Introduction
The Commonwealth of Virginia gave the Washington Statue to Great Britain and Ireland in 1914 to recognize that “unbroken peace and goodwill has existed between the United States and Great Britain for more than a century [since the 1814/1815 Treaty of Ghent], and the people of Virginia entertain the warmest friendship for the people of their mother country.” World War I (1914-18) intervened in the immediate presentation of the Washington Statue in London, but the delay added significant meaning to Virginia’s gift as the US and UK fought together as allies in that War.
The Washington Statue
The Washington Statue in Trafalgar Square is a bronze replica of the famous marble statue by French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon of George Washington (1788) which has stood in the Capitol rotunda in Richmond, Virginia from 1796 to today.
The Washington Statue was made by the famous French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon in the late 18th Century. Based on a life mask (now at the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York) and other body measurements of George Washington taken by Houdon himself at Mount Vernon in 1785, it is considered one of the most accurate depictions of the subject. Chief Justice John Marshall, a contemporary of Washington’s, said of the work, “Nothing in bronze or stone could be a more perfect image than this statue of the living Washington.” Marquis de Lafayette, Washington’s compatriot, friend, and brother-in-arms, said upon seeing it for the first time, “That is the man himself.”
The Washington Statue was commissioned by the Virginia General Assembly in 1784, begun in 1785, signed 1788, completed in 1791/92, and delivered in 1796. In 1784, the Virginia General Assembly commissioned the Washington Statue “to be of the finest marble and the best workmanship,” necessitating in that day a European craftsman. The Governor of Virginia, Benjamin Harrison V, gave the responsibility of selecting the artist to then Ambassadors to France, Benjamin Franklin (1778-85) and Thomas Jefferson (1785-89), who recommended Jean-Antoine Houdon, the most famous sculptor of the day, to execute the work.
The original Washington Statue is carved from Carrara marble, weighs 18 tons, and is located in the Virginia State Capitol rotunda in Richmond. It depicts a standing life-sized Washington. His right hand holds a cane; his left arm rests on a bundle of wooden rods representing magisterial power, law, and governance on which is slung his cape and sword; and at his back is a farmer’s plow. He is shown wearing his Continental Army uniform, as Washington wished to be depicted in contemporary military uniform, rather than a Roman military uniform or Greek tunic from antiquity which was popular in neo-classical sculptures of the late 18th century.
With its incorporation of both civilian and military objects, the Washington Statue has been interpreted as invoking the imagery and ideal of Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus (c. 519-430 BC) – an ancient Roman patrician, statesman, and military leader of the early Roman Republic who became a legendary figure of Roman virtue (particularly civic virtue). Washington has been compared to Cincinnatus in his decision to retire from public life following the Revolutionary War in 1783. At the time of the Washington Statue’s commission in 1784, Washington had not yet served in the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and would not become the US President until 1789.
In 1910, the Commonwealth of Virginia commissioned the Gorham Manufacturing Company to make a bronze cast of the Washington Statue to be added to the National Statuary Hall Collection which is now one of six State statues located in the United States Capitol rotunda in Washington, DC. The Washington Statue in Trafalgar Square is one of the bronze casts made by Gorham under that commission. The Gorham molds (owned by the Commonwealth of Virginia) are now under the care and preservation of the Librarian of Virginia, c. 2007.
The 1914 Gift
The Commonwealth of Virginia offered the Washington Statue as a gift to Great Britain and Ireland in 1914 on the centennial of the Treat of Ghent (1814/1815) which ended the War of 1812.
King George V and His Majesty’s government accepted the gift of the Washington Statue and selected Trafalgar Square at the front of the National Gallery for its home in London in 1914.
Virginia offered a bronze replica of Jean-Antoine Houdon’s famous statue of George Washington to Great Britain and Ireland in 1914 marking the Centennial of the Treaty of Ghent (signed December 24, 1814, ratifications February 17, 1815) which established Anglo-American peace after the War of 1812. The gift recognized that “unbroken peace and goodwill has existed between the United States and Great Britain for more than a century, and the people of Virginia entertain the warmest friendship for the people of their mother country.” In that same year, King George V and His Majesty’s government accepted the gift of the Washington Statue and selected Trafalgar Square at the front of the National Gallery for its home in London.
World War I (1914-18) intervened in the immediate presentation of the Washington Statue in London, but the delay added significant meaning to the gift as the US and UK fought together as allies in the War (1917-18). The Washington Statue was unveiled in Trafalgar Square on June 30, 1921 “to bear testimony to an ancient friendship, promote harmony and goodwill between the English-speaking nations, and worthily celebrate the conclusion of a hundred years of peace between England and America . . . a tribute of love [and] ancient friendship [that was] re-cemented and glorified by comradeship in suffering and partnership in noble deeds [in World War I].”
Prime Minister Winston Churchill later coined the phrase “Special Relationship” on March 5, 1946 after World War II (1939-45) to describe the “ancient friendship, strong alliances, and close cooperation” between the US and UK with its roots in America in Jamestown, Virginia (1607). The “Special Relationship” also encompasses our “joint inheritance” of “shared ideals and principles” of individual rights and a love for liberty which led to the Magna Carta, Habeas Corpus, Trial by Jury, and English Common Law and ultimately to the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights in the US Constitution – a reference also emphasized by Foreign Secretary Lord Curzon in his address at the unveiling of the Washington Statue in 1921 twenty-five years earlier.
The 1921 Presentation
The presentation of the Washington Statue gift in 1921 was overseen by a Virginia delegation. The President of Washington & Lee University (on behalf of the Virginia Governor) and the UK Foreign Secretary Lord Curzon made addresses at the ceremony both of which focused on the “Special Relationship.”
Lord Curzon emphasized, for instance, that George Washington fought for “ideals and principles which were as sacred to [the English] as they were to the American people,” noting that “when the great man died and the news of his death was borne across the waters, the British fleet flying at anchor lowered their flags to half-mast in honor of the illustrious dead” – a remarkable fact given the American Revolution had ended only a short sixteen years earlier.
The Washington Statue in Trafalgar Square was unveiled in 1921 by a Virgina delegation including, among others, Dr. Henry Louis Smith (President of Washington & Lee University representing Virginia Governor Westmoreland Davis), B.F. Buchanan (Lieutenant Governor of Virginia), and Richard Brewer, Speaker of the House of Delegates. Earl Curzon of Kedleston, KG, GCSI, GCIE, PC, FRS, FRGS, FBA, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of His Majesty’s Government, gave the address on behalf of the UK.
The speakers at the unveiling emphasized the deep, ancient ties between the US and UK having been recently strengthened by their alliance in World War I – ties associated with what Winston Churchill later called the “Special Relationship” in 1946. Below are excerpts from their speeches.
“Why do we as Englishmen gladly welcome the statue of Washington? It is because he was a great Englishman, one of the greatest Englishmen who ever lived; because though he fought us and vanquished us, he was fighting for ideals and principles which were as sacred to us as it were to the American people, and which were embedded in the very fibers of our common race [peoples]. The defeat that he inflicted upon us was our gain; he laid the foundations of a structure which we could never have laid, and which required for its accomplishment the genius of an emancipated race [people]. One of the remarkable things in reading the history of Washington was that his merits were recognized by Englishmen even in his lifetime. I have always thought it a moving thing that when the great man died and the news of his death was borne across the waters, the British fleet flying at anchor lowered their flags to half-mast in honor of the illustrious dead.
What was it that made this man one of the greatest personalities of all time? The answer lay in his personality and in his achievement. His personality represented integrity of character, nobility of soul, modesty and dignity of demeanor, and sagacity of judgment in a degree rarely combined in any human being. To deal only with his political achievements, Washington created a government and made a nation. He became ruler not by birth or inheritance, not by accident; not by right of conquest, but by the free choice of a unanimous people . . . .
But not merely can your nation and mine engage never to fight and never to quarrel; we can do a great deal to prevent other nations from fighting. That, I submit, is the main function and duty that lies upon us in the future. It is by the example we set, by the common sacrifices that we have endured and are prepared to endure again, by the friendly counsel and co-operation of our ambassadors and statesmen, by the resolute determination of our people, by the influence of the press of both countries – and would that greater restraint were sometimes put upon it, whether it be on one side or the other – it is by these influences that we should endeavor to see that the peace of the world is insured. It is a great and powerful weapon that is in the hands of these two great nations, and if our use of it is inspired by the temperate judgment, the lofty nobility of soul, and the unselfish purpose of George Washington, we ought to be able to use that weapon for the inestimable advantage of mankind.”
“Our universal Anglo-Saxon instinct for justice and passion for liberty, our common recognition of the imperative of conscience, the rights of the individual, the fatherhood of God, and the essential brotherhood of man – with these multiplied and mighty bonds, so recently softened in the furnace of common suffering and welded anew on the hard anvil of war, this is a world of friendship that has come to stay, and may the God of England and America doom to speedy destruction every effort and agency that attempts to weaken or undermine it.”
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia established a Commission in 1914 to oversee the gift of the Washington Statue to Great Britain and Ireland. That Virginia Commission published a Report following the unveiling ceremony in London on June 30, 1921 covering all aspects of the gift, including items such as the legislation, official correspondence, speeches, and proceedings. A copy of the Report is saved in the Library of Congress.
The Special Relationship
The “Special Relationship” was the inspiration behind the Commonwealth of Virginia’s gift of the Washington Statue to Great Britain and Ireland in 1914/1921 – a relationship rooted in ancient friendship, strong alliances, and close cooperation and the “common inheritance” of individual rights and a love for liberty.
The “Special Relationship” is a term that is often used to describe the political, social, diplomatic, cultural, economic, legal, environmental, religious, military, and historic relations between the US and UK. The term was coined by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in his “Iron Curtain” speech in Fulton Missouri on March 5, 1946 following World War II (1939-45).
With its roots in America in Jamestown, Virginia (1607), the “Special Relationship” also encompasses the “joint inheritance” of our “shared ideals and principles” of individual rights and a love for liberty which led to the Magna Carta, Habeas Corpus, Trial by Jury, and English Common Law and ultimately to the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights in the US Constitution.
The US and UK have been close allies during many conflicts in the 20th and 21st centuries, among them, World War I, World War II, the North Atlantic Alliance, the Korean War, the Persian Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan, and the Global War on Terrorism.
Although both the US and UK also have close relationships with many other nations, the level of cooperation between them in trade and commerce, military planning, execution of military operations, nuclear weapons technology, and intelligence sharing has been described as “unparallelled” among major world powers.
George Washington
George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) – born an Englishman – was an American Founding Father, military commander, statesman, and celebrated son of Virginia who was recognized both during and after his life for his extraordinary personality and his many achievements.
King George III (r. 1760-1820), who reigned during the American Revolution (1775-83), is reported to have called George Washington “the greatest man in the world” for relinquishing power at the end of the War.
For more information on George Washington, see Mount Vernon.
George Washington is a celebrated son of Virginia. His career made him one of the most “traveled” individuals of his age across the thirteen British Colonies and the American frontier.
The Washingtons trace their male line back to Northeast England in the 12th century (and likely into the 10th in Scotland) and their family name to the county of Tyne & Wear near Newcastle when they acquired the “Wessyngton” manor in c. 1180, an estate originally awarded to a noble of William the Conqueror after 1066.
Though a “commoner” from modest beginnings, George Washington was a direct descendant through female lines of early Kings of England and of Scotland; of an ancient English noble family from the 11th century, the Percy family; and of fourteen (14) of the twenty-five (25) barons (Sureties) who signed the Magna Carta charter and were appointed to enforce it (Runnymede, June 15, 1215).
- Born at Popes Creek in Westmoreland County of the Colony of Virginia in 1732, receiving modest formal education and growing up largely self-taught.
- Appointed surveyor of Culpeper County of the Colony of Virginia from 1749-50.
- Assigned command of the Virginia Regiment (militia) from 1755-58 during the French and Indian War (1752-58) but not offered a regular commission in the British Military.
- Elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses from 1758-75.
- Appointed a delegate to the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia in 1774.
- Appointed by the Second Continental Congress as Commander of the Continental Army in June 1775 leading the Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War. The Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally concluded the War and acknowledged the sovereignty and independence of the United States.
- Resigned his commission as Commander of the Continental Army in 1783 at the conclusion of the War.
- Served as President of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 which drafted and ratified the Constitution of the United States and established the American federal government.
- Elected US President twice unanimously by the Electoral College, serving as the first President of the United States from 1789-97.
- Announced he would resign the presidency upon the completion of his 2nd term as President of the United States in 1797, establishing the tradition of a two-term limit which was not broken until Franklin Roosevelt during WWII (the two-term limit thereafter was mandated and codified in 1951 by the 22nd Amendment to the US Constitution).
- Freed his slaves (one of the few Founding Fathers who had slaves to do so) as a leading provision of his will and provided that his estate take care of the old and infirm indefinitely and ensure children too young to support themselves receive assistance until the age of twenty-five and be taught to read, write, and pursue an occupation.
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is one of London’s most prominent civic spaces and has been a significant landmark since the 1200s. Following the completion of the 2003 master plan by Baron Foster, it is now also one of London’s liveliest and most crowded public places.
For centuries, distances have been measured throughout England from Charing Cross at the southern end of the Square.
The Washington Statue is prominently located at the northeast corner of the Square in front of the National Gallery and across from St. Martin-in-the-Fields church, all three historic Listed National Landmarks in the UK.
The Washington Statue is one of a number of historic Listed National Landmark statues (*) and buildings in and immediately around the central portion of Trafalgar Square.
Trafalgar Square (central square, proper)
- Admiral Lord Nelson’s Column and Landseer Lions *
- King George IV Statue *
- General Sir Charles Napier Statue *
- General Sir Henry Havelock Statue *
- 4th Plinth (displaying rotating sculptural exhibits)
Charing Cross (southern end)
- King Charles I Statue *
National Gallery (northern end)
- King James II Statue *
- George Washington Statue *
The Washington Statue is located on land at the northern end of Trafalgar Square which is owned by the National Gallery. This land was originally owned by the Crown, part of the King’s Mews (mewes from the French word muer, to moult) which was the place where the Royals’ hawks were confined while they moulted and could not be used to hunt. The block was replaced by the Crown Stables designed by William Kent in 1732.
The entire site was cleared when John Nash designed the square in 1826 (as part of his larger master plan for Regent Street) which was later named Trafalgar Square in 1835, commemorating Vice-Admiral Horatio, Lord Nelson’s victory over the combined French and Spanish Navies at the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) off the Atlantic coast of Spain near Gibraltar during the Napoleonic Wars (1803-15).
The National Gallery, designed by William Wilkins, was built in 1832-38 to define Trafalgar Square’s northern side and is now a historic Listed Grade I Landmark building. Across the Charing Cross Road at the northeast corner of Trafalgar Square is St. Martin-in-the-Fields church, also a historic Listed Grade I Landmark building. A church has stood in this location since the 1200s though the current building was designed by James Gibbs and completed in 1726.
The southern side of Trafalgar Square was largely defined by the magnificent Northumberland House (1605-1874) which was owned by the Percy family and well documented in photographs and paintings including one by the famous painter Canaletto in 1752.
A variety of improvements were subsequently made to the central portion of Trafalgar Square, gradually adding terraces, fountains, and plinths for the statues found there today. Two major urban design changes were made in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The first in 1874 led to the sale of the historic Northumberland House to the Metropolitan Board of Works who replaced it with the stately, tree-lined Northumberland Avenue connecting Trafalgar Square to one of London’s most dramatic civic, public works projects of the 19th century – Whitehall Gardens and the Victoria Embankment, completed in the 1860s. Incorporating a modern sewer system and needed vehicular streets to relieve the Strand, the Victoria Embankment transformed the Thames River waterfront from a disorganized collection of tidal waterfront and dock areas into the elegant system of public parks and promenades it is today.
The second in 1912 replaced a building at the southwest corner of Trafalgar Square which had served as residence of the First Sea Lord and was used by the Admiralty. The Admiralty Arch – the replacement – was designed by Aston Webb and commissioned by King Edward VII in memory of his mother, Queen Victoria. Admiralty Arch, a historic Listed Grade I National Landmark, was finished in 1912 to connect Trafalgar Square to the Mall.
The latest change to Trafalgar Square came in 2003 when Baron Foster of Thames Bank, OM, RA, HonFREng developed a master plan which, among other changes, replaced the vehicular street in front of the National Gallery and the Washington Statue with a pedestrian plaza. This change transformed Trafalgar Square from what had effectively become a “traffic island” into one of London’s most significant and vibrant public spaces.
1921 Celebration
The unveiling of the Washington Statue in 1921 was accompanied by a week of celebratory events in England.
His Majesty’s Government and the Commonwealth of Virginia had an extensive official program when the Washington Statue was presented and unveiled in 1921 which including receptions hosted by King George V and the Queen, the Prince of Wales, the Mayor of London, the English-Speaking Union (chaired by Winston Churchill), the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, and the newly opened Sulgrave Manor in Northamptonshire (an ancestral home of the Washington family in England), among others.
The Legend
An interesting two-part legend associated with the famous Washington Statue today posits that George Washington once swore never again to set foot on British soil which apparently inspired the Washington Statue to be placed on a foundation of imported Virginia soil.
The truth behind both parts of this popular legend – a story easily found on the internet today – is being researched by FWS.
