A LEADING campaigner for the re-siting of the Tavistock war memorial in the town's churchyard has been surprised by the views of some of those opposed to the move.
John Philpott, president of the Royal Marines Association, is one of the people behind a scheme to move the memorial to the town's war dead out of the Guildhall car park and into St Eustachius' churchyard.
The plan has met considerable opposition from the Royal British Legion in the main because they say the cenotaph should be ecumenical and not sited on Church of England land.
Others, too, are opposed. In a letter to the Times last week, auctioneer Robin Fenner said, although he disliked the idea of a memorial surrounded by cars, he felt the churchyard was unsuitable because it would not be possible to parade on the grass in large numbers on a wet November morning and he was against the laying of concrete or a footpath. He favoured a re-siting on Bedford Square.
Mr Philpott said: 'I was surprised Mr Fenner assumed any remembrance parade would take place on the lawns surrounding the re-located Tavistock war memorial and it occurred to me others might have the same thoughts.'
He explained that Remembrance Day parades would take place in the town square, with wreath layers processing to the memorial in an orderly manner.
Mr Philpott said the original plan had been to set out the lawns surrounding the monument as a garden of remembrance with seats for those wishing to sit and reflect.
He is hoping local organisations will help set out the floral gardens to make the whole area the wholly suitable memorial first imagined more than 80 years ago.
He added that when the churchyard was a burial ground, people other than Church of England worshippers were laid to rest in the area and beyond in what is now Bedford Square.
Mr Philpott said a public subscription to raise £600 for the memorial was begun in 1919, several years before the formation of the Royal British Legion.
It only raised £436 and there was little alternative than to put it on local council land in Guildhall Square.
Gradually that became a car park and the memorial disappeared from view among the vehicles parked in front of the court house.
'I feel very sad about that,' said Mr Philpott. 'For my part, I am ashamed of the fact that I formed part of the generation that allowed the memorial to our war dead to become desecrated by the motor car and funfair shows.'
The matter is due to be discussed at the Tavistock Royal British Legion's annual meeting tonight (Thursday‚ November 23, at 8pm). It was postponed from last Friday due to illness.