Obelisk: Hampstead War Memorial
{On the flanking wall to the left of the pillar is a double plaque, on the top half of which is inscribed a laurel wreath while the lower half contains:}
1914 - 1918
1939 - 1945
In the long vista of the years to roll
Let me not see our country's honour fade:
O let me see our land retain her soul,
Her pride, her freedom: and not freedom's shade.
Keats
{On the flanking wall to the right of the obelisk is a double plaque, on the top half of which is inscribed
the Hampstead coat of arms (motto "non sibi sed toti" means “Not for oneself but for all”) while the lower half contains the text:}
This monument was here set up to call to memory the men and women of Hampstead who gave their lives for their country in two great wars.
{On the back of the obelisk's plinth is:}
To those of this borough who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914 - 1918.
{On the front of the obelisk's plinth is carved the coat of arms with:}
Borough of Hampstead
From the inscriptions it seems that the obelisk was created as a WW1 memorial and the flanking walls were added after WW2. We thank David Hopkins for the translation of the Latin motto.
Site: Hampstead War Memorial (1 memorial)
NW3, Spaniards Road
The imposing house you see behind the monument was the home of Quaker banker and slavery abolitionist Samuel Hoare (1751 - 1825) who moved here in 1790. His descendants include: John Gurney Hoare and Sir Samuel Hoare.
