| Robert Peel | |
|---|---|
 The statue in 2015 | |
 | |
| Artist | Matthew Noble |
| Year | 1876 |
| Type | Statue |
| Medium | Bronze |
| Subject | Robert Peel |
| Location | London, SW1 United Kingdom |
| 51°30′02″N0°07′38″W / 51.5005°N 0.1273°W | |
The statue of Robert Peel in Parliament Square, London, is a bronze sculpture of Sir Robert Peel, a former prime minister of the United Kingdom. It was sculpted by Matthew Noble and was one of the first three statues to be placed in the square.
The statue of Sir Robert Peel by sculptor Matthew Noble stands in Parliament Square facing Great George Street in the south-west corner of the square. [1] [2] It is a bronze statue on a granite plinth, and is Grade II listed. [2]
In 1871, it was proposed that three statues of Sir Robert Peel, Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby and Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston should be erected. Following a report to HM Treasury, it was identified that the two gardens forming Parliament Square could be adjusted so that it could accommodate 18 statues in total. It was originally proposed to build all the plinths at once, and leaving them unoccupied until statues were completed. [3]
The statue of Sir Robert Peel was the last work by Noble to be completed: [4] he died on 23 June 1876. [5] The statue was cast at Cox and Son's foundry in Thames Ditton in September 1876. The granite plinth had already been completed on site, and it was hoped at the time that the statue would be in place by the end of the year. [4] There was no ceremony to unveil the statue in December 1876 at the request of the committee. [6] It was the third of the group of statues to be placed in Parliament Square. [7] Following the placement of the statue of Robert Peel in the square, it was considered that it might be appropriate to add further statues of statesmen because of the location next to the Houses of Parliament. [8]
In June 2020, the statue was vandalized during the George Floyd protests [9] and a petition was created demanding its removal because Peel founded the Metropolitan Police Service. [10] The statue was not removed.
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet,, was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–1835). He previously was Home Secretary twice. He is regarded as the father of modern British policing, owing to his founding of the Metropolitan Police while he was Home Secretary. Peel was one of the founders of the modern Conservative Party.
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 21 October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar.
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.
Tamworth is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament, based on the town of Tamworth in Staffordshire, England. The seat is currently represented by Sarah Edwards of the Labour Party, re-elected in the UK 2024 general election.
Matthew Noble was a leading British portrait sculptor. Carver of numerous monumental figures and busts including work, memorializing Victorian era royalty and statesmen, displayed in locations such as Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral and Parliament Square, London.
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 empty due to lack of funds. For over 150 years, its use 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 its future. Mortimer's final report recommended that there continue to be a rolling programme of commissioned temporary artworks rather than settle permanently on one figure or idea.
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.
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.
Boadicea and Her Daughters is a bronze sculptural group in London representing Boudica, queen of the Celtic Iceni tribe, who led an uprising in Roman Britain. It is located to the north side of the western end of Westminster Bridge, near Portcullis House and Westminster Pier, facing Big Ben and the Palace of Westminster across the road. It is considered the magnum opus of its sculptor, the English artist and engineer Thomas Thornycroft. Thornycroft worked on it from 1856 until shortly before his death in 1885, sometimes assisted by his son William Hamo Thornycroft, but it was not erected in its current position until 1902.
A 1965 memorial bust of John F. Kennedy by Jacques Lipchitz stands in the lobby of International Students House on Great Portland Street in London, England, and is visible from the outside through the glass doors. It was moved there in April 2019 from its original location on the Marylebone Road, to the west of Great Portland Street underground station, after it was vandalised in 2017.
The equestrian statue of Prince George, Duke of Cambridge is a life-size memorial by Adrian Jones, installed in Whitehall, London, England.
The statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square, Westminster, London, is a work by the sculptor Philip Jackson.
The statue of James Outram, a work by Matthew Noble, stands in Whitehall Gardens in London, south of Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade II listed structure.
A bronze statue of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, also known as Brunel Monument or the Isambard Brunel Monument, by Carlo Marochetti, stands on the Victoria Embankment in London, England, at the west end of Temple Place. The statue rests on a Portland stone pedestal, with flanking screens and benches, by the architect Richard Norman Shaw.
The statue of George Canning in Parliament Square, Westminster, London, is an 1832 work by Sir Richard Westmacott.
The Thames Ditton Foundry was a foundry in Thames Ditton, Surrey, which operated from 1874 to 1939 and which under various owners produced numerous major statues and monuments as one of the United Kingdom's leading firms of bronze founders.
The statue of Winston Churchill in Woodford, London, is a bronze sculpture of the British statesman, created by David McFall in 1958–9. The statue commemorates Churchill's role as the member for the parliamentary constituency of Woodford. Churchill was elected to the Epping seat in 1924 and held it until 1945 when the new constituency of Woodford was created. Churchill then held this seat until his retirement in 1964. The statue is a Grade II listed structure.
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