Grimsby - Town Hall Victory Window

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Reference WMO/265858

Address:

Grimsby Town Hall

Town Hall Square

Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire

DN31 1HX

England

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Status: On original site
Type: Non freestanding
Location: Internal
Setting: Attached to a building/structure
Description: Stained glass window
Materials:
  • Glass Stained Glass
  • Metal Bronze
  • Timber Oak
Lettering: Painted
Conflicts:
  • Second World War (1939-1945)
About the memorial: Enter the building by way of the front entrance, pass through the security office, go up the flight of stairs, and the window is straight in front of you at the top. It is clearly visible and well illuminated. The Town Hall has a security service, so the memorial is quite safe from vandalism, though it could be damaged from the outside but there is a security lighting system and cameras. Inscription This memorial is a tribute to all those services, including civilian organisations which brought victory in the 1939 – 1945 World War. It consists of a large leaded glass window, in which the badges of the various services and corps present a colourful picture in this prominent portion of Grimsby’s civic building. There is a board to left hand side of the window which acts as a “key” to the names of the services and corps represented. Below is a photograph of this aid. The wooden board is 380mm high and 330mm wide, and has metal plate on which the inscription is etched out in white. There are three other inscriptions apart from the window itself. One is immediately below the memorial giving the name of the window’s designer, its promoter and treasurer. This board measures 230mm x 60mm. The next board under the window measures 890mm wide x 270mm in height, The third wooden board gives the history of the window, its date of dedication, unveiling and persons responsible for that. It measures 380mm x 330mm. This board can be found at the top of the stairs. All the boards have the basic design of a bronze plaque on a wooden frame. This is the window itself and in the following photographs, the individual services and civilian organisations will be picked out in more detail. They will be placed in order left to right. History of the Window At the end of the Second World War, the civic authorities in Grimsby held various meeting to decide what sort of memorial could be raised to commemorate the fallen, but nothing was decided. The main concern of the Church people was to repair the damage caused by the air raid of July 1943, through the initiative of Mr Ben White and the vicar, the Restoration Committee raised £21,000, which together with the War damage Commission and interest raised a total of £37,000. So for the Church people at least this was the main act of thanksgiving after the war. To commemorate the dead by name, the British Legion compiled a list, but no action was taken until 1952, when under the chairmanship of the then Mayor, Alderman Wilson, a sum of £300 was raised which provided a Shrine of Remembrance and a Book of Remembrance. The Town Clerk would read out every year at the Remembrance service some of the names of the fallen. These memorials are described elsewhere in this folder of memorials. However the same raid of July 1943, that caused so much damage to St James Church, also caused damage to the Town Hall, and a window, that is at the top of the stairs was destroyed. Soon after the end of the war an appeal was launched for donations towards the estimated cost of replacing this window. Each unit commemorated in the window was given the opportunity to subscribe to the cost which was estimated at £400. The public generally was also asked for donations and the moneys were asked to be forwarded to Mr H. Davis at the National Provincial Bank, Victoria St, or addressed to the Evening Telegraph Office at 80, Cleethorpes Road, Grimsby. The window was designed by Mr Harry Grylls, who personally supervised the construction of the window, from the preliminary sketches and scale drawings, to the painting and burning-in of the colours and leading to the window. The appeal was successful, and the window was installed, unveiled by Mrs M.M. Walmsley, and dedicated by the Archdeacon of Lindsey, the Venerable E. Lisle Marsden, Vicar of Grimsby on 21st December, 1949. On Thursday, January 12th, 1950, Mr. Harry Grylls, the designer of the window visited Grimsby, and announced that he was arranging for a “key” to the badges to be placed near the window so all could understand the names of the badges, and what organisation they represented. Apparently the Badges to the Royal Observer Corps and Minesweeper’s emblem were only released at the end of the war. Two cases of Royal Assent had to be obtained, for the St John Ambulance Brigade and the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment.
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