Did you know that the Memorial Cross in the churchyard of St. Botolph-Without Bishopsgate was the first free-standing memorial to the dead of the First World War to be erected in London? It was dedicated by the Lord Mayor of London (Sir William Henry Dunn) and the Bishop of Stepney (John Travers Cornwell VC) on 4th August 1916.
The Memorial was erected to remember those who lost their lives at the Battle of Jutland, on 31 May to 1 June 1916, and in particular the loss of Jack Cornwell, who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry during the battle. Stationed as a sight-setter on HMS Chester, the 16-year-old remained at his post awaiting further orders until the end of the action, despite wounds from which he died three days later.
The Cross is also a memorial to the loss of the UK’s Secretary of War, Lord Kitchener, and the men of HMS Hampshire, off Orkney, a few days after the Battle of Jutland. On 5 June 1916, Lord Kitchener set out in HMS Hampshire for Russia, but the ship struck a mine during a gale and sank west of the Orkney Islands.
The Cross later became a Memorial to Members of the Honourable Artillery Company who fell in the Great War. The Cross’s fourth inscription commemorates ‘Our brave dead of Bishopsgate’.
Inside St. Botolph Without Church you will also find the Regimental Memorial Chapel. It is a dedicated space of remembrance and reflection for both current and future generations of the regiment.
The HAC Chapel at St. Botolph specifically commemorates those who died in the South African War, the First and Second World Wars and the conflict in Afghanistan. It also displays copies of the two Rolls of Honour.
Each year the HAC hold an Annual Service of Remembrance at St. Botolph Without Bishopsgate. A copy of the most recent service is below.
