Wikipedia

Duffield Memorial

This article is about the gravesite monument. For the war memorial, see Duffield War Memorial.

The Duffield Memorial is a gravesite monument located in the churchyard of the Church of St Mary in Great Baddow, Essex, England. Designed by Herbert Maryon and installed in 1912, it originally commemorated Marianne Duffield and William Ward Duffield, who died in 1910 and 1912, respectively. A second plaque was added to commemorate their son, William Bartleet Duffield, who died in 1918. In 2022, Historic England designated the work a Grade II listed building, noting it as an unusual example of both Art Nouveau metalwork and churchyard memorial.

Duffield Memorial
Colour photograph of the Duffield Memorial
Duffield Memorial (pictured 2023) in St. Mary's Church, Great Baddow
ArtistHerbert Maryon
Year1912 (1912)
MediumBronze sheet metal
Coordinates51°42′56″N 0°30′12″E / 51.715666°N 0.503469°E / 51.715666; 0.503469
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameDuffield Memorial
Designated25 July 2022
Reference no.1481229

The memorial is made of riveted sections of bronze sheet metal and comprises edging and a vertical cross. The edging follows the rectangular perimeter of the grave plot, with short pillars at each corner. Within the plot sits the Celtic wheel cross, decorated in relief with leaflike motifs. A curved shaft connects it to the foot, which, like the four-sided base upon which it is mounted, has curved and splayed sides. The plaques commemorating the Duffields are riveted to the base; a medallion, now lost, was once riveted to the centre of the cross.

Background edit

The Duffields edit

The Duffields were a prominent family in Chelmsford, having settled in Great Baddow by the time of Henry VIII.[1] William Ward Duffield was born on 25 November 1820, one of nine children to James Duffield, a farmer.[1][2][note 1] William Duffield went on to become a successful solicitor, founding two firms: Duffield and Son, in Chelmsford, and Duffield, Bruty and Co., in London.[1][5] As of 2023, the latter survives as Duffield Harrison LLP;[6][7] the former, by then known as Duffield Stunt, merged into Backhouse Solicitors in 2015.[8][9][note 2] He also held many public roles, including clerk to the Chelmsford Board of Governors, clerk to the Justices at Chelmsford, registrar of the Chelmsford County Court and Bankruptcy Court, and governor (and later chairman) of the King Edward VI School.[1] His private positions included director and chairman of the Chelmsford and Braintree Gas Companies, the Chelmsford and Blackwater Navigation Company, and the Reliance Life Assurance Company, and chairman of the London Board of the Norwich Union after it acquired Reliance.[1][11]

William Duffield married Marianne Bartleet on 10 March 1860.[12] The couple had three surviving children: sons William Bartleet (1861–1918[13][14][15]) and Arthur Stewart (1867–1930[16][17]), and daughter Florence Marion.[18][note 3] Marianne Duffield died on 22 June 1910,[20] three months after the couple had celebrated their 50th anniversary.[21][22] She was buried in the churchyard of Church of St Mary in Great Baddow, following a family tradition of several generations.[23] Her husband died two years later, on 7 August 1912,[1] and was buried in the same grave.[24] William Bartleet Duffield died a bachelor six years later in Aix-les-Bains, France, where he had been wintering for his health.[13]

Herbert Maryon edit

See also: Works of Herbert Maryon

At the time of William Ward Duffield's death, Herbert Maryon was 38 years old and a teacher of sculpture at the University of Reading in Reading, Berkshire.[25] One of his colleagues was Walter Geoffrey Duffield, a professor of physics at Reading and the grandson of William Ward Duffield's brother Walter.[26][note 4] Maryon had studied at The Slade, Saint Martin's School of Art, and the Central School of Arts and Crafts,[28][25] where his teachers included Alexander Fisher and William Lethaby.[29][30] He subsequently led the Keswick School of Industrial Art from 1900 to 1904, where he designed numerous Arts and Crafts works, and taught metalwork at the Storey Institute.[28] Maryon taught at Reading from 1907 to 1927, then at Armstrong College until 1939.[31] He designed a number of other memorials while a teacher, including First World War monuments for East Knoyle,[32] Mortimer,[33] and the University of Reading.[34] After the Second World War, Maryon went on a second career as a conservator at the British Museum; his work on the Sutton Hoo ship-burial led to his appointment as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.[35]

Like the Duffields, the Maryons were native to the area; a family pedigree by Herbert Maryon's brother John Ernest started by declaring that "[t]he Maryon family has been located for centuries in the centre and west of co. Essex, the east of co. Hertford, and the south of co. Cambridge, so that a radius of 20 miles would include nearly every place in which they have held property or resided before the year 1800."[36] This included a branch of the family in Chelmsford.[37] Samuel William Maryon, whose grandfather was likely Herbert Maryon's great-great-grandfather (or the brother thereof),[37] served as the Inspector of Corn Returns for the Chelmsford Corn Exchange Company, of which William Ward Duffield was the Secretary.[38][39][40]

Description edit

 
Right-hand side of the Duffield Memorial

The memorial is located approximately 75 metres (250 ft) east of the Church of St Mary.[41] It is made of riveted sections of bronze sheet metal and designed in the Art Nouveau style.[42][43][41] It consists of edging that follows the rectangular perimeter of the grave, and a vertical cross.[42][43][41] Small pillars rise from each of the four corners.[42][43][41] The memorial is placed over the grave of the Duffields,[42][43][41] which is made of brick.[23]

The Celtic wheel cross sits within the grave plot and surrounding edging, and is connected by a shaft to a four-sided base.[41] The wheel is decorated in relief with leaflike motifs; a medallion, now removed, was once riveted to the centre.[41] The shaft is curved, and meets the curved and splayed edges of the foot.[41] This is mounted atop the base, which features similar lines.[41]

Two copper plaques are riveted to opposite sides of the base.[41] The west-facing one commemorates the elder Duffields, and reads:[41]

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

MARIANNE DUFFIELD
BORN MAY 7TH 1827 DIED JUNE 22ND 1910
WILLIAM WARD DUFFIELD
BORN NOVEMBER 25TH 1820 DIED AUGUST 17TH 1912
'LUX PERPETUA LUCEAT EIS'[note 5]

The east-facing plaque reads:[41]

ALSO IN LOVING MEMORY OF

WILLIAM BARTLEET DUFFIELD
BORN JANUARY 9TH 1861
DIED AT AIX LES BAINS FRANCE
JUNE 3RD 1918

History edit

 
Plaque added to commemorate William Bartleet Duffield

The memorial was erected around October 1912, within two months of William Duffield's death.[42][43] Newspapers reported on it on 25 and 26 October, praising it as "very fine" and "admirably executed", and noting that it was "quite unique, at any rate in this neighbourhood".[42][43] After William Bartleet Duffield died on 3 June 1918, the east-facing plaque was added to the memorial to commemorate him.[41][note 6]

On 25 July 2022, Historic England designated the memorial a Grade II listed building,[41] indicative of "special interest".[46] The organisation cited historic and architectural interest, and group value,[note 7] for listing the memorial.[41] As to historic interest, Historic England termed the work "an unusual example of churchyard memorial design that is also memorial to prominent local citizen William Ward Duffield and his son".[41] Architecturally, the organisation cited the "unusual example of Art Nouveau design in metal work, well detailed and combined with a conventional form of churchyard memorial, a Celtic wheeled cross".[41] For group value, Historic England considered the memorial in conjunction with the Church of St Mary, itself a Grade I listed building (indicative of "exceptional interest").[41][46]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Siblings of William Duffield included Walter Duffield, who moved to Australia and also went on to lead a prominent farming career,[1] James Duffield, who became a large-scale farmer in Great Baddow,[3] Sarah Duffield,[2] and David Duffield.[4]
  2. ^ The name Duffield Stunt continued in use as part of an affiliate business until 2017.[8][10]
  3. ^ Another son, Frederick Albert Duffield, died in 1862 at the age of three months.[19]
  4. ^ The Australian Academy of Science has a 1915 letter from Maryon to Walter Duffield.[27]
  5. ^ Latin for Let perpetual light shine upon them—a common component of Christian prayer for the dead.[44]
  6. ^ William Bartleet Duffield's will had left some of his estate to his niece Andrea Stillingfleet Duffield, along with £100 (equivalent to £5,183 in 2021) for "a memento".[45]
  7. ^ "[T]he contribution the building makes to the architectural or historic interest of any group of buildings of which it forms part".[47]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Chelmsford's G.O.M.: Mr. W. W. Duffield Passes Away at 92". The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 716. Chelmsford. 9 August 1912. p. 5. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.  
  2. ^ a b "Death of Miss Sarah Duffield, at Great Baddow". The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 362. Chelmsford. 17 November 1905. p. 4. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ "Death of Mr. James Duffield, of Great Barrow: A Sturdy Nonagenarian". The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 536. Chelmsford. 26 February 1909. p. 3. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.  
  4. ^ "Great Baddow". The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 991. Chelmsford. 7 May 1927. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ Seales 2007, pp. 168–169.
  6. ^ "Announcing the Merger of Duffield Bruty & Co with Harrisons". Cheshunt and Waltham Mercury. No. 134. 28 April 1989. p. 35. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ "Who We Are". Duffield Harrison LLP. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023.  
  8. ^ a b "Records Deposited by a Chelmsford Firm of Solicitors". Essex Record Office. Retrieved 17 October 2023.  
  9. ^ "About Backhouse". Backhouse Solicitors. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023.  
  10. ^ "Charles David Casson take over Duffield Stunt client book". Charles David Casson. 16 November 2017. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2023.  
  11. ^ "Obituary: Mr. W. W. Duffield". The Solicitors' Journal and Weekly Reporter. 56. London: 752. 17 August 1912. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.  
  12. ^ "Marriages". The Essex Standard. Vol. XXX, no. 1, 526. 16 March 1860. p. 3. Archived from the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.  
  13. ^ a b "Death of Mr. W. B. Duffield". Chelmsford. The Essex County Chronicle. No. 8, 021. Chelmsford. 7 June 1918. p. 4. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  14. ^ "Mr. W. B. Duffield". Obituary. The Times. No. 41, 814. London. 12 June 1918. p. 9. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  15. ^ Venn, John Archibald, ed. (1944). "Duffield, William Bartleet". Alumni Cantabrigienses, Part II. Vol. II. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge. p. 349.  
  16. ^ "The Late Mr. A. S. Duffield: Funeral at Chelmsford an Impressive Tribute". The Essex Chronicle. No. 8, 630. Chelmsford. 7 February 1930. p. 7. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  17. ^ Chancellor, Wykeham (7 February 1930). "Arthur Stewart Duffield". The Essex Chronicle. No. 8, 630. Chelmsford. p. 7. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  18. ^ "Wills and Bequests". Chelmsford. The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 231. Chelmsford. 12 October 1912. p. 2. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  19. ^ "Deaths". The Essex Standard. Vol. XXXII, no. 1, 629. 7 March 1862. p. 3. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  20. ^ "Death of Mrs. Duffield". The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 605. Chelmsford. 24 June 1910. p. 2. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  21. ^ "Golden Wedding of Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Duffield". The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 590. Chelmsford. 11 March 1910. p. 2. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  22. ^ "Golden Wedding of Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Duffield". The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 096. Chelmsford. 12 March 1910. p. 2. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  23. ^ a b "Funeral of Mrs. Duffield". The Essex County Chronicle. Vol. 147, no. 7, 606. Chelmsford. 1 July 1910. p. 2. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  24. ^ "Funeral of Mr. W. W. Duffield". The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 223. Chelmsford. 17 August 1912. p. 3. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  25. ^ a b "Herbert James Maryon". Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851–1951. University of Glasgow History of Art. 2011. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 13 September 2016.  
  26. ^ Allen, C. W. (1981). "Walter Geoffrey Duffield (1879–1929)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 8 (online ed.). National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  27. ^ McCarthy, Gavan; Sankey, Howard (2004). "Series 5 - University College Reading, University of Reading". Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre. Retrieved 17 October 2023.  
  28. ^ a b The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (1918). "Herbert James Maryon, in To be considered by the Applications Committee on Wednesday, 24th April, and by the Council on Friday, 3rd May 1918.". Proposals for Membership, Etc. London. pp. 337–339. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Ancestry.com.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  29. ^ Bruce 2001, p. 54.
  30. ^ "Art School Notes: Reading". The International Studio. XXXIV (136). New York: John Lane Co.: 342 June 1908. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.  
  31. ^ "Contributors to this Issue: Herbert Maryon". Studies in Conservation. 5 (1). The International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. February 1960. JSTOR 1505065.  
  32. ^ Historic England. "East Knoyle War Memorial (1438366)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 February 2023.  
  33. ^ "Mortimer War Memorial". War Memorials Register. Imperial War Museums. Archived from the original on 9 October 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2023.  
  34. ^ Historic England. "University of Reading War Memorial (1113620)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  35. ^ Bruce-Mitford, Rupert (23 July 1965). "Mr. Herbert Maryon". Obituary. The Times. No. 56381. London. p. 14. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2023.  
  36. ^ Maryon 1895, p. 1.
  37. ^ a b Maryon 1895, p. 7.
  38. ^ The Essex Almanac 1868, p. 73.
  39. ^ "Death of Mr. S. W. Maryon". The Chelmsford Chronicle. No. 5, 748. 12 February 1875. p. 5. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  40. ^ "Essex Quarter Session". Essex, Herts, & Kent Mercury. No. 910. 14 April 1840. p. 3. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  41. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Historic England. "Duffield Memorial (1481229)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 February 2023.  
  42. ^ a b c d e f "The Late Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Duffield". District News: Chelmsford. The Essex County Chronicle. No. 7, 727. Chelmsford. 25 October 1912. p. 8. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  43. ^ a b c d e f "The Late Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Duffield". Chelmsford. The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 233. Chelmsford. 26 October 1912. p. 4. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  44. ^ Gould 2016, pp. 43, 51–55.
  45. ^ "Mrs. W. B. Duffield's Bequests". Chelmsford. The Essex Newsman. No. 2, 538. Chelmsford. 31 August 1918. p. 4. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  46. ^ a b "Understanding the List Entry". Historic England. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.  
  47. ^ "Listed Buildings Identification and Extent". Historic England. Archived from the original on 27 August 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.  

Bibliography edit

External links edit

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