Statue of Nelson Mandela, Parliament Square

Last updated

Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela statue Parliament Square.jpg
Artist Ian Walters
Year2007
Type Bronze
Location London, SW1
United Kingdom

Nelson Mandela is a bronze sculpture in Parliament Square, London, of former President of South Africa and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela. Originally proposed to Mandela by Donald Woods in 2001, a fund was set up and led by Woods's wife and Richard Attenborough after the death of Woods. The then Mayor of London Ken Livingstone obtained permission from Westminster City Council to locate the statue on the north terrace of Trafalgar Square, but after an appeal it was located in Parliament Square instead where it was unveiled on 29 August 2007.

Contents

Description

The statue is 9 feet (2.7 m) high, [1] and made in bronze. [2] The plinth the statue stands on is shorter than the other statues located in Parliament Square. [3] It was created by English sculptor Ian Walters, at a cost of £400,000. [4] [5] Walters had previously created the bust of Mandela located on the South Bank in London. [6] Fellow sculptor Glyn Williams criticised the statue at a public inquiry during the planning process, saying that it is "an adequate portrait but nothing more". [7]

History

Donald Woods originally proposed the idea of a statue of Nelson Mandela for London; [2] the fundraising to create the statue was led by his wife and Lord Richard Attenborough after his death. [6] Woods gained approval from Mandela in 2001, with the original idea to site the statue on a fifth plinth to be located outside the High Commission of South Africa in Trafalgar Square. [8] The fund was officially launched at London's City Hall on 24 March 2003. [6]

Detail of the statue Nelson Mandela statue, Westminster.JPG
Detail of the statue

In 2004, Mayor of London Ken Livingstone publicly pledged his support for a statue of Nelson Mandela for Trafalgar Square at a celebration in the square of the 10th anniversary of democracy in South Africa. "It will be a square of two Nelsons. The man up there, his battle of Trafalgar was the defining battle that paved the way for 100 years of British empire, and Nelson Mandela looking down on this square will symbolise the peaceful transition to a world without empires." [9] Westminster City Council turned down the planning application to position the statue in the square's north terrace near the National Gallery on the grounds that it would impede events in the area and would end the symmetrical layout of that part of the square. The Mayor appealed to the office of the Deputy Prime Minister, which agreed with the council's decision. [1] However the Deputy Prime Minister stated that he supported the location of the statue on an alternative site, while the council suggested placing the statue outside the High Commission of South Africa along the side of the square. [1] The Liberal Democrats of the London Assembly later criticised the use of £100,000 by the London Mayor to appeal Westminster Council's decision, saying that "Thousands of pounds of taxpayers money is set to be wasted in these costly arguments." [10]

In April 2007, Westminster City Council completed a further review of possible locations for the statue. It was decided to locate the statue in Parliament Square alongside the statues of other important figures including Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Disraeli, Jan Smuts, and Churchill. [11] The statue was unveiled by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on 29 August 2007, in a ceremony held in Parliament Square. [12] Among the attendees were Mandela, his wife Graça Machel, and Livingstone. [2] In a speech, Mandela said that it fulfilled a dream for there to be a statue of a black man in Parliament Square. [12]

The statue was temporarily covered up in June 2020 after protesters defaced a statue of Winston Churchill, attempted to vandalise The Cenotaph in London, and pulled down a statue of Edward Colston was in Bristol during the Black Lives Matter protests. Far-right group Britain First called for the statue of Mandela to be "torn down". [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trafalgar Square</span> Public square in London, England

Trafalgar Square is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, established in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. The square's name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the British naval victory in the Napoleonic Wars over France and Spain that took place on 21st October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Quinn</span> British painter and sculptor

Marc Quinn is a British contemporary visual artist whose work includes sculpture, installation, and painting. Quinn explores "what it is to be human in the world today" through subjects including the body, genetics, identity, environment, and the media. His work has used materials that vary widely, from blood, bread and flowers, to marble and stainless steel. Quinn has been the subject of solo exhibitions at Sir John Soane's Museum, the Tate Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Fondation Beyeler, Fondazione Prada, and South London Gallery. The artist was a notable member of the Young British Artists movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nelson's Column</span> Monument in Trafalgar Square, London

Nelson's Column is a monument in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, Central London, built to commemorate Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson's decisive victory at the Battle of Trafalgar over the combined French and Spanish navies, during which he lost his life, killed by a French sniper. The monument was constructed between 1840 and 1843 to a design by William Railton at a cost of £47,000. It is a column of the Corinthian order built from Dartmoor granite. The statue of Nelson was carved from Craigleith sandstone by sculptor Edward Hodges Baily. The four bronze lions around its base, designed by Sir Edwin Landseer, were added in 1867.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Woods</span> South African journalist and anti-apartheid activist

Donald James Woods was a South African journalist and anti-apartheid activist. As editor of the Daily Dispatch, he was known for befriending fellow activist Steve Biko, who was killed by police after being detained by the South African government. Woods continued his campaign against apartheid in London, and in 1978 became the first private citizen to address the United Nations Security Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament Square</span> Square in London, England

Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London, England. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and it contains twelve statues of statesmen and other notable individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Town City Hall</span> Multi-use hall in Cape Town, South Africa

Cape Town City Hall is a large Edwardian building in Cape Town city centre which was built in 1905. It is located on the Grand Parade to the west of the Castle and is built from honey-coloured oolitic limestone imported from Bath in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fourth plinth</span> Empty plinth on Trafalgar Square, with a programme of temporary artworks

The fourth plinth is the northwest plinth in Trafalgar Square in central London. It was originally intended to hold an equestrian statue of William IV, but remained bare due to insufficient funds. For over 150 years the fate of the plinth was debated; in 1998, the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) commissioned three contemporary sculptures to be displayed temporarily on the plinth. Shortly afterwards, Chris Smith, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, commissioned Sir John Mortimer to seek opinions from public art commissioners, critics and members of the public as to the future of the plinth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Winston Churchill, Parliament Square</span> Sculpture by Ivor Roberts-Jones in London

The statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square, London, is a bronze sculpture of the former British prime minister Winston Churchill, created by Ivor Roberts-Jones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Margaret Thatcher (Palace of Westminster)</span> 2007 bronze sculpture

A statue of Margaret Thatcher, the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom, stands in the Members' Lobby of the Houses of Parliament in London. It is a bronze sculpture of Margaret Thatcher, the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. It was commissioned in 2003 following a change in rules to allow the depiction of living prime ministers in Parliament under certain conditions. The bronze statue, sculpted by Antony Dufort, was unveiled on 21 February 2007 by Michael Martin, Speaker of the House of Commons, with Thatcher in attendance.

<i>Hahn/Cock</i> Sculpture by Katharina Fritsch

Hahn/Cock is a sculpture of a giant blue cockerel by the German artist Katharina Fritsch. It was unveiled in London's Trafalgar Square on 25 July 2013 and was displayed on the vacant fourth plinth. The fibreglass work stood 4.72 metres (15.5 ft) high and was the sixth work to be displayed on the plinth, on which it stayed until 17 February 2015. It was subsequently acquired by Glenstone, a private museum, and exhibited at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, following its 2016 reopening. In March 2021, Glenstone permanently donated the piece to the National Gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Henry Havelock, Trafalgar Square</span> Statue in London by William Behnes

A bronze statue of Henry Havelock by the sculptor William Behnes, stands in Trafalgar Square in London, United Kingdom. It occupies one of the four plinths in Trafalgar Square, the one to the southeast of Nelson's Column.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Mahatma Gandhi, Parliament Square</span> Sculpture by Philip Jackson in Westminster, London

The statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square, Westminster, London, is a work by the sculptor Philip Jackson.

Robert Jonathan Davis is a British lawyer and Conservative Party politician. He was deputy leader of the Westminster City Council, and chairman of its planning committee for 17 years. He served as Lord Mayor of Westminster 1996-1997 and also chaired the London Mayors' Association between 1998 and 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Millicent Fawcett</span> Sculpture by Gillian Wearing in London

The statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square, London, honours the British suffragist leader and social campaigner Dame Millicent Fawcett. It was made in 2018 by Gillian Wearing. Following a campaign and petition by the activist Caroline Criado Perez, the statue's creation was endorsed by both the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. The statue, Parliament Square's first monument to a woman and also its first sculpture by a woman, was funded through the government's Centenary Fund, which marks 100 years since some women won the right to vote. The memorial was unveiled on 24 April 2018.

A Statue of Nelson Mandela was unveiled on 24 July 2018. It was placed on the balcony of Cape Town City Hall overlooking the Grand Parade, Cape Town, South Africa. Nelson Mandela was the first post-apartheid president of South Africa and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of General Gordon</span> Statue by Hamo Thornycroft in London

A bronze statue of General Charles George Gordon by Hamo Thornycroft stands on a stone plinth in the Victoria Embankment Gardens in London. It has been Grade II listed since 1970. A similar statue stands at Gordon Reserve, near Parliament House in Melbourne, Australia, on its original tall plinth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Margaret Thatcher (Grantham)</span> 2022 sculpture of Margaret Thatcher

A statue of Margaret Thatcher stands in her birthplace, the town of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England. The statue is 10 feet 6 inches (3.2 m) high, cast in bronze, and depicts the late British prime minister Baroness Thatcher, dressed in the full ceremonial robes of the House of Lords. It stands on a 10-foot-6-inch (3.2 m) plinth. Created by sculptor Douglas Jennings, and costing £300,000, it was erected on 15 May 2022, on St Peter's Hill Green, close to the Grantham Museum. Eggs were thrown at the statue within two hours of its installation, and a week later red paint was thrown at it. It was formally unveiled on 31 May.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Mayor fails in Mandela statue bid". BBC News. 21 December 2005. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Nelson Mandela statue is unveiled". BBC News. 29 August 2007. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  3. ↑ Shukor, Steven (29 August 2007). "Mandela statue is 'beacon of hope'". BBC News. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  4. ↑ "Parliament Square may get Mandela". BBC News. 6 April 2006. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  5. ↑ "Plans for Mandela statue rejected". BBC News. 2 July 2004. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 "Mandela Statue Fund launched". BBC News. 24 March 2003. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  7. ↑ Arendt, Paul (4 October 2005). "New fallout over Mandela statue". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  8. ↑ "Mandela statue planned for Trafalgar". BBC News. 15 March 2001. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  9. ↑ "Mayor's pledge for Mandela statue". BBC News. 27 April 2004. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  10. ↑ "'Appeal fund' for Mandela statue". BBC News. 5 November 2004. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  11. ↑ "Mandela statue for Parliament Sq". BBC News. 20 April 2007. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  12. 1 2 Alleyne, Richard (30 August 2007). "Nelson Mandela stands tall in London". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  13. ↑ Dearden, Lizzie (12 June 2020). "Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela statues covered up ahead of Black Lives Matter counter-protests" . The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022.

51°30′01″N0°07′38″W / 51.50041°N 0.12734°W / 51.50041; -0.12734

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.