Wikipedia

Nelson's Column

This article is about the monument in London. For the BBC comedy, seeNelson's Column (TV series).For the Montreal monument, seeNelson's Column, Montreal.For the former monument in Dublin, seeNelson's Pillar.For other obelisks to Nelson, seeNelson Monument.

Nelson's Columnis amonumentinTrafalgar Squarein theCity of Westminster,Central London,built to commemorate Vice-AdmiralHoratio Nelson's decisive victory at theBattle of Trafalgarover the combined French and Spanish navies, during which he was killed by a French sniper. The monument was constructed between 1840 and 1843 to a design byWilliam Railtonat a cost of£47,000(equivalent to £5,828,216 in 2023). It is a column of theCorinthian order[1]built fromDartmoorgranite. The statue of Nelson was carved fromCraigleith sandstoneby sculptorEdward Hodges Baily.The four bronze lions around its base, designed by SirEdwin Landseer,were added in 1867.[2]

Nelson's Column
Nelson's Column,Trafalgar Square
Map
51°30′27.8″N0°07′40.7″W/ 51.507722°N 0.127972°W/51.507722; -0.127972
LocationLondon,WC2
United Kingdom
DesignerWilliam Railton,Edward Hodges Bailyand SirEdwin Landseer
Also:Musgrave Watson,William F. Woodington,John TernouthandJohn Edward Carew(sculptors),Grissell and Peto(contractors)
TypeVictory column
MaterialGraniteandbronze
Height169 feet 3 inches (51.59 m)
Beginning date1840
Completion date1843
Opening date1843
Dedicated toAdmiral Horatio Nelson

Thepedestalis decorated with fourbronzerelief panels, each 18 feet (5.5 m) square, cast from captured French guns. They depict theBattle of Cape St. Vincent,theBattle of the Nile,theBattle of Copenhagenand thedeath of Nelson at Trafalgar.The sculptors wereMusgrave Watson,William F. Woodington,John TernouthandJohn Edward Carew,respectively. The ornate capital upon which Nelson stands is byCharles Harriott Smith.[3]

It was refurbished in 2006 at a cost of£420,000(equivalent to £767,579 in 2023), at which time it was surveyed and found to be 14 feet 6 inches (4.42 m) shorter than previously supposed.[4][5]The whole monument is 169 feet 3 inches (51.59 m) tall from the bottom of the pedestal to the top of Nelson's hat.

Construction and history

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The column under construction, 1843.William Henry Fox Talbot
The column looking south towardsWhitehall,ThePalace of WestminsterandWestminster Abbey

In February 1838, a group of 121 peers,Members of Parliament(MPs) and other gentry formed a committee to raise a monument to Lord Nelson, funded by public subscription, and the government agreed to provide a site in Trafalgar Square, in front of the newly completedNational Gallery.A competition was held for designs with an estimated budget of between £20,000 and £30,000. The deadline for submissions was 31 January 1839.

The winning entry, chosen by the sub-committee headed by theDuke of Wellingtonwas a design byWilliam Railtonfor aCorinthian column,surmounted by a statue of Nelson, and flanked by four sculpted lions. Flights of steps would lead up between the lions to the pedestal of the column.[6]Several other entrants also submitted schemes for columns. The second prize was won byEdward Hodges Bailywho suggested an obelisk surrounded by sculptures.[7]

Criticism of the organisation of the competition caused it to be re-run. Railton submitted a slightly revised design, and was once again declared the winner, with the stipulation that the statue of Nelson should be made by Baily. The original plan was for a column 203 feet (62 m) high, including the base and statue, but this was reduced to 170 feet (52 m) with a shaft of 98 feet (30 m) due to concerns over stability.[8]The base was to have been of granite and the shaft of Craigleithsandstone,but before construction began it was decided that the shaft should also be of granite.[1]

Excavations for the brick foundations had begun by July 1840. On 30 September 1840, the first stone of the column was laid by Charles Davison Scott, honorary secretary of the committee (and son of Nelson's secretary, John Scott), at a ceremony conducted, according to theNautical Magazine,"in a private manner, owing to the noblemen and gentlemen comprising the committee being absent from town".[9]Construction of the monument, by the contractorsGrissell and Peto,progressed slowly, and the stonework, ready for the installation of the statue, was not completed until November 1843.

In 1844, the Nelson Memorial Committee ran out of money, having only raised£20,485 in public subscriptions,[10]and the government, in the form of theOffice of Woods and Foreststook over the project.[6]

Installation of the bronze reliefs on the pedestal did not begin until late 1849, when John Edward Carew's depiction of the death of Nelson was put in place on the side facing Whitehall. This was followed early the next year byWilliam F. Woodington's relief of the Battle of the Nile on the opposite side.[11][12]Carew's relief was cast by Adams, Christie and Co. of Rotherhithe.[11]The other three were cast by Moore, Fressange and Moore. The last to be made,The Battle of Cape St. Vincentbecame the subject of legal action, when it was discovered that the bronze had been adulterated with iron. The partners in the company were jailed for fraud and the relief was completed by Robinson and Cottam.[13]It was finally put in place in May 1854.[14]

Thesandstonestatue byEdward Hodges Baily

The 5.5-metre (18 ft 1 in) statue at the top was sculpted byEdward Hodges BailyR.A. from three pieces of Craigleith type sandstone donated byWalter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch,former chairman of the Nelson Memorial Committee, from his own quarry atGranton, Edinburgh.[15]

The statue stands on a fluted column built from solid blocks ofgranitefrom the Foggintor quarries onDartmoor.[16]The Corinthian capital is made of bronze elements, cast from cannon salvaged from the wreck ofHMSRoyal George[17]at the Woolwich Arsenal foundry. It is based on theTemple of Mars UltorinRome,and was modelled by C. H. Smith. The bronze pieces, some weighing as much as 900 pounds (410 kg) are fixed to the column by the means of three large belts of metal lying in grooves in the stone.[18]

The column also had a symbolic importance toAdolf Hitler.If Hitler's plan to invade Britain,Operation Sea Lion,had been successful, he planned to move it toBerlin.[19]

Lions

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The four identical bronzeBarbary lions[20]at the column's base were not added until 1867. At one stage they were intended to be of granite, and the sculptorJohn Graham Loughwas chosen to carve them. However, in 1846, after consultations with Railton, he turned down the commission, unwilling to work under the restrictions imposed by the architect.[21][22]

Milne's model for "War", in place atSaltaireVillage

Thomas Milnesreceived the commission in 1858, and produced four full-scale models in sandstone, each individualised to represent Peace, War, Vigilance and Determination. These were rejected, and the commission was transferred, again, to SirEdwin Landseer.Subsequently mill owner SirTitus Saltbought the statues instead for a civic building at the centre of his workers village, installed on pedestals in 1869.[23]The four sandstone Lions now have Grade II* listed building status.[24][25]

One of the four lions designed byEdwin Landseerat the base

The sculptures eventually installed were designed by Sir Edwin Landseer in collaboration withCarlo Marochetti.Landseer was a hugely popular painter and the favourite of Queen Victoria.[26]Their design may have been influenced by Marschalko János's lions at each abutment to theSzéchenyi Chain Bridgein Budapest, installed six years before the Trafalgar Square lions were commissioned.

Landseer requested casts of a real lion from Turin which did not arrive until 1860. In the meantime, he made sketches of lions atLondon Zooand eventually received the corpse of one to work with. Delays in completing the work meant that the corpse started to decompose, leading to some discrepancies in form. The paws, for example, were based on those of a cat, and the sculpted lion's backs are concave rather than convex.[27]

The sculptures were eventually installed in 1867. Landseer was paid £6,000 for his services, and Marochetti £11,000.[22]

In 2011, consultants for theGreater London Authorityreported that tourists climbing onto the backs of the lions have caused considerable damage and recommended banning tourists from climbing them.[28]

Refurbishment

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The column was renovated and cleaned by sandblasting in 1968.[29]

The column was refurbished in 2006, during which time it was scaffolded from top to bottom for access. Steam cleaning was used, together with gentle abrasives, in order to minimise any harmful impact on the bronze and stonework.[30]The £420,000 cost was covered byZurich Financial Services,which advertised on the scaffolding for the duration of the work. Before restoration began, laser surveys were taken during which it was found that the column was significantly shorter than the usually quoted 185 ft (56.4 m). In fact, it measures 169 ft (51.5 m) from the bottom of the first step to the tip of the admiral's hat.[4][5]

Publicity stunts and protests

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John Noakesof the BBC TV children's programmeBlue Peterclimbed the column in 1977. Television presenter and entertainerGary Wilmotclimbed the column in 1989 forLWT'sSix O' Clock Showto recreate the 'topping out' ceremony of 1843. Dressed in Victorian attire and sporting a boater hat, Wilmot enjoyed tea and sandwiches at the top of the column before climbing down.

The column has also been climbed on several occasions as apublicity stuntto draw attention to social or political causes. Ed Drummond made the first such climb in 1978 for theAnti-Apartheid Movement,making use of the lightning conductoren route.[31]On 30 March 1988, Joe Simpson and John Stevenson climbed the column as part of aGreenpeaceCampaign againstAcid rain.On 14 June 1992, it was climbed by Martin Cotterrel, Joe Simpson and John Stevenson on behalf of Greenpeace to protest against the firstEarth Summitmeeting in Brazil. On 13 April 1995, Simon Nadin free-climbed Nelson's Column with Noel Craine,Jerry MoffattandJohnny Dawesfollowing on top rope, andgradedthe climb as "E6 6b/5a". This protest time was on behalf ofSurvival Internationalto publicize the plight of CanadianInuit.On 13 May 1998, the Column was climbed by Al Baker, Peter Morris and John Cunningham on behalf of Greenpeace to protest against Old growth logging activity inBritish Columbia.In May 2003,BASE jumperandstuntmanGary Conneryparachuted from the top of the column, in a stunt designed to draw attention to the Chinese policies inTibet.

In December 2015,Disneypaid £24,000 to cover it in lights to make it resemble a giant lightsaber, to promoteStar Wars: The Force Awakens.[32]

On 18 April 2016, in the early hours of the morning, Greenpeace activists climbed up the column and placed a breathing mask on Admiral Lord Nelson in protest of air pollution levels.[33]

Other monuments to Nelson

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Main article:Monuments and memorials to Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson

The first civic monument to be erected in Nelson's honour was theNelson Monument,a 44-metre high obelisk onGlasgow GreeninGlasgow,Scotland, in 1806. Also in Scotland, the foundation stone forNelson's ToweratForresinMoraywas laid in 1806 and it was completed in 1812;[34]while theNelson Monumentstands on top ofCalton Hill, Edinburgh.InDublin,Ireland,Nelson's Pillarwas erected in 1808 but was destroyed byrepublicansin 1966, and in theBull Ring, Birmingham,England, there is aGrade II* listedbronzestatue of NelsonbyRichard Westmacott,dating from 1809. Westmacott also designed the elaborate monument to Nelson inLiverpool.InPortsmouth,Nelson's Needle,on top ofPortsdown Hill,was paid for by the company ofHMSVictoryafter arriving back in Portsmouth. There is a column topped with a decorative urn in the Castle Green,Hereford– a statue was planned in place of the urn, but insufficient money was raised.[35]TheBritannia MonumentinGreat Yarmouth,England (1819), is a 144-foot-highdoriccolumn design.

Elsewhere in the world,Nelson's Column in Montrealwas erected by bothBritonsandCanadiansin 1809, and there is also a Mount Nelson, nearInvermere, British Columbia.As at London, the column inMontrealhas the admiral standing with his back to the waves. A much shorter statue of Lord Nelson inTrafalgar Square,Bridgetown,Barbados,is older than its counterpart in London.[36][37][38]

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ab"The Selected Design for the Nelson Testimonial".The Art Union.1:100. 1839.Retrieved30 May2011.,p.100
  2. ^White, Colin (2002),The Nelson Encyclopaedia,London: Chatham Publishing / Lionel Leventhal Limited, p. 178,ISBN1-86176-253-4
  3. ^Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851 by Rupert Gunnis
  4. ^abRestored naval hero is revealed,BBC News,11 July 2006
  5. ^abDawar, Anil (13 July 2006),"Nelson's Column is 16ft shorter than everybody thought",The Telegraph,London,archivedfrom the original on 12 January 2022,retrieved20 May2010
  6. ^ab"Lot No: 35 An important mid 19th century carved bathstone architect's 1:40 scale model of Nelson's column".Retrieved30 May2011.
  7. ^The Civil Engineer and Architect's Journal,Volume 2, 1839
  8. ^Report from the Select Committee on Trafalgar Square.London. 1840.
  9. ^"The Nelson Memorial".The Nautical Magazine.9:887–8. 1840.Retrieved14 July2011.
  10. ^Hansards Parliamentary Debates, Vol. CXLIV, p.1220
  11. ^ab"The Nelson Column, Trafalgar Square".The Times.6 December 1849. p. 3.
  12. ^"The Nelson Column".The Times.5 April 1850. p. 5.
  13. ^"Bronze sculpture founders: a short history".National Portrait Gallery.Retrieved12 September2011.
  14. ^Mace, Rodney (1976).Trafalgar Square: Emblem of Empire.London: Lawrence and Wishart. p. 107.
  15. ^"Granton Quarry".Archived fromthe originalon 6 February 2011.Retrieved30 May2011.
  16. ^"Holiday Geology Guides – Trafalgar Square".British Geological Survey.Retrieved24 May2009.
  17. ^"The wreck that revealed the Mary Rose".BBC News. 4 September 2011.Retrieved5 September2011.
  18. ^Timbs, John (1858).Curiosities of London.London. p. 284.Retrieved27 October2011.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  19. ^MacLean, Rory (1 October 2007)."London illuminated".The Guardian.London.Retrieved20 May2010.
  20. ^"The lion: A victim of its own power?".BBC News. 30 June 2015.Retrieved1 July2015.
  21. ^"Landseers Lions in Trafalgar Square".Retrieved30 May2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  22. ^ab"Origins of Nelson Column".The Times.22 November 1943. p. 6.
  23. ^Banerjee, Jacqueline."Comparison of Sir Edwin Landseer's and Thomas Milnes's Lions for the Base of Nelson's Column".victorianweb.org.Retrieved30 March2024.
  24. ^"Victoria Hall including wall, gate-piers and sculpted lions to front area, and railings to rear, Shipley - 1314205 | Historic England".historicengland.org.uk.Retrieved9 April2024.
  25. ^"SALTAIRE SCHOOL INCLUDING WALL, GATE PIERS AND SCULPTED LIONS TO FRONT AREA, AND GATE TO SOUTH SIDE, Shipley - 1300666 | Historic England".historicengland.org.uk.Retrieved9 April2024.
  26. ^"The Desert by Sir Edwin Landseer".revealinghistories.org.uk.Manchester City Galleries.
  27. ^Gulliver, Beth (12 October 2021)."The gruesome story behind the Trafalgar Square lions you probably don't know".My London.Retrieved9 April2024.
  28. ^"Ban tourists from Trafalgar Square lions before they destroy them, report says".Telegraph.co.uk.19 June 2011.Archivedfrom the original on 12 January 2022.
  29. ^Nelson's Column(Newsreel). British Pathé. 14 April 1968.Retrieved7 May2023.
  30. ^Project of Nelson's Column Restoration,David Ball Restoration, archived fromthe originalon 15 June 2008,retrieved30 September2008
  31. ^Beresford, David (21 October 2016)."Anti-apartheid protestors make first ascent of Nelson's Column".The Guardian.Retrieved31 May2019.
  32. ^"Video: 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens': Disney pay £24,000 to turn Nelson's Column into a lightsaber".Telegraph.co.uk.17 December 2015. Archived fromthe originalon 17 December 2015.
  33. ^"Eight arrests after Greenpeace protesters scale London monuments".BBC News. 18 April 2016.
  34. ^"Forres, Cluny Hills, Nelson's Monument".Canmore.Historic Environment Scotland.Retrieved2 April2022.
  35. ^Burns, Patrick (30 August 2011)."BBC site with photograph".BBC.Retrieved5 September2011.
  36. ^Lord Nelson StatueArchived8 July 2008 at theWayback Machine.FunBarbados.com
  37. ^Barbados Tourism Encyclopaedia– Lord Nelson's Bronze Statue
  38. ^The Government of BarbadosArchived13 November 2009 at theWayback Machine– Lord Nelson's Bronze Statue
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