Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and unveiled in 1924, the memorial commemorates the 1,240 members of the Prince of Wales' Own Civil Service Rifles regiment who were killed in the First World War.

They were Territorial Force reservists, drawn largely from the British Civil Service, which at that time had many staff based at Somerset House.

Amongst the most prominent designers of memorials was Sir Edwin Lutyens, described by Historic England as "the leading English architect of his generation".

[1] Lutyens established his reputation designing country houses for wealthy clients, but the war had a profound effect on him, and following it he devoted much of his time to memorialising its casualties.

Many civil servants were based at Somerset House, an important government office building, and the regiment used its quadrangle as a parade ground.

Baker proposed to site the memorial in the north end of the quadrangle at Somerset House, behind the statue of King George III.

Some time after the approval, the committee replaced Baker with Sir Edwin Lutyens, who was adamant that the memorial should stand in the centre of the quadrangle.

[7] The memorial is in the form of a single rectangular column of Portland stone, which is decorated with classical mouldings and stands approximately 4.9 metres (16 feet) tall.

[7] On the front (north) face is inscribed the dedication THIS COLUMN WAS ERECTED BY THE 15TH COUNTY OF LONDON BATTALION THE LONDON REGIMENT PRINCE OF WALES OWN CIVIL SERVICE RIFLES, while the south face reads: IN MEMORY OF THE 1240 MEMBERS WHO FELL WHILE SERVING WITH THE REGIMENT IN THE GREAT WAR THEIR NAMES ARE RECORDED ON A SCROLL PLACED WITHIN THIS COLUMN / ALSO IN MEMORY OF MEMBERS OF THE CIVIL SERVICE CADET BATTALION.

The regiment's battle honours are inscribed around the base: Festubert, Loos, Somme, and Flers–Courcelette on the south side; Doiran, Lys/Kemmel, Gaza, Nebi Samwil, and Jerusalem on the west; St Quentin, Albert, Ancre, Bapaume, and Selle on the north; and Transloy, Messines, Ypres, and Cambrai on the east face.

[12] The lines in the inscription relating to the cadet battalion were added in 1926 after Major Kirby wrote to the Office of Works seeking permission.

It underwent restoration work, including repainting of the flags, before being reinstalled in front of the Navy Treasurer's door on the Embankment side of Somerset House, on a terrace beside the River Thames.

The Royal Green Jackets (the successor regiment resulting from further amalgamations following the Second World War and subsequent restructuring of the army) organised a rededication ceremony, which was held on 25 July 2002 and was overseen by Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London.

The chairman of the board of the Inland Revenue, which was based at Somerset House and whose officials were among the founding members of the Civil Service Rifles, laid a wreath.