Inscription on the base of Deptford War Memorial

Image: © Marathon Taken: 24 Aug 2011

Deptford War Memorial is found at the northern edge of Brockley Cemetery. Brockley Cemetery was opened as Deptford Cemetery in 1858, within a month of the adjoining Ladywell Cemetery to the east. The former was owned by the Borough of Deptford and the latter by the Borough of Lewisham. Until 1948, although the cemeteries were adjoining, they were physically separated by a wall. By that date the Victorian chapel of Brockley Cemetery had been destroyed by bombs, but the chapel in Ladywell Cemetery survived. The dividing wall between the cemeteries was removed in 1948 and this is today marked by a grassy ridge and a line of plane trees. A legacy of this is that while both cemeteries have a good network of paths, very few cross the old boundary. In 1965 when the London Borough of Lewisham took over both cemeteries, Deptford Cemetery was renamed Brockley Cemetery. The war memorial says "HERE REST THE HONOURED REMAINS OF BRITISH SOLDIERS, SAILORS AND AIRMEN, CITIZENS OF DEPTFORD, WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY DURING THE GREAT WAR 1914 - 1918".

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