locations. The opposition of the Ex-Servicemen was noted though and a needs sub-committee was also formed to assess the scale of the problems being experienced by the disabled and the widows and orphans of those who had been killed. It was resolved that both the memorial hall and the provision of some assistance to those affected by the loss of servicemen would form part of the total scheme.
The sites sub-committee met on the 20th of January and came up with two possible locations for the hall. The open area of the wholesale market was suggested together with the area of North Street which was owned by the corporation.
The needs investigation committee met on the 26th of January and determined that there were some 10,000 widows, orphans or other dependants in the borough. It was not able to determine the number of disabled ex-servicemen however. Both the sites and the needs committees presented their reports to the Grand Committee on the 6th of February 1920.
The Grand Committee decided that another sub-committee was required to manage the appeal for subscriptions to the scheme. The appeals sub-committee met for the first time on the 17th of February. It was decided that the best approach would be to directly solicit support by letter to organisations and individuals thought likely to contribute. Letters were sent to prominent people and businesses who it was thought might be willing to provide funding.
The Grand Committee met on the 12th of March. Among the letters received was a surprise item from the owners of the Express & Star. Although there was gathering opposition to the memorial hall, the Express & Star demanded that their substantial contribution be ring-fenced and that it was for the hall alone. No part of their donation was to be used on any scheme which would directly benefit the widows and orphans. Their reasoning was that if such schemes proliferated, then the state might decide to shirk it's responsibility toward these people.
The appeals committee met on the 17th of March and continued to pursue it's policy of direct and indirect solicitation of funds. There were no further meetings until the 5th of July when the appeals committee met to take stock of the situation. The fact was that their scheme was doomed. Letters to the committee which are in the archives tell the story. Many of those who had originally shown willing had changed their minds. Some had already agreed to fund more local memorials, others however withdrew their support because they believed that a concert hall was not a fitting memorial to such a noble sacrifice.
The Managing director of the Sunbeam Motor Car Company wrote to the committee on the 29th June 1920 explained that:-
The War Memorial had before been discussed, but frankly, the board as a whole are not favourably disposed to this scheme, and are therefore not prepared to donate to it as it now stands; at any rate they are not willing that our name should appear on the first published list of donations. I regret therefore I cannot, at this stage of the appeal, give you a promise.
Yours Faithfully
W. Leiff,
Managing Director
The managing director of Villiers, Mr. Charles Marston expressed similar sentiments in his letter of the 23rd of June. Atkinsons Brewery wanted to know who else had contributed and how much; and Mr. Jesse Boot of the famous chemists chain also declined to contribute citing too many good causes.
Mr. Sidney Guy, the Managing Director of Guy Motors had different problems. In a letter of the 23rd June 1920 he said that:-
"owing to the heavy calls which have been made upon them for various charitable objects, coupled with a subscription to the Heath Town War Memorial, and the new and heavy taxation under which this firm is at present they (the Board) do not see their way to do anything in the matter"
There were positive results though. The Express & Star held to their pledge of one thousand pounds, as did Manders and Butler's Brewery. The writing was on the wall however and it was clear that the funding for a civic hall was never going to materialise. The committee came to the reluctant conclusion that another form of memorial had to be adopted. The minutes of the meeting read:-
Resolved:- that it be a recommendation to the Grand Committee that as the original scheme has not secured adequate financial support, the same be abandoned. That it be a recommendation to the Grand Committee that some smaller scheme for the provision of a War Memorial in Wolverhampton should be carried out, and accordingly suggest that efforts should be made to raise the necessary money for the purchase or the reversion of the West Park from Lord Barnard, and for the erection of a suitable Cenotaph, or other record therein, and for the provision elsewhere of playing fields for the children of the borough.
The Grand Committee formally adopted the recommendations of the appeals committee on the 27th of July 1920.
The Grand Committee met again on the 26th of October 1920 to further discuss their options for a smaller scheme. As before, the suggestions committee was tasked with devising suitable alternatives. The suggestions committee met on the 5th of November and again on the 7th of December. They decided to report to the Grand Committee that they felt that the appeal target should be £20,000. They further reported that they favoured the erection of a Cenotaph in the West Park. To enable the Cenotaph to remain in the possession of the town they suggested that the borough purchase the park from the lessor at the end of the lease. It was envisaged that 10% of the £20,000 be set aside for the purpose of assisting those in need as a result of the loss of loved ones, and that any residue after the construction of the Cenotaph be spent on playing fields for children.
At the Grand Committee meeting on the 15th of December the report was debated and it was suggested that a more suitable location might be land adjacent to Church Walk to the west of St. Peter's Church. It was decided that the scheme be adopted but the decision on location would be deferred until after the design was selected. The sites committee was tasked with arranging the competition to select the design, and to retain the services of an advisor and assessor.
At their meeting on the 2nd of February 1921, the sites committee resolved to recommend that the assessor be allowed to select the site, and that the assessor they wanted was Mr. John W. Simpson, FRIBA, President of the Royal Institution of British Architects. At their next meeting on the 22nd of February, a letter was read from Mr. Simpson accepting the role of assessor for a fee of 200 guineas plus expenses. On the 2nd of March, Simpson attended a meeting of the sites committee for an interview. Together with the committee, he viewed the sites and made some immediate comments. For some reason, the site in the west park appears to have been discounted. There is no record of the committee having visited the park. Of all the proposed locations around the Church, Simpson's preference was for the area to the south-west. He said that for any of the other locations, which included the site of the fountain in Lichfield Street and a location to the North in Wulfruna Street., to be considered, the memorial would have to be much more imposing. He also noted that the memorial should harmonise with the Church and should be in the same kind of stone. The committee went on to discuss the wording of any inscription on the memorial. Mr. Simpson was asked to suggest a form of words to be finalised before requesting designs. It was decided that no names should be entered on the memorial because it would, in the opinion of the committee, be too difficult to enumerate them. The Discharged & Demobilised Sailors & Soldiers Federation were asked by the committee to try to ascertain the names of those who had fallen. Mr. Simpson suggested that a clear £5,000 would be required to build a suitable memorial.
The sites committee met again on the 22nd of April. In addition to discussing the terms of the competition and advertising for entries, they resolved to recommend that the form of words on the memorial be:-
"In grateful memory of Wolverhampton men who served in the Great War 1914 -1919"
The Grand Committee met four days later on the 22nd of April and endorsed the suggestions of the sites committee. The appeals committee was tasked with raising the necessary funding.
Over the next five months, advertisements were placed in the provincial and trade press inviting architects to submit their ideas. The first prize was to be 150 guineas, with 100 guineas and 50 guineas for second and third places. Applicants had to pay a two guinea deposit for the entry forms - presumably to deter the curious from applying.
Following a meeting of the sites committee on the 16th of September 1921 it was decided that of the 78 designs submitted, design number 61, the proposal of Mr. C. T. Armstrong of Bexhill in Surrey would be the one to be recommended. A simple monolith executed in Red Hollington stone, it was plain and elegant. It appeared to blend in with the Church and could be built within the prescribed budget.
On the 23rd of September the Grand Committee formally adopted the recommendations of the sites committee. The resolution of the full town council approving the erection of the monument in the space adjacent to Church Walk was formally read into the minutes. Since the committee had accepted a clear proposal, a finance committee was formed to oversee the allocation of funds.
The Finance committee met for the first time on the 28th of October. A guarantee of £500 had been accepted by Barclays bank and an account had been opened. Among the first accounts to be settled was that of John Simpson. The total claim for his services amounting to £229-13-11.
The appeals committee met on the 15th of December 1921 and decided that any public appeal for funds should be deferred due to the poor state of the nation's economy. It was felt that with the high rate of income tax and the high level of unemployment that an appeal would fail. It was agreed to defer the appeal until after the national budget in April 1922.
On the 15th of March 1922, the designer of the memorial was formally adopted as the architect for the project. It was decided that rather than advertise for firms to tender for the project, eight firms of "good standing" would be invited to tender.
Following the budget in April, the appeals committee decided that the situation was such that an appeal could now go ahead. A prospectus was prepared and sent to all those thought likely to make a contribution. Advertisements were also placed in the local press.
The Grand Committee met on the 15th of May and authorised the sites committee to place a contract following the receipt of tenders. The following day, the sites committee met and reviewed the tenders. The bids ranged from £1,888 to £3,249. The lowest bid was accepted subject to confirmation and Messrs. Wm. Sapcote and Sons Ltd. of Birmingham were selected to erect the memorial. The sculptor was confirmed as Mr. W. C. H. King of Hampstead, London. He confirmed that his charges would not exceed £1,700. The mayor told the committee that about £2,000 had already been promised.
A contract was signed between Wm. Sapcote & Sons and the Wolverhampton War Memorial Committee on the 15th of June 1922 for the agreed sum of £1,888.
The finance committee met on the 30th of June and gave a statement of the fund. At that stage £4,833-6-4 had been promised and £1,534-16-4 had actually been received. Payments made and accounts payable amounted to some £627-1-1. As building work continued though, it became clear that expenditure would soon outstrip income. The appeals committee met on the 18th of July and decided that now would be a suitable moment to involve women in the proceedings. A Ladies Committee would be formed to help with the fund raising.
As the memorial approached completion, arrangements had to be made for the unveiling ceremony. The Grand Committee met on the 4th of August to debate the unveiling ceremony. Consideration was given as to who would be suitable to perform the act of unveiling the monument. The first choice was to be Admiral Earl Beatty who led the force of battle cruisers from Rosyth to the battle of Jutland.
On August the 29th however, the Grand Committee was informed by letter that Earl Beatty was unable to accept their kind invitation. Another letter to the committee from the organising secretary of the British & Foreign Sailors' Society, Lieut. Arthur Spry R.N.V.R. was read. This letter explained that Earl Beatty's secretary had been in communication with him and suggested Admiral Sir Martyn Jerram be invited to perform the ceremony. Following some debate, the committee came up with a list of proposed celebrities. In order, they would ask:-
The appeals committee was instructed to sit at noon on the 5th of September, presumably because the balance of the fund now stood at less than £800 and the bills were about to start rolling in.
At the appeals committee meeting it was suggested that the campaign be stepped up by encouraging the trades unions the canvass their members. Additionally, sporting clubs such as Wolverhampton Wanderers were to be approached to help by arranging benefit matches and making collections. The Churches were also to be approached for money.
The ladies committee sat for the first time on the 8th of September. The mayoress chaired the meeting and offers of help were considered. They had lots of ideas including collecting boxes, direct canvassing in the suburbs and a town and country fair.
At the Grand Committee of the 11th of October it was announced that Admiral Sir Doveton Sturdee would perform the unveiling on the 2nd of November.
Quite how the Admiral came to be selected (he was not on the short list) is not known. There is certainly no reference to him in the official minutes of any committee before this date. His credentials however were sound, since he was the officer in command at the famous battle of the Falkland Islands in 1914. To read more about this aspect of the war http://worldwar1.com/sfla.htm contains an excellent article.
The financial position of the fund was still causing concern and it was decided that the Express & Star would carry an advertisement announcing that small donations would be "very acceptable" A collecting box would also be placed in Queen Square.
The last meeting of any committee before the unveiling was of the ladies committee. It was announced that the town & country fair had been very successful and more activities including a Sunday concert were approved.
The memorial was unveiled on Thursday the 2nd of November 1922 by Admiral Sir Doveton Sturdee Bart., G.C.B., K.C.M.G., C.V.O., LL.D. The weather was fine and the procession formed up at the town hall. The procession consisted of the civilian services including police, firemen, postmen and members of the Boys' Brigade, Scouts, Guides and members of the council. This parade, including Admiral Sturdee marched from North Street through Queen Square via Lich Gate to the Cenotaph. Admiral Sturdee was greeted by a guard of honour at the foot of St. Peter's steps. The guard was mounted by members of the 6th Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment and was commanded by Captain H.V. Mander MC. In Exchange Street there were assembled members of the Wolverhampton Battery, Royal Field Artillery, Yeomanry, Officers Training Corps, Comrades of the Great War and the British Legion. After the Admiral received the General Salute and had inspected the guard, the hymn "O God our help in ages past" was sung. Afterwards the Mayor outlined the scheme which led to the memorial's being built and paid tribute to all involved. The party then moved to the Memorial. The Mayor presented the architect and others to the Admiral, who then removed the Union Flag which covered the inscription. He said, in a loud and clear voice:-
"I unveil this memorial in pious memory of those who answered the call and made the supreme sacrifice"
The Reverend H. C. Townsend then blessed the memorial and Mrs. Holford laid a wreath of Laurels and Carnations at it's base. A minute's silence followed and buglers of the 6th battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment sounded the last post.
The Admiral then moved to St. Peter's steps to give his address.
He said he felt honoured in having been asked to unveil a memorial which he understood to have been
"erected to the memory of thousands of their fellow townsmen who had answered the call of defending the Empire and the women and children and homes from invasion and raid"
After what was a long address in which the Admiral referred to the Empire and the legacy which the fallen had left to the young, the Mayor then formally handed the memorial over to the Council.
The memorial stands today, much as Admiral Sturdee left it. The dates of another world war have been added and it is hoped that no further alterations will be necessary. It is still an imposing sight which compliments the Church and I hope it never changes.