HUNDREDS turned out at Prescot war memorial to commemorate its centenary anniversary.

The Earl of Derby was among the readers at the service with mayor of Knowsley Cllr Frank Walsh also in attendance at the ceremony.

The 30 Prescot men who lost their lives at the Battle of the Somme were also commemorated on the day.

The memorial was commissioned by Cllr William John Lucas JP in 1915 during the First World War and was sculpted by Samuel Welsby, of Widnes.

Its official unveiling took place in September 1916 by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Henry Webb MP, Commander of the Prescot Barracks, for the Earl of Derby in front of a crowd of approximately 4,000 people.

The memorial now stands behind the parish church, where it was moved to as part of redevelopment after it had originally stood in Church Street, where it was unveiled in 1916.

Of the four commemorative panels, only the dedication panel was engraved in 1916 with the remaining three left blank to be engraved at the end of the Great War with the names of the fallen.

It was then rededicated on November 10, 1946 to commemorate those lost during the Second World War.

The memorial was given Grade II listed status having been included on the National Heritage List for England in May 2015.

The Imperial War Museum has also confirmed that the memorial in Prescot is the first recorded World War One memorial in the UK.

"It went down really well, we were so pleased about it," said Jennifer Chadwick, secretary of the Friends of Prescot Cemetery and Churchyard.

"It was a fitting occasion and it was lovely having the Earl of Derby there.

"It was the old Lord Derby 100 years ago who was supposed to be unveiling the memorial but he couldn't make it. It was lovely to have the Earl of Derby there."