Unveiled by Major-General Sir Thomas O. Marden, K.B.E., C.B., C.M.G. on Thursday 11^th November 1926, to the memory of the many individuals from Maesteg and District, who gave their life in the First World War. On Sunday, November 10^th 1946, another unveiling and memorial service took place, this time to the fallen of the Second World War. Much more recently a memorial has been added to Guardsman Christopher Mordecai, who died in the Falklands War.

The Memorial was not without its controversy. A committee of Maesteg Urban District Council was set up in June 1921 and had two meetings, before coming to a complete standstill. In March 1922 Mr W.J. Watkins asked at a council meeting: "What has become of the War Memorial Scheme?". This apparently caused 'some liveliness' at the meeting. (Bridgend had already unveiled their memorial on November 11^th the year before, 1921.) The excuse given was that, the negotiations for the proposed site, near St. David's Church, were taking longer to complete than anticipated. Eventually a decision was made that the memorial should be built.

The designer of the memorial was Mr L.F. Roslyn, R.B.S. (Mr Roslyn was, in fact, the designer chosen to execute a bronze relief, "The Triumph of Labour", from the workers of Great Britain to the workers of America.) The memorial stands in a semi-circular recess; the pedestal of axed grey granite, standing 10ft. 3in. high, is surmounted by two bronze figures, 7ft. high. The figures represent a soldier with a bayonet defending to the last his dying comrade. The front panel of the pedestal contains the following inscription:

A plan to add an inscription in Welsh was rejected by the committee. There are no names on the memorial. It was decided to place the names of the fallen on a vellum scroll, "The Scroll of Fame", in a sealed bottle in a cement chamber within the memorial. This ceremony took place on Wednesday November 3^rd 1926.

An enormous number of people attended the opening ceremony. A reporter for the Glamorgan Gazette estimated that between 20 and 50 thousand people were present, and went on to say "that it was by far the biggest concourse of people in the history of the 'Old Parish', and all Maesteg seemed to be present at the ceremony". The crowd was so large that there was a danger of people getting hurt. Fortunately no one was injured. The band of the 6^th Battalion Welch Regiment was so wedged in that they could not accompany the singing as originally planned. The vast crowd was so enthusiastic that, some parts of the service were interrupted, by spontaneous singing. But during the two minutes silence there was "a stillness that could be felt by the vast throng".

The Glamorgan Advertiser describes General Marden's tribute thus:

"General Sir T.O. Marden said he felt it a great honour and responsibility to unveil the memorial. For the time being he was their spokesman. He had to do his best to voice their feelings and express their sentiments. His qualifications for the task was that he was at present commanding the 53^rd Territorial Division, the Welsh Division. He has been associated with the Welsh Regiment for nearly 20 years. He commanded the first Battalion of the Welsh at the beginning of the war, and later he had command of a Brigade. He could therefore speak with knowledge of the conditions under which the Welsh fought in the war, and could bear witness to their dogged courage and cheerfulness under all circumstances. Many of those present that day had served in the war. They had shared in all the dangers and discomforts, and knew the spirit of those they were commemorating. They would recall the filth and mud of the trenches, the actions in which they were engaged, the horror of a concentrated bombardment, and the tenseness of the few moments before they went over the top. They would recall with thankfulness that their lives had been spared, and have a deep feeling of gratitude to those who fell. They had proved themselves men at Ypres, Mametz Wood, in Gallipoli, Palestine, and elsewhere. They had proved that there were no better soldiers than the Welshmen, and had a right to feel proud."

General Marden went on to say that the memorial was not meant to be a symbol of victory, nor a memorial of conquest, but a memorial of self-sacrifice and devotion to duty. The dedication was performed by the Rev. T.C. Phillips. After the dedication the "Last Post" was played by buglers from the 6^th Welch Band, followed by two minutes silence. Reveille was played and then the singing of the old Welsh hymn, "Bydd myrdd o ryfeddodan".

The Chairman of the War Memorial Committee, Councillor A.E. Lockyer, then presented the memorial to the Maesteg Urban District Council, to be held and maintained by them in perpetuity. Councillor George Hitchings accepted on behalf of the District Council, and said he recognised the responsibility and would see that the memorial was kept in a manner worthy of those whom it commemorated. The ceremony concluded by the singing of "God Save the King". Wreaths were then layed.

An annual memorial service is conducted to this day, at the very well maintained Memorial.

(Back to Main Page)