Village memorials listed ahead of Remembrance Day

Four village memorials built to commemorate men - and one woman - who died in World War One have become Grade II listed ahead of Remembrance Day.

The monuments in Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire were unveiled in the 1920s, with the men's names added following World War Two.

Historic England said one memorial in Mepal, between Chatteris and Ely, was unusual in that it contained the name of a woman, 22-year-old canteen worker Nellie Waters, who died at a military camp in Thetford, Norfolk.

"As the world wars pass out of living memory, these memorials are an important reminder of local people who gave their lives to secure the freedom we enjoy today," said regional director Tony Calladine.

The memorials are among tens of thousands that were erected across England and became focal points, in place of graves, for communities to mourn and honour their dead.

The unveiling of the Mepal war memorial, funded by public subscription and created in Soham, was given "extensive" coverage in the local press in 1922, Historic England said.

It was dedicated to 13 people lost in World War One, including Ms Waters, who contracted pneumonia while serving as part of the Navy Army Canteen Board, a forerunner of the NAAFI service. Six further names were added in the 1940s.

The Bishop of Ely dedicated the war memorial in Little Downham, near Ely, which honours 32 men, and a further eight who gave their lives in World War Two.

Northchurch War Memorial, near Berkhamsted, sits in the churchyard of St Mary’s Church as a permanent testament to the sacrifices made by 46 local men who lost their lives in World War One, and 13 in the later conflict, Historic England said.

It added that the memorial at Hertford Heath, near Hertford, was unveiled in 1920 after villagers gathered at the church and proceeded to the decorated Celtic cross with the band of the 1st Hertfordshire Regiment.

The monuments were given listed status by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, on the advice of Historic England.

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