Royal Fusiliers War Memorial facts for kids
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The Royal Fusiliers War Memorial is a special monument in London. It honors soldiers from the Royal Fusiliers who died in big wars. These include the First World War, the Second World War, and other conflicts. It also remembers soldiers from some London Regiment groups who died in the First World War.
The memorial has a bronze statue on top. This statue stands on a tall stone base, about 5 meters (16.5 feet) high. The base is made of Portland stone, a famous type of rock.
It was put up in 1922 at Holborn, a historic entry point to the City of London. It stands on a traffic island in the middle of High Holborn street. This spot is right on the edge of the City of London. You can see dragon statues nearby that mark the City's boundary. The memorial is also close to Gray's Inn Road and the old Staple Inn building.
The Memorial's Story
People first wanted to put the memorial in a Royal Park. But then they decided on Hounslow Barracks, and finally chose Holborn. Money was collected starting in 1919. By August 1920, they had raised £3,000 for the project.
The monument was officially revealed on November 4, 1922. The Lord Mayor of London did the honors. In 1946, the church of St Sepulchre-without-Newgate became the special chapel for the regiment. This church is about 450 yards east of the memorial.
The memorial became a protected historic site in 1972. It was given a Grade II listed structure status. In July 2017, its importance was recognized even more. It was upgraded to Grade II*, meaning it's a very important building.
What the Memorial Says
The main message is on the front of the stone base, facing west. Below it, there's a bronze picture of the Tudor Rose, which is from the regiment's badge. This message says the memorial honors nearly 22,000 Royal Fusiliers soldiers. They died during the First World War and the Russian Civil War.
Later, more words were added. These new words remember Royal Fusiliers who died in the Second World War and other wars after that. On the back of the base, facing east, there's another bronze plaque. This plaque lists 47 different groups of Royal Fusiliers soldiers. These groups served between 1914 and 1919. It also lists some London Regiment groups. These groups were connected to the Royal Fusiliers before 1908.
The Soldier Statue
The bronze statue is about 2.6 meters (8.5 feet) tall. It was designed by Albert Toft. A company called A.B. Burton made it at the Thames Ditton Foundry. The architects for the whole memorial were Cheadle and Harding.
People say the statue looks like a Sergeant Cox. He was a soldier who fought throughout the First World War. The statue shows a private soldier wearing his army uniform. He holds a rifle with a bayonet in his right hand. He faces west, looking down the road. It's like he's guarding the entrance to the City of London.
This exact same statue can be seen in other places too. One is part of the Oldham War Memorial, unveiled in 1923. Another identical statue was revealed in 1932. This one is the memorial for the 41st Division in Flers, France. This area is near where tanks were first used in battle in 1916.
