500 years old - Unique War Memorial Dedicated at Knotting
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The War Memorial
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In the quiet churchyard at Knotting, Beds, an ancient cross broken and stained by the storms of 471 years, has been restored, as nearly as possible, to it original form, and will henceforth stand as a memorial to three men who left the tiny village to serve their country in the Great War and were killed.
Sir A.E. Bowe, Bart, of Colworth House, who, on Sunday evening, unveiled the cross, told how from the little parish of not more than a hundred inhabitants, fourteen men entered the Services, eleven returning. What these inhabitants did, he said, was typical of what was done throughout the country, and of what, they knew, would be done if and when another call came.
The ceremonies of unveiling and dedication were carried out very simply. The assembly in the churchyard was not large, but it included practically every able-bodied inhabitant of the scattered village, as well as a number of distinguished visitors. These included Lady Bowen, Mr. C. Kenneth Murchison M.P., and Mrs. Murchison (Hargrave), Lord St. John of Bletsoe, Field Marshall Sir A.A. Barrett K.C.B.,K.C.V.O.,C.B., Lieutenant-General A.S. Cobbe, V.C.,D.S.O., Sir Hungerford Pollen, Lady Barrett, Mrs. Cobbe, Mrs. Cornwallis, Mr. and Mrs. Campion, Lieutenant-Colonel Talbot Jarvis, Mr. and Mrs. Hipwell, Mrs. Gawen, Mrs. Pike, Mrs. Brazier, Dr. and Mrs. Parbury, Mr. L.G. Stileman-Gibbard, Mr. J. Reid, Mr. N. Lloyd, Mrs. Girling and Lieutenant F.E.B. Girling.
An impressive Ceremony
Upon their arrival Field Marshall Barrett and Lieutenant-General Cobbe received the salute from the Irthlingborough Company, K.R.R. Cadets, and they devoted five minutes to an inspection of the lads and a chat with the officers, who included the Rev. W. Frift, the rector of Irthlingborough.
Simple prayers were led by the Rev. F.E.M. Girling, rector of Knotting, and better hymns than the familiar “Praise my soul, the King of Heaven” and “Jesu Lover of my soul” could hardly have been sung.
The address given by Sir A.E. Bowen, was brief and thoughtful. The speaker emphasises that it was just as important to “play the game” every day and all day long. The war caused a tremendous upheaval; everything had changed, and they found since the armistice that the problems and difficulties of peace were as numerous and dangerous as those of war. It might seem that in a little village like Knotting there was nothing that they could do to help England recover. They could, however, do their share; they could be loyal and teach loyalty and patriotism to their children. And the best memorial they could offer to the glorious dead was to make the land they died to save become all they would have wished it to have been. A tribute to the Rector, whose researches enabled the old cross to be rebuilt in its original form, concluded the address.
The Dedication
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The dedication
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After the Rector had dedicated the cross the Last Post and Reveille were sounded by four buglers – members of the Rushden St. Mary’s K.R.R. Cadet Company.
The honour of placing on the steps of the memorial the beautiful wreath from the villagers was entrusted to Mrs. Smith, mother of Pte. Ernest Jesse Smith, who with Pte. George Henry Bailey and Lance-Corporal Joseph Law, lost his life while on active service. All three were in the Bedfordshire Regiment. “In grateful remembrance from the people of Knotting” was the inscription upon the wreath card.
At the close of the outdoor service, the usual evening service was held in the quaint church of St. Margaret, where is the memorial tablet recently erected by the villagers.
Sir A.E. Bowen bore the expense of the restoration of the cross. Mr. Talbot Brown of Talbot Brown and Fisher (Wellingborough) planned the work, which was carried out by Messrs. Higgins and Son. The old part of the cross, dating back to 1450, consists of a panelled plinth and half of the shaft. To this has been added a continuation of the shaft, with tabernacle and canopy, where are beautifully designed and carved representations of St. Margaret of Antioch, St. George and the Dragon, The Madonna and Child, and The Crucifixion. The whole work stands on two rows of octagonal steps, upon which is the inscription: “This Cross was restored in 1921 in memory of men from Knotting who fell in the Great War.”
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