They say if you stand in Trafalgar Square long enough, you will meet everyone you know (the same might be said of New York’s Times Square). While you’re waiting, you might like to look out for some of these oddities that many people miss.
Centre of London
On a busy traffic island below Trafalgar Square is a statue of King Charles I (oddly, looking towards the place he was beheaded in Whitehall). It’s on a site once occupied by Queen Eleanor's Cross (a replica of which is in front of Charing Cross station). A brass plaque tells you this the place from which all distances to London are measured.
Imperial Measures
Sitting on the steps below the National Gallery to eat their sandwiches, many tourists unknowingly rest their feet on the standard Imperial measures of length, set into the granite paving in brass. Here’s where you can check the length of a perch, a pole, a chain or a yard. The UK completed its legal transition to metric units in 1995.
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Trafalgar Square
Police Post
The fountains in the square were installed to stop unruly political demonstrations. Before then, this police box near Nelson’s Column, connected by phone to Charing Cross police station, kept an eye on any crowds. Now a cleaner’s store, the light on top is not from Nelson’s HMS Victory, as some guides might tell you.
King James II
This sculpture of 1686 in front of the National Gallery, is attributed to Grinling Gibbons - England’s greatest woodcarver. James II of England (James VII of Scotland) was the last Roman Catholic monarch of England, Scotland and Ireland. Deposed in 1688, he died in France in 1701.
King George IV
Look again at this flattering statue by Francis Chantrey of King George IV and you’ll notice he has no stirrups. The king was obese - he was called the Prince of Whales - and he started the fashion of wearing trousers, rather than tight breeches, to hide his weight. The statue was originally intended to sit on top of Marble Arch.
Sailor - Nelson's Column
On the south of Nelson’s Column is a relief showing his death at Trafalgar in 1805. On the left of the dying Nelson is a black crewman holding a musket and searching the enemy rigging for the French sniper who shot him. There were 18 nationalities on board HMS Victory, including nine West Indians and one African.
Sir Charles James Napier
By George Adams (1855). Napier was a veteran of the Peninsular War against Napoleon and the1812 war against the United States. In 1840, fighting in India, he captured Sind - against orders - supposedly sending the news with the double pun: ‘Peccavi’ - Latin for ‘I have sinned’. Napier in New Zealand is named after him.
Sir Henry Havelock
By Behnes (1861), this is the first statue based on a photograph. Major-General Havelock fought in Burma and Afghanistan, and was a hero of the Indian Mutiny. Eight towns worldwide are named after him. A ‘Havelock’ - the cloth that hangs from the back of a cap to protect from sunburn - is also named for him.
Trafalgar Square fountains
Replacing earlier designs (now in Ottowa) by Sir Charles Barry, these commemorate World War I naval heroes, Earls Jellicoe and Beattie. Jellicoe’s bust and the west fountain are by Sir Charles Wheeler, the Beatty bust and east fountain by Sir William McMillan. Started before World War II, they were finished in 1948.
St Martin In The Fields
Literally standing in fields when built in 1726, this church’s design was revolutionary, with a steeple over the frontage of Greek-style pillars. Architect James Gibbs published the plans in a bestselling book in America, heavily influencing the now-iconic style of New England churches there.
www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org
Tube: Charing Cross/Leicester Square
