The War Memorial 1914

THE WAR MEMORIAL 1914 - 1918

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The carved pulpit in Zeal Monachorum Church

The memorial to the fallen of the Great War is to be found inside the church at Zeal Monachorum. It consists of a carved surround to the pulpit faced by five wooden panels.

Panel 1 bears the inscription:

"Dedicated to God in grateful recognition of the bravery of those volunteers from this parish who during the Great War gave their lives for righteousness and freedom 1914 - 1918"

Nine names are listed on each of panels 2 and 4. The 3rd, central panel, is carved with a figure of Christ while the fifth panel is inscribed with the words

"Righteousness exalteth a nation"

The carved pulpit in Zeal Monachorum Church

THE NAMES LISTED ON PANEL 2

JOSEPH BREALY	Private Joe Brealy of the Royal Engineers. Son of Joseph and Sarah Brealy. Born 16 June 1876. Died 27 September 1922. Buried near the top gate in the churchyard at Zeal.
FRED BRAUND	Lance Corporal Frederick James Braund ("Fred") of the 2nd Battalion , the Devonshire Regiment. Son of James and Annie (Sarah Ann) Braund of Bow. Born in the September Quarter of 1893 at Bow. Died 17 May 1915 aged 22.
SIDNEY BRAUND	We know of this man's family but his military record has yet to be confirmed. His mother married twice; from her first marriage there was a girl (Minnie) and a boy (Sidney), the surname of these children being SPENCER, sometimes spelt SPENSER. In the December Quarter of 1889, Sarah Ann Spenser married James Braund and they became the parents of Fred Braund (see above) and another son, William, who also served in the 2nd Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment. William was killed 18 Dec 1914 but is not commemorated on this memorial although he too was born in Bow. It is possible that Sidney generally used the name of BRAUND, but enlisted under his real name of Sidney Spencer or Spenser.
REGINALD BURROW	The military record of this man has not yet been confirmed. \|He was the son of George Burrow and his widow Mary Ann Burrow who continued to run their farm after George's death. Born at Woolfardisworthy in the December Quarter of 1883.
ARTHUR FRY	Lance Corporal William Arthur Fry of the 74th Field Ambulance, the Royal Army Medical Corps. Son the the late William Henry and Fry of Loosebeare Manor, Zeal Monachorum and husband of May Fry of Hillside, Zeal Monachorum. Born at Bideford in the September Quarter of 1888. Died 23 November 1917 aged 29. Awarded the MM.
ALBERT JAMES	Corporal Albert James of the 2nd Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment.. Born in Zeal Monachorum in the September Quarter of 1896. Brought up in Zeal Monachorum (along with his sisters Hilda and Mabel) by his widowed grandmother Emma James. Died 27 Mar 1918 aged 21
JACK MANN	Believed to be related to the Mann family of North Tawton who moved away to London at the end of the 19th century. A war record exists for a Canadian citizen named Jack Mann who served in the Canadian Infantry and was killed 3 September 1916.
GEORGE MARTIN	This man's military record is not yet confirmed. It is possible that he may be the George Martin who was born in Down St. Mary in 1879, son of Thomas and Mary Martin who moved to Bow and who joined the Navy as a boy.
REES MORGAN	Private Rees Edgar Morgan of the 4th Battalion, the Royal Fusiliers. Son of John Morgan and Sarah McCarthy (formerly Morgan) of the Rectory, Zeal Monachorum.. Born in 1880 at Mountain Ash, Glamorgan. Died 16 September 1914 aged 34. He was formerly a miner.

THE NAMES LISTED ON PANEL 4

ALBERT PIKE	Private Albert Pike of the 7th Battalion, the Buffs. Believed to be the son of Samuel and Ellen Pike. Husband of E. Pike of Great Wotton. Born in Bow in 1895. Died 1 Oct 1917 aged 22.
ARTHUR SHORTRIDGE	Corporal Arthur Shortridge of the 2nd Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment. His parents are believed to have been Charles and Bessie Shortridge who came to Zeal from North Devon. Born in Bideford in the June Quarter of 1894 and living at Bow at the time of his enlistment. Died 26 May 1918 aged 23.
GEORGE SMITH	Believed to be the son of Frederick and Elizabeth Smith of Zeal Monachorum and brother of James below. Born in 1887 in Zeal Monachorum. Military record not yet confirmed.
JAMES SMITH	Private James Henry Smith of the 9th Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment. Son of Frederick and Elizabeth Smith of Zeal Monachorum and brother of George above. Born in 1880. Census records give his birthplace as Down St. Mary, Soldiers Died gives Bow. Died 4 September 1916 aged 36.
JACK STENTIFORD	Rifleman John ("Jack") Stentiford of the 12th Battalion, the King's Royal Rifle Corps. Son of Richard and Mary Ann Stentiford of Great Wootton. Born in August 1887 in Zeal Monachorum. Died 12 September 1918 aged 31.
VYVYAN WEBBER	Private Vyvyan Stewart Webber of the 9th Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment. Son of William Baker Webber. Born in the March Quarter of 1896 at Bow. Died 4 September 1916 aged 20.
ERNEST WALDRON	Private Ernest George Waldron of the 5th Battalion, the Dorset Regiment. Son of Samuel and Phoebe Waldron of Stop Gate, Zeal Monachorum. Born in Coldridge in the September Quarter of 1892. Died 10 Aug 1918 aged 26.
MORGAN WALTERS	Sadly, neither this man's military record nor his connection with Zeal Monachorum has yet been traced.
JACK WARDEN	Private John ("Jack") Warden of the 1st Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment. Son of James and Mary Warden of Bow. Born in Bow in 1896. Died 13 Apr 1915 aged 19.