Woolwich Memorials

Working through the vast pile in the GIHS pending tray - picking something out at random which should have been reviewed some time ago  - a Woolwich Antiquarians Newsletter from November 2011......

In it Jim Marrett wrote about some of the memorials, past and present, in Woolwich ... this was a two part article - and, briefly, what Jim noted included the following  .............. are they still there??

The Royal Military Academy Woolwich Common - now a Durkan Homes housing development.  There used to be two statues there. One was of Napoleon III's son whose body was brought to Woolwich after he had been killed in the Zulu Wars. The other was a seven foot high statue of Queen Victoria.  Both of these are now at Sandhurst.

Greenwich Heritage Centre - there is a stone plaque to Beverley Burford. Beverley was the first manager of the Heritage Centre, and had been Curator at the Plumstead Museum. Her death was sadly premature and she is greatly missed.

Royal Arsenal Gardens - some bits and pieces in this soon to be lost little park - some pottery commemorates the Woolwich pottery industry and a piece like a red dead nettle commemorates the many convicts who died aboard the Woolwich hulks.

Shell Foundry - nearby are the bases of three steam hammers plus a statue of the Duke of Wellington sculpted in 1848 and intended for the Tower of London.

By the Guard Houses near the riverfront is The Assembly of iron men by Peter Burke.

Dial Square - there is a memorial to the founding of the Arsenal Football Club, now in North London.

Woolwich Arsenal Station - on Platform One is a wall frieze showing the manufacture of guns,.

Beresford Square - there is a sculpture of the Great Harry Tudor warship built in Woolwich

Falconwood Cemetery - has a sculpted set of the Woolwich Arms on the gate

The Barracks - The Gunners Triumphal Arch??   and the Crimean War Memorial in front of the Barracks
But a statue by James Barry for the Royal Ordnance Corps in the South African Wars is now in Camberley and the Bhurtpoor gun is now in Larkhill

Under Tescos was the Grant Depot Barracks - which included the tomb of Arif Bey - what happened to that??

Corner of Ha Ha Road and Woolwich Common - an obelisk to Robert John Little - a teetotaller - and it was originally a drinking fountain