Boer War Memorial, St James Park, by W. R. Colton.
Boer War Memorial, St James Park, by W. R. Colton.
The Mall leads from Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery through to the front of Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial. A subway from Charing Cross to the Admiralty Arch has a 1994 cartoon-style mural illustrating many of the monuments and noting some dates.
Admiralty Arch, marking the start of The Mall, looks imposing from Trafalgar Square, but was actually conceived as part of the national monument to Queen Victoria, and therefore the more important frontage faces the other way, towards The Mall itself. It was built by Aston Webb in 1911. Two seated figures in stone are on the Mall side. These were made by Thomas Brock in 1910, and represent Navigation (with the sextant) and Gunnery (with the gun). We shall meet this collaboration of Webb and Brock again at the other end of the Mall, in the Victoria Memorial itself.
Close to the arch, there is a monument on either side of The Mall: a rather good Captain Cook with a stone pedestal with ships' prows protruding at the sides, again by Thomas Brock (1914), and the Royal Marines Monument for 1900 (China, South Africa), by T. Jackson and Adrian Jones. The soldiers with bayonets are vigorous and wholly satisfactory. Beneath, a frieze around the base.
A little further, the Boer War Monument to the Royal Artillery (1902). The sculptures are by W. R. Colton (1910) and include a horse accompanied by a winged angel on top, with friezes to left and right. The effect is dignified. The vast and beautiful range of buildings along the other side of the road is Carlton House Terrace by John Nash (1829) - he built it somewhat later than his Regent's Park terraces, and at about the same time as Regent Street. There are massive Corinthian columns above, and small Doric ones at ground floor level. Between the two terraces, large steps lead up to Waterloo Place and the Duke of York on his column may be seen. The terraces face St James' Park on the left, a pleasant landscaped area with a long narrow lake, again due to Nash. In the park is the Guards' Memorial by Gilbert Ledward (1926).
Further along, a discreet double staircase leads up to Carlton House Terrace and Gardens, and a statue of George VI in a long robe, by William McMillan (1955). Very much in a traditional idiom, and a complete contrast to McMillan's other style work, such as his mermaids at Trafalgar Square. A nautical feel to The Mall, which started with Admiralty Arch and Captain Cook, is continued all the way along with flagstaffs like ships' masts alternating with dolphin-based lamp posts similar to those on the Victoria Embankment.
Finally, at the other end of The Mall, is Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial.
Adrian Jones's Royal Marines Monument.
West to Victoria Memorial // East to Trafalgar Square // North to Waterloo Place
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