Remembrance

I thought today, being the day that the Battle of the Somme is being remembered and as we were in Penrith anyway, I would look for the town’s War Memorial relating to the First World War. I thought it would be in the Park where there are other War Memorials, but when I did some research I found it wasn’t there, it was in the churchyard of the Parish Church.

In looking this up, I found an article written a few years ago by our MP Rory Stewart wondering why Penrith did not have a central monument for the 1st World War. In fact he widened this to ask why there is so little sculpture at all in the town. His conclusion was that towns are run by committees and ‘We discover that beauty is subjective, and that paralyses us.’ I’m not sure I would agree with him as to the reason, but he actually is right  - there is very little in the way of sculpture in the town and the First World War Memorial is tucked away and is very simple, certainly compared to what other towns have.
 
However, it is rather nice – a quite ornately patterned cross on a stepped pedestal, with a few words of remembrance carved in it. Sadly, what had once apparently started as a garden around the base, including poppies, was looking a bit neglected this afternoon.
 
There is in the church a plaque with the names of all those killed in the War – around 190. That is such a lot for a small town. We also found in the church a very interesting exhibition relating to the War and I found a book for sale (with a contribution) Home Thoughts and Foreign Fields – The Impact of the War on a Cumbrian Market Town (Penrith Remembers 1914-1018), compiled by a group of people, with the support of local businesses etc, and a Foreword by Rory. I have a feeling he probably had a lot to do with the book and an excellent one it is too.