Statue

Sanctuary - king on right - Henry III

Erection date: 1854

Have we correctly identified this king?

Site: Westminster Sanctuary (4 memorials)

SW1, Broad Sanctuary, The Sanctuary, 1-8 Broad Sanctuary

The building is Grade II listed, a terrace of Bath stone buildings incorporating gateway to Dean's Yard. 1853-54 by Sir George Gilbert Scott. Some sources say these were built as houses which seems unlikely but they are certainly now used as offices.

Niches in the turrets, at first floor, house two very similar statues. The spandrels of the gateway are decorated with two roundels with portrait heads, one of which is crowned. These all seem to represent particular individuals but we can find no information, so we have to guess.

The statues are crowned and each clutches a model building, with slightly different fenestration. So we think they are the two kings central to the creation of Westminster Abbey: Edward the Confessor who, in 1042-52, (re)built St Peter's Abbey here, and Henry III who, in 1245, began the building of the current Abbey. Comparative beard lengths seem to corroborate our theory.

And the two heads must represent Victoria and Albert: the female wears a crown and the male doesn't, the date of the building, they even look like some of their portraits.

The memorial column in our photo is covered on its own page: Westminster School - old boys.

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This section lists the subjects commemorated on the memorial on this page:
Sanctuary - king on right - Henry III

Subjects commemorated i

King Henry III

Ascended throne in 1216, aged 9.  Son of King John.  Resurrected the Magna Ca...

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This section lists the other memorials at the same location as the memorial on this page:
Sanctuary - king on right - Henry III

Also at this site i

Nearby Memorials

6 Burlington Gardens - Locke

6 Burlington Gardens - Locke

W1, Burlington Gardens, 6

There are 22 statues on the façade of this building. Each is labelled with his (always 'his') surname. There are 12 at the top up against...

1 subject commemorated, 1 creator
William Booth statue - Denmark Hill

William Booth statue - Denmark Hill

SE5, Champion Park, William Booth Memorial Training College

The statue was dedicated on the centenary of Booth's birth. The future Duke of Kent unveiled it when he was here to open the building.

2 subjects commemorated, 2 creators
Eisenhower statue

Eisenhower statue

W1, Grosvenor Square

Portland stone plinth. Bronze statue. Unveiled by Mrs Thatcher and Charles Price. Note that Eisenhower was raised in Kansas City, hence t...

3 subjects commemorated, 2 creators
Westminster Abbey H - Esther John

Westminster Abbey H - Esther John

SW1, Broad Sanctuary, Westminster Abbey - west porch

Fourteen niches on the West Front remained empty since the Abbey was built until 1998 when they were filled. The lower four are filled wi...

1 subject commemorated, 4 creators
Florence Nightingale - statue

Florence Nightingale - statue

SW1, Waterloo Place

In 1859 only the Guards Memorial was erected, closer to Pall Mall. In 1914 this was moved back to make room for the two statues in front.

1 subject commemorated, 1 creator