91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Monument

Wimbledon war memorial

Inscription

{On the main face, south-east, below the angel, and then anti-clockwise:}
Invictus Pax

{north-east:}
In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die yet is their hope full of immortality

In honoured memory of the civilians of Wimbledon who lost their lives in the Second World War, 1939 - 1945, and those killed in other conflicts.

{north-west, within a moulded frame:}
In honoured memory of the men of Wimbledon who gave their lives for their king and country in the Great War 1914-1918.

{south-west:}
All these were honoured in their generation & were the glory of their time.

In honoured memory of the men and women of Wimbledon who gave their lives serving in His Majesty's forces during the Second World War, 1939 - 1945, and those killed in other conflicts.

The first quote comes from the ancient Greek writer Hermes Trismegistus; the second from Ecclesiastes 44:7.

This monument is a good example of how WW1 monuments were, with very minor modifications, used to commemorate WW2. In this case just the addition of two sentences referring to "serving" men and women and "civilians". And then later these two sentences were extended to refer to "other conflicts". A catch-all that leaves an image of the bureaucrats of the time thinking "Right, that should be the last time we need to bother about that memorial, come what may."

Site: Wimbledon war memorial (1 memorial)

SW19, The Causeway

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in to see them

This section lists the subjects commemorated on the memorial on this page:
Wimbledon war memorial

Subjects commemorated i

World War 1

We'd always assumed that this war was known as the Great War until WW2 came a...

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

World War 2

Sorry, we've done no research on WW2, it's just too big a subject. But do vis...

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Nearby Memorials

8th London Howitzers

8th London Howitzers

SE18, Plumstead Common Road, Plumstead Common

The way this monument meets the sloping ground has been well thought out: a small platform edged with a low ridge and connected to the pa...

2 subjects commemorated
Gilt of Cain - Slave trade

Gilt of Cain - Slave trade

EC3, Fen Court

This sculpture, 'Gilt of Cain', was unveiled by Bishop Tutu in commemoration of the bicentenary of the abolition of the transatlantic sla...

4 subjects commemorated, 7 creators
Rotherhithe war memorial

Rotherhithe war memorial

SE16, St Marychurch Street, St Mary the Virgin Church

The Rotherhithe people were prescient or just lucky. The way they had worded the text for their WW1 memorial meant that all they had to ...

2 subjects commemorated
W. T. Stead - WC2

W. T. Stead - WC2

WC2, Victoria Embankment

The inscription refers to Stead having worked near this site for 30 years. This was in Catherine Street in the offices of the Pall Mall G...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
Brockley and Ladywell Cemetery WW1 - casualties

Brockley and Ladywell Cemetery WW1 - casualties

SE4, Brockley Grove, Brockley and Ladywell Cemetry

The names commemorate those who are buried in the cemetery without individual headstones, so some have accompanying touching epithets whi...

War dead | WW1
112 subjects commemorated