Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church

Maroondah Highway and Edward Street, Mitcham, WHITEHORSE CITY

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Vic. War Heritage Inventory

Mitcham Christ Church Anglican WWII Memorial M&G 1950

Statement of Significance

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  • Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Vic. War Heritage Inventory
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  • Memorial Window References & Acknowledgements

    Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Memorial Window References & Acknowledgements

    AWM Roll of Honour; NAA: B8333, VX50048; NAA: A705/63/111/46; NAA: B883, VX57853; NAA: A9301, 408871; NAA: A9301, 410756; historical notes prepared by Ted Arrowsmith for Christ Church, Mitcham; Order of Service for Unveiling and Dedication of War Memorial Windows, 19 November 1950; copy of letter to Mrs. EV Till from Baron J. van der Straten Waillet, 1 Place Stephanie Belgium, 7 November 1946.

    With thanks to Ted Arrowsmith for his extensive research into the windows at Christchurch.

    Memorial Window Subject

    Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Memorial Window Subject

    Symbols of God, King and Country

    Memorial Window Text

    Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Memorial Window Text

    The Utmost for the Highest

    Memorial Window Inscription

    Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Memorial Window Inscription

    n/a

    Memorial Window Description & History

    Stained Glass Window at Mitcham Christ Church Anglican Church - Memorial Window Description & History

    The design for this memorial was based solely on symbols of God, King and Country, with the dove of the Holy Spirit and Crown of Victory at the head of the arch. At the base, above the inscription were placed the badges of the three services - the Royal Australian Navy, the 'rising sun' of the Australian Commonwealth Military Forces and the Royal Australian Air Force and centrally placed was a laurel wreath surrounding the Royal Coat of Arms. Behind this were placed the ensigns of the services with the Australian flag and an image of a Cenotaph lit by rays from below.

    A memorial to the young men from the church who served and died in the Second World War was first suggested at a Vestry meeting on 3 March 1947 and a design, by the Melbourne firm Mathieson & Gibson, accepted at another meeting on 28 June 1948. It was hoped that the memorial would be ready for installation by Easter 1950 but it was not completed until 19 November when the Dean of Melbourne, the Very Reverend Roscoe Wilson, performed the ceremony of unveiling and dedication. Originally, it was located in the north wall of the old church and in 1958 was re-installed in the Memorial Chapel of the new building.

    Gordon Douglas Brown was born on 30 October 1919 in Swindon, England. He enlisted in the Militia on 1 July 1940 and was transferred to the AIF on 28 February 1941, joining 2/22 Battalion in New Guinea. He was presumed killed on 23 January 1942 at Rabaul, and is remembered on the Rabaul Memorial, Papua New Guinea.

    William Ross Bremner Fenton, born 30 July 1922, enlisted in the RAAF on 30 January 1942 and was at 2 Air Observers School at Mt. Gambier when his Anson aircraft (AW678,) with a crew of five, came down at Reedy Creek, near Kingston SA. His grave is at Springvale War Cemetery, Melbourne.

    Owen Spencer Loftus was born on 16 December 1908. He enlisted on 20 June 1941 and joined the 2/1 Heavy Battery RAA (Coastal Battery), serving in Darwin and Timor until he was declared missing in February 1942. He was a POW when he died of wounds on 17 April 1942; he is commemorated at Ambon War Cemetery, Indonesia.

    Ronald Moseley Peake was born on17 August 1921. He enlisted in the RAAF on 20 June 1940 while a clerk and part-time commerce student at Melbourne University. After initial training he went to Canada for further instruction as a pilot under the Empire Air Training Scheme. By February 1943 he was flying with RAF 100 Lancaster Squadron and, after a number of sorties into Germany was lost and presumed dead after air operations over Stuttgart. He is remembered at the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany.

    Alwyn Terence Hill was born on 9 May 1921. He enlisted on 3 January 1942 and was attached to the RAF from 15 January 1943. He received the usual initial and advanced training before Air Navigation School at Nhill. After further training in England he joined 76 Squadron and 635 Squadron flying Lancasters on raids into Germany. His Bomber 694 was lost in an attack on the night of the 12/13 August 1944 in an air operation targetting Russelsheim, near Frankfurt. A letter received by his mother after the war told of his lone survival from the crash and his subsequent activities as part of a resistance group in Belgium. He was believed killed at Payennel on about 20 August, however the official record states that he was buried with the rest of his crew at Werbomonton, near Liege in Belgium.

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Vic War Heritage Inventory - Stained Glass Memorial Windows Study

    Author: Bronwyn Hughes
    Year: 2013
    Grading: Local

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