Coordinates: 51°27′01.6″N 00°57′40.3″W / 51.450444°N 0.961194°W / 51.450444; -0.961194

University of Reading War Memorial

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University of Reading War Memorial
United Kingdom
University of Reading War Memorial.jpg
For approximately 200 men and women from Reading killed in war
Unveiled1924
Location51°27′01.6″N 00°57′40.3″W / 51.450444°N 0.961194°W / 51.450444; -0.961194
London Road Campus, University of Reading, Reading, Berkshire
Designed byHerbert Maryon
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameUniversity of Reading War Memorial
Designated12 February 1987
Reference no.1113620

The University of Reading War Memorial is a clock tower, designed by Herbert Maryon and situated on the London Road Campus of the University of Reading. Initially designed as a First World War memorial and dedicated in June 1924, it was later expanded in scope to also serve as a memorial of later wars.

History and design[]

Memorials to servicemen who died in the First World War were erected soon after the end of the conflict.[1] Plans to build a permanent memorial at the University of Reading unfolded in 1919, when William Macbride Childs, the principal of the college, printed a pamphlet suggesting several ideas.[2] The final design was ultimately made by Herbert Maryon, a teacher of sculpture at the university;[2] he would later gain broad recognition in a second career at the British Museum, where he conserved many of the finds from the Sutton Hoo ship-burial, termed "the most important single discovery in British archaeology."[3] His initial proposal, made in 1919, was for a tower of 120 feet (37 m) that would have cost between £5,000 and £10,000.[1] The funds could not be raised, and in 1923 Maryon proposed a structure of half that height.[1][2] Construction began that November, and the memorial was dedicated the following June.[2] The finished memorial, which cost £2,750, is a 60-foot-tall (18 m) brick tower with a clock, a bell, and a bronze roll of honour listing the names of more than 140 people who died in the war.[2][4]

The scope of the memorial was expanded following the Second World War, and in May 1953 a panel with more than 70 names of the dead from that conflict was unveiled.[1][2][4][5] It now also commemorates those who died in the war in Afghanistan;[2] in 2012 a plaque was unveiled honouring Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe, MBE, a 1991 graduate of the University whose 2009 death made him the highest-ranking officer of the British Army killed in action since the Falklands War.[6]

On 12 February 1987, the memorial was designated a grade II listed building, a status given for its special architectural or historic interest.[7]

On 9 November 2018, the University of Reading announced plans to add nine additional names of servicemen who died in the First World War to the memorial.[8][9][10]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d "War and Memory". University of Reading. 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2018. icon of an open green padlock
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Reading University College: WW1 and Beyond". University of Reading. 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2018. icon of an open green padlock
  3. ^ Bruce-Mitford, Rupert (23 July 1965). "Mr. Herbert Maryon". Obituary. The Times. No. 56381. London. p. 14. closed access
  4. ^ a b "Reading University". War Memorials Register. Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 9 October 2018. icon of an open green padlock
  5. ^ "Photograph from Reading Chronicle Collection - May 1953". Reading Museum. 6 July 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2020. icon of an open green padlock
  6. ^ "British Army Officer Killed in Afghanistan Honoured by University of Reading". University of Reading. 6 July 2012. Retrieved 15 October 2018. icon of an open green padlock
  7. ^ "University of Reading War Memorial". Historic England. Retrieved 11 October 2018. icon of an open green padlock
  8. ^ Baxter, Guy (2 November 2018). "Not forgotten: University of Reading to add names to war memorial". University of Reading Special Collections. University of Reading. Retrieved 25 December 2019. icon of an open green padlock
  9. ^ "University of Reading". University of Reading. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  10. ^ "University of Reading to Add Names To War Memorial". Reading.co.uk. 9 November 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
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