Equestrian statue of William III, Glasgow

The equestrian statue of William III in Cathedral Square, Glasgow, is a 1735 work by an unknown sculptor.

Equestrian statue of William III
The statue in 2017
ArtistUnknown
Year1735 (1735)
MediumBronze sculpture
LocationGlasgow
Coordinates55°51′42″N 4°14′11″W

Description
Plaque in front of the statue

The bronze sculpture depicts William III of England in Roman attire mounted on a horse.[1] It is said that the tail of the Glasgow statue is designed to move to prevent it being broken by means of a ball and socket joint.[2] In front of the plinth is a plaque that reads "In commemoration of the Tercentenary of the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89". The statue is a A listed building.[3]

History

The statue was financed by James Macrae in 1735 and erected in front of Tontine Hotel in Trongate. Although the sculptor is unknown a similar statue of William III by Peter Scheemakers was erected one year earlier in Hull.[3] In 1897, due to the statue obstructing traffic it was moved to a traffic island in front of the new Glasgow Cross railway station. In 1923, the statue was put in storage. In 1926, it was moved to Cathedral Square where it remains to this day.[4]

In June 2020, following the actions against memorials in Great Britain during the George Floyd protests, the statue was graffitied,[5] William III having been connected to the Royal African Company and Edward Colston.[6][7]

In May 2021, the statue was damaged after the horse's tail was broken off.[8] The Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland said the vandalism was due the "continued demonisation and stigmatisation of all things Protestant and Unionist" and that it only encourages "vile vandalism and attacks on Glasgow’s historical and architecturally renowned statues."[9]

See also

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Equestrian statue of William III of Orange (Glasgow).
  1. "Glasgow - William III statue". The Scotland Guide. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  2. "William III (William II of Scotland)". Equestrian Statues. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  3. Historic Environment Scotland. "Cathedral Square, Statue of William III (Category A Listed Building) (LB32660)". Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  4. "King Billy: Burrell Collection Photo Library, 1955 Survey". TheGlasgowStory. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  5. "Teams in rapid removal of graffiti from Glasgow statues after BLM protests". Glasgow Times. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  6. "Black Lives Matter: William of Orange statue faces attack over slave links". The Times. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  7. "City chambers and other Glasgow landmarks were not funded by slavery, new study suggests". The Herald. 29 November 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  8. "Glasgow's King William statue damaged again". Glasgow Times. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  9. "Orange Order blames 'demonization of all things protestant' for statue being vandalised". Glasgow Times. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.


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