Statue

King George I statue, WC1

Erection date: 1745

The spire is an astonishing sight, one of our London favourites. It is a tall stepped pyramid with 24 steps topped with a statue of King George I in Roman costume and standing on a Roman altar. Around the base are swags and some royal crowns. Gambolling at the corners are two lions and two unicorns (with gilded horns). The lion and the unicorn are heraldic supporters on the Royal Coat of Arms of the UK, the lion standing for England, and the unicorn for Scotland.

The statue was funded by William Hucks MP, wealthy parishioner and the Royal Brewer. The statue, the lions and the unicorns were made by Edward Strong, the master mason for the church.

The lions and unicorns which we see now are reconstructions, created by the sculptor Tim Crawley and installed on the tower in 2006. The originals were commissioned by Hawksmoor without the permission of the Commissioners, who initially refused to pay for them. They were removed in the 1870s for reasons that remain unclear.

"When Henry the Eighth left the Pope in the lurch
The protestants made him the head of the church,
But George's good subjects, the Bloomsbury people,
Instead of the Church made him head of the steeple."

Site: St George's, Bloomsbury (2 memorials)

WC1, Bloomsbury Way, St George's Church

Church designed by Hawksmoor. Their website has lots of interesting stuff but none of the pictures of the stunning tower on this Hawksmoor church does it justice. The stepped steeple is based on the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the subjects commemorated on the memorial on this page:
King George I statue, WC1

Subjects commemorated i

King George I

Born Hanover. When the last of Queen Anne's 17 children died without issue (n...

Read More

This section lists the subjects who helped to create/erect the memorial on this page:
King George I statue, WC1

Created by i

This section lists the other memorials at the same location as the memorial on this page:
King George I statue, WC1

Also at this site i

St George's, Bloomsbury

St George's, Bloomsbury

The Parish Church of St Georges Bloomsbury Built 1720 - 30. Architect: Nicho...

Read More

Nearby Memorials

Gladstone statue at Bow Church

Gladstone statue at Bow Church

E3, Bow Road, Bow Church

Unveiled in the subject's lifetime - see Brockway for others.

1 subject commemorated, 3 creators
V&A façade - Bacon

V&A façade - Bacon

SW7, Cromwell Road

Excluding the allegories (such as Knowledge) there are 36 statues on the two public façades of the V&A Museum, on Exhibition Road and...

1 subject commemorated, 1 creator
Hatton Garden - charity girl

Hatton Garden - charity girl

EC1, Hatton Garden

Ornamental Passions tells us "A pair of schoolchildren flanked each entrance, as was customary, but one pair was later transferred to St ...

2 subjects commemorated
King George I statue, WC2 - lost

King George I statue, WC2 - lost

WC2, Leicester Square

A gilded statue of George I was created for the Duke of Chandos in about 1716. Modelled by C. Buchard (or C. Buchan, depending on source)...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
Henry Fawcett statue - lost

Henry Fawcett statue - lost

SW8, Vauxhall Park

Donated by Henry Doulton and created in terracotta by Tinworth, who worked at Doulton’s nearby Lambeth factory where it was made. The bas...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators

Previously viewed

Warrant Officer Class 2 Graham Barker

Warrant Officer Class 2 Graham Barker

Graham Barker was born on 21 June 1946 at 88 Stanfield Road, Winton, Bournemouth, Hampshire (now Dorset), the youngest of the four children of Ronald Charles George Barker (1909-1954) and Zoe Marga...

Person, Armed Forces, Terrorism, Tragedy

1 memorial
Kenneth Williams - WC1

Kenneth Williams - WC1

WC1, Marchmont Street, 57

Unveiled by Nicholas Parsons and Bill Pertwee.

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
15 Croydon - Joshua Reynolds

15 Croydon - Joshua Reynolds

CR9, Katharine Street, Croydon Public Library

Built in 1892 by Charles Henman Jr. this heavily decorated complex of buildings makes up Croydon's Town Hall. The building and the rounde...

1 subject commemorated, 1 creator
Sir Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton

Born in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, on Christmas day, according to the calendar in use at the time.  Died in Kensington (where he had gone in search of country air). The exact dates of birth and dea...

Person, Science, Seriously Famous

11 memorials
Prince Albert

Prince Albert

Born Schloss Rosenau, Coburg, Germany, as Albert Francis Augustus Charles Emanuel. Married his first cousin, Victoria, in 1840. President of the Commissioners for the Great Exhibition. Generally in...

Person, Royalty, Seriously Famous, Germany

21 memorials