Person    | Male  Born 19/5/1815  Died 30/8/1885

Thomas Thornycroft

Categories: Sculpture

Sculptor. born Cheshire. Came to London in 1835 where he was apprenticed to John Francis and worked alongside another of Francis's apprentices, his daughter Mary, whom he married on 29 February 1840. Four of their children became artists or sculptors, including Hamo and Teresa, a painter who had three children including Siegfried Sassoon. Thomas's eldest son, John Isaac became a naval architect. It was Mary's work which sustained the family financially. The only surviving public sculptures by Thomas himself in London of which we are aware are the Commerce group on the Albert Memorial and the Boudicca statue, but even that was actually a joint production by the Thornycroft family.

He was an amateur engineer and late in life assisted his son John to design steam launches (we wonder if that "assisted" should be in quotes). The Thornycroft marriage appears to have been happy, but one has to admire Mary: a Victorian wife who brought up six children, carried on a successful career as a sculptor, and taught her skills to the royal princesses including Princess Louise. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography recounts this significant story from their granddaughter: "Thomas Thornycroft had been known to cut the heads off Mary's clay models, ostensibly to position them better, but provoking exasperated cries of ‘Only tell me! Thorny, only tell me!’ from his wife as she tried to protect her works". Our hearts go out to her.

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This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
Thomas Thornycroft

Creations i

Boadicea/Boudicca/Boudica

The horses look totally out of control to us; no wonder the two daughters loo...

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Fame - from Poets’ Fountain

The statue glistens with recent gilding. This was first done in 2002 in honou...

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Poets’ Fountain - Chaucer, Shakespeare & Milton

The seated figures represent the three Muses; the standing figures, the three...

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Other Subjects

Sir Bertram Mackennal

Sir Bertram Mackennal

Born in Melbourne, Australia. Came to London to study at the British Museum and the Royal Academy. Also spent some time in Paris where he was influenced by Rodin. Was an associate member of the Roy...

Person, Sculpture, Australia

4 memorials
C. Buchard / C. Buchan
1 memorial
Enzo Plazzotta

Enzo Plazzotta

Sculptor. Born at Mestre, near Venice. Worked in London for more than half his life. Other works here include: 'Young Dancer' at Bow Street/Broad Court.  Ornamental Passions has a very information ...

Person, Sculpture, Italy

2 memorials
Lady Hetta Empson

Lady Hetta Empson

Sculptor and political activist. Born as Hester Henrietta Crouse in South Africa. Studied art and sculpture. Supported Communism and the black workers in South Africa. Travelled to Europe and drove...

Person, Sculpture, China/Hong Kong, South Africa

1 memorial

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Major Hubert C. Corlette

Major Hubert C. Corlette

Australian architect mainly of churches. Born Hubert Christian Corlette.  Father of English architect John C. Corlette.

Person, Architecture, Australia

1 memorial