IN PROUD AND GRATEFUL MEMORY OF THE MEN FROM THE DISTRICT OF ST. LUKE CHARLOTTEVILLE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR KING AND COUNTRY
1914-18 AND 1939-45. THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE
In the Great War 1914-18, more than a hundred men from community of St. Luke's, Charlotteville in Guildford answered the call to arms. The men came from just three roads , namely Addison, Cline and Cooper Road and would have attended services at the little church of St. Luke in Addison Road.
Tragically, twenty-five of these men were destined not to return. Sixteen were buried in a "foreign field", two died at sea and the bodies of four of the men were never found.
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After the war a wooden shrine was erected in a small garden by the church to provide the families and loved ones a focal point for their grieving and remembrance. In 1928 this was replaced by a memorial made from Portland stone. The cost was £100 plus a further £10 of incidental expenses required for its completion (Surrey Advertiser 19th December 1928).
The unveiling ceremony on Sunday, 16th December 1928 saw the church crowded with ex-servicemen, relatives and friends, many of whom marched in procession from Cline Road led by the Guildford British Legion band (Surrey Advertiser 19th December 1928).
After the Second World War the names of seven more local men were added, including one who was killed by a bomb that fell only yards away from the memorial itself.
The church was demolished in the 1960's, to make way for the Addison Court flats and the memorial was moved to its present position. It continues to provide a focal point for local residents and a service of Remembrance is held here every November.
