Memorial to the West Kent Yeomanry

[Clive Maier]

The picture appears in a booklet called West Kent (Queen’s Own) Yeomanry Roll of Honour. It was printed by Barnard and Crannis and is undated but probably circa 1920. It shows a book, presumably the real roll of honour, secured behind locking grille doors which themselves can be protected behind solid outer doors, here shown open. The whole is set into what I take to be a wall panel. Maddeningly, the booklet gives no information whatsoever about this memorial.

I would dearly like to find it, if indeed it still exists. I assume it is or was in a Kentish church or cathedral. Before I start trekking around the likely candidates, I wonder if any Pal knows where it is?

[Guest Invicta]

Clive

All Saints Church in Maidstone would be a good place to start, although I'm not sure that it is one of the memorials in there. There are quite a few to various wars.

Good luck

Invicta

[HERITAGE PLUS]

Clive

Regimental HQ was at Maidstone. However this would appear to be a red herring because the Regimental Museum lists the roll of honour as being at Bexleyheath, but unfortunately it omits the exact location.

http://www.ksymuseum.org.uk/ksytop2main.htm

Click 'Objects' - 'Roll of Honour'

Dave

[HERITAGE PLUS]

Clive

This may possibly be the location:

http://www.ksymuseum.org.uk/bex.htm

Dave

[Clive Maier]

Invicta and Dave,

Many thanks for the tips. I will be following them up as soon as I can.

It is a striking memorial. I can image the grille being unlocked and a page turned every day in the early days and then the practice being gradually or perhaps abruptly abandoned. Eventually the open page would start to to fade and gather dust, and somebody would wonder whether the memorial was really needed anymore ....

My uncle Oscar should be in that book. He and a bunch of pals were drafted from the West Kent Yeomanry to the 13th Middlesex. Many of them died with him in Delville Wood. That being the dreadful place it was, very few of them have graves. Oscar is an exception. He is in Danztig Alley at Mametz.

Thanks again for your help.