War Memorial - Sevenoaks Town Council

War Memorial (Grade II Listed)

Dartford Road, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN13 3TB

Sevenoaks War Memorial was unveiled on 29th October 1920 designed by Mr. A.G. Walker of Chelsea. It is a Grade II Listed Building, which means that it has been identified by Historic England for its special architectural or historic interest.

The Memorial comprises of a bronze statue of a soldier in khaki resting his hands on an upturned rifle with a bronze base. This stands on a splayed rectangular pedestal.

The names of 226 fallen appear on the four sides of the pedestal and on the north and south sides there are bronze reliefs of wartime scenes in the life of the Navy and Air Force.

The inscription on the memorial reads "To keep in mind those from this place who gave their lives in the Great War 1914-1918".

A further splayed extension to the pedestal records the names of those who fell in the Second World War.

The War Memorial was commissioned following a house to house collection which raised over £5,000. The unveiling ceremony was attended by Lord Sackville, Lt Col J D Laurie and the Bishop of Rochester, amongst others.

The Sevenoaks War Memorial is now maintained by Sevenoaks Town Council who also arranges with the Royal British Legion the annual Remembrance Service.

On 3rd August 2014 an additional Remembrance Service was held to commemorate 100 years since the start of World War 1 and relatives of those named on the war memorial came from far and wide to attend this. Also part of the 100 years commemoration of World War 1 is the Town Council has worked with local historian Matthew Ball to produce a book. In the book Matthew Ball has researched the lives of each individual who gave their life for their King and Country from 1914 to 1918. The book "Sevenoaks War Memorial: The Men Remembered" shows how one town in Kent was affected by the conflict.