George IV
George IV stands in Trafalgar Square, London, as a bronze equestrian statue of the United Kingdom’s king. Francis Leggatt Chantrey shows him mounted calmly, in the controlled pose associated with royal authority. The surrounding square places this nineteenth-century monument among several other statues and the daily movement of central London.
Chantrey created the sculpture during a period when public monuments honoured monarchs in prominent urban spaces. George IV ruled the United Kingdom from 1820 to 1830. The bronze surface preserves the detailed, lifelike treatment for which Chantrey became known as a sculptor. Regency-era interests in art, architecture and fashion surround the king’s historical image.
The statue was originally intended for Marble Arch, designed by John Nash as an entrance to Buckingham Palace. Changed plans sent it instead to Trafalgar Square, where the mounted king remains part of London’s open-air history.
- City
- City of Westminster
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