EYNSHAM WAR MEMORIAL
Our War Memorial next to St Leonard's church in the village square, commemorates the ultimate sacrifice made by many men from our village in the two World Wars. They are buried where they died in foreign fields, or have no known grave. All are commemorated in Commonweath War Graves Commission (CWGC) cemeteries overseas.
Those not on our War Memorial may be remembered on Roles of Honour in our village churches; and for those who died of wounds back in "Blighty", on CWGC headstones in our village church yards.
Our war dead were not usually repatriated to this country for burial until the Falklands War of 1982, when policy changed.
Our War Memorial was set up after the First World War 1914-18, paid for by subscriptions from parishioners. The Trustees of Eynsham War Memorial Committee purchased the freehold land from the brewery owning the Red Lion pub, for £5 0s 0d ("old money") in 1921. Our War Memorial was dedicated on Saturday 2 April 1921 (100 years ago last year). It was re-dedicated on Sunday 19 April 2009.
Our War Memorial immortalizes 50 men from this parish killed in the First World War 1914-1918 (then known as The Great War or the war to end all wars).
On the West Face:
Captain Rene F Gosset
Second Lieutenant Basil B Vincent
William T Ayres
Philip Barker
Frank Bennett
Joseph Bennett
George F Brooks
Frederick T Holliday
On the North Face:
Harry Biggars
Christopher L Brooks
Noble C Brooks
Alexander W Buckingham
Francis E Buckingham
Cecil Capel
Gilbert Clarke
Herbert J Cox
Robert Dean
Arthur Douglas
Hubert Druce
William A Fidler
Reginald Gibbard
Frederick J Gibbons
Frederick H Grant
Albert J Green
Frederick Green
Stanley A Green
Frederick T Hall
Bertie S Harper
Horatio Harper
On the South Face:
Elijah Harris
Joseph Harris
Walter T Harris
Richard W Harwood
William Hathaway
William Hirons
Albert J Holloway
Henry J Holloway
John T James
George L S Jeffereys
Herbert W Kearse
Bert Leach
Henry Lindsay
Samuel Moulder
Percy Rowland
Edwin J Rusher
Edwin W Russell
Caleb J Sherwood
William Styles
Thomas Wakeley
Bertie H Wood
Our War Memorial also immortalizes 18 men from this parish killed in the Second World War 1939-45:
On the West Face:
Lieutenant Harry C Green
James Bayliss
James Booker
Harry T Burden
Cecil A Cattell
Malcolm K Christie
Herbert J Claridge
Robert Drew
Albert W J Evans
William J Hardwick
Thomas H Hopkins
Lawrence Lay
Hubert F May
Reginald F Quainton
Arthur A Snook
Ivor W State
Walter J Walker
Graham F Whelan
Many of the men commemorated will have family still living in the village. We commiserate with them for their loss.
EYNSHAM WILL REMEMBER THEM
Eynsham RBL Branch would be interested to hear from anyone who has an ancestor commemorated on the Eynsham War Memorial.
Contact RBL Eynsham Branch:
Mr Ginge AYRES ginge1@netvigator.com