Equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington, Aldershot
Description
The Wellington Statue in Aldershot is a monument to Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington victor at the Battle of Waterloo and later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Sculpted by Matthew Cotes Wyatt, it was the largest equestrian statue in Britain when it was unveiled at its original location on the Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner in 1846.Origins of the statueIn 1837 a Committee was formed under the chairmanship of the Duke of Rutland to raise sufficient funds for a memorial to Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington. The sculptor was Matthew Cotes Wyatt. In the statue the Duke is shown on Copenhagen, the famous charger that he had ridden at Waterloo. Much of the bronze in the Statue is derived from French cannon captured at Waterloo and remelted in Wyatt's foundry. Wellington himself sat for the sculptor. Copenhagen, however, had died and a substitute horse was used as a model, which offended many at the time who saw a poor likeness to Copenhagen in the statue.The position selected for the sculpture was on top of the triumphal arch at Hyde Park Corner, built in 1827–8 in conjunction with an Ionic screen as part of a processional route between the park and Buckingham Palace. Wellington had his London residence at Apsley House, immediately next to the screen.
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