Chalk Cross War Memorial on Downs above Lenham - geograph

The Lenham Cross is a chalk cross carved into the hillside to the north of

Lenham Lenham is a market village and civil parish in the Maidstone district, in Kent, England, situated on the southern edge of the North Downs, east of Maidstone. The picturesque square in the village has two public houses (one of which is a hot ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, in England. The Latin cross is high with arms wide. It was designed by Mr C H Groom, the headmaster of the village school, as a

First World War memorial World War I is remembered and commemorated by various war memorials, including civic memorials, larger national monuments, war cemeteries, private memorials and a range of utilitarian designs such as halls and parks, dedicated to remembering th ...

. It was created in a field on the south-facing slopes of the

North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Areas of Outstanding Natural Be ...

, close to the

Pilgrim's Way A pilgrims' way or pilgrim way is a standard route that pilgrims take when they go on a pilgrimage in order to reach their destination – usually a holy site or place of worship. These sites may be towns or cities of special significance such ...

, by volunteers from the village, and unveiled in by Major General Sir

Arthur Lynden-Bell Major General Sir Arthur Lynden Lynden-Bell, (2 January 1867 – 14 February 1943) was a British Army officer. Early life Lynden-Bell was the son of Major-General Thomas Lynden Lynden-Bell and younger brother of Colonel Charles Perceval Lynde ...

, who had served as an officer with the

Buffs (East Kent Regiment) The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment), formerly the 3rd Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army traditionally raised in the English county of Kent and garrisoned at Canterbury. It had a history dating back to 1572 and ...

in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

and on the general staff in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The cross was filled in during the Second World War to prevent it being used as a navigation aid by the German

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

. It became a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

in 2017. A dedicatory stone of rough-hewn granite was sited in an enclosure with steps and railings at the south end of the cross, beside the Pilgrim's Way, with a smooth face inscribed by the names of 42 men of the parish who were killed during the First World War. A smaller stone listing 14 more names was added after the Second World War. The memorial stone was moved in 1960 to stand beside

St Mary's Church, Lenham St Mary's is a parish church in Lenham, Kent, England, begun in the 12th century with additions in the next three centuries. It is a Grade I listed building. Structure The church was built in several phases and is constructed of local rag-stone ...

, about south west of its original location. A bench and plaque were added to the original memorial enclosure in 1977, donated by the Ashford branch of the

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is the maintenance arm of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's professional engineers". History Prior t ...

Association.

References

'The Cross': a hill-figure war memorial at Lenham
National Heritage List for England, Historic England
Lenham Cross
War Memorials Register, Imperial War Museums
Lenham - WW1 and WW2
War Memorials Register, Imperial War Museums
Lenham Cross
War Memorials Online {{coord, 51.2424, 0.7291, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Hill figures in England Listed buildings in Kent History of Kent Monuments and memorials in Kent World War I memorials in England 1922 works Crosses in art Memorial crosses

See also

References