Erection date: 1923
{Along the top of the list, repeated on both sides:}
To the memory of those Islingtonians who made the supreme sacrifice in the Great War 1914 - 1919.
{List of 1,307 names}
{There is also meant to be a metal plaque, added in November 2016, which we did not see:}
In memory of the men of Islington and Finsbury who died in the service of their country in France at the Battle of the Somme, July - November 1916. Lest we forget.
Through the gates you can see that most of the names are nicely picked out but that some panels are damaged by what looks like damp (as you can see in our photo). We were relieved to see that the Imperial War Museum has already transcribed 1,248 names. However that same page says that there are 1,307 names. The illegible names may explain the discrepancy.
2024: The Islington Tribune reported that "veterans call for war memorial wall to be restored".
Site: Royal Northern Hospital - Islington war memorial arch - inside (5 memorials)
N7, Manor Gardens
The original 1923 WW1 memorial consisted of the whole Casualty Department building for the Royal Northern Hospital, including this arched passageway and the list of names it contains. The architect was H. Percy Adams, of Adams, Holden and Pearson. The builder: F. C. Minter may be related to E. J. Minter.
See Islington War memorial arch - outside for a photo of the arch entrance into this passageway through the building. It is like a tunnel with gates at each end. The walls of the main part of the tunnel are covered with a list of names as shown in our photo. The memorials relating to the Royal Northern Hospital are housed in a smaller section, at the back, the northern end of the tunnel (possibly added later?).
When the Casualty Department building was demolished (by 1997) this arch was retained in situ, and the plaque on the outside that explained the whole-building nature of the memorial was salvaged and erected in the nearby public garden. The arch-passageway was incorporated into a private residential development. This means that the gates are normally locked, the list of names can only be viewed skew-whiff through the gates, and the memorials at the back are not visible at all.
We've numbered the memorials as follows:
At the back on the west wall:
1. Ifor Williams
2. Islington Victoria Ward
At the back on the east wall:
3. St David’s wing and RNH navigational sign
4. Newbon Ward
After many years of failing to find the gates open we finally gained access on 11 November 2021 when they had been opened for someone to pay their respects. The key-holder said that we could always revisit by asking for the key at the nearby Islington North Library. We also understand that a memorial event is held here annually on Remembrance Sunday, but probably in the nearby memorial garden, so we don't know if the gates to this tunnel would be opened for that event.
