Devon County War Memorial

The Devon County War Memorial stands on Cathedral Green in Exeter, a simple granite cross set just west of the cathedral in line with the altar. Made from a single block quarried at Haytor on Dartmoor, it rises about nine metres above a three-tiered base and three stone steps. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, one of Britain’s leading architects of the early 20th century, who later created the Cenotaph in London. It was unveiled in 1921 by the Prince of Wales in a ceremony attended by Lutyens himself. The cross is one of fifteen similar War Crosses he designed across the country after the First World War. The memorial honours the 11,600 men and women from Devon who died in the First World War and those lost in the Second. It was commissioned by the Devon County War Memorial Committee, led by Hugh Fortescue, the 4th Earl Fortescue, after earlier plans for a cathedral cloister were abandoned. The committee chose a site visible from the High Street and Broadgate so the monument would be seen by all. In 1970s excavations nearby led to a processional way being laid between the memorial and the cathedral. The cross is now a Grade II* listed building and part of a national collection of Lutyens’ war memorials. Visitors find a quiet space on Cathedral Green, where the cross stands close to the cathedral’s west front. The inscription on the base reads “The County of Devon to her Glorious Dead 1914–1919 / 1939–1945” followed by the words “Te Deum Laudamus.” A metal cross nearby marks the former position of St Mary Major church, demolished in 1971. The memorial’s simplicity and alignment with the cathedral’s altar create a dignified focus for remembrance. The surrounding green offers a place to pause and reflect amid the city’s daily life.