Manx Quarterly Issue 28, 1922-
DOUGLAS HEAD WAR MEMORIAL.
indicated in our last issue, a war memorial, the gift of Mr J. L. Goldie-Taubman, M.L.C., which has been erected on Douglas Head, was unveiled and dedicated on Armistice Day, 11th Nov. The site is just below the Douglas Head . on a grassy space above the steep cutting at which the electric tram commences its journey along the Marine Drive. The memorial is constructed of red sandstone, and stands 28½ feet high. The shaft and runic cross weigh nine tons, while the base, which is made of rustic limestone from Castletown, weighs no less than forty tons. The arms of the cross measure, end to end, 6 feet 3 inches. In the centre of the shaft, the words, " The Great War, 1914," are inscribed. On each, side near the base, a slate tablet is let into panels. The inscription on one tablet reads: " This monument is erected by John Leigh Goldie-Taubman, of the Nunnery."
The inscription on the other tablet reads: " To the chivalry of the men of this Island and all who died for us. A token of profound admiration and deep gratitude."
" These leave a notable example to such as be young, to die willingly and courageously."-(II Macc. iv. 28.)
The unveiling ceremony was performed by the Lieut.-Governor, and the dedication by the Rev. H. S. Taggart, M.A., Vicar of St. Matthew's, Douglas, who was assisted in the conduct of the service by the Rev. T. A. Kynaston, of the Nunnery Private Chapel, and the Rev. Walter J. Karran.
Mr Goldie-Taubman, before requesting the Governor to perform the unveiling ceremony, expressed his opinion that Douglas Head was a very appropriate location for the memorial, because Douglas Head was the last point of their native land seen by Manxmen departing for the war.
The Governor paid an eloquent tribute to the memory of the fallen men, and also remarked that there were those who considered that a memorial in that pleasure ground was out of place; but he disagreed with that. Those who came to sit round would gaze upon the memorial, and regard it as an emblem of victory and sacrifice, and their minds would be elevated. He hoped that the time was not far distant when that beautiful headland would be restored to its natural beauty, when all that was vulgar and unsightly would be cleared away, and that it might become a real pleasure ground, where visitors and residents might seek pleasure and refreshment.
The special form of service was reverently followed by those present, and the ceremony was brought to an end by the sounding of the " Last Past."