This statue gallery covers 30 English kings and queens over 1400 years, from the early Anglo-Saxon rulers to Queen Elizabeth II (reign 1952-2022). The statues are primarily located in England. Some have local significance, based in the former capitals of the small Anglo-Saxon kingdoms like Canterbury, Tamworth and Winchester. However, some of these early rulers were canonised as saints, becoming important figures throughout the Christian world. This explains why St. Oswald (reign 634-642) has a statue in Italy, and St. Edward the Confessor (reign 1042-1066) has one in the United States of America.
There are also statues of foreign consorts and conquerors in their native countries of France and Spain, warrior kings with statues near the site of their death, like Harold Godwinson (reign 1066) at Hastings and Richard III of England (reign 1483-1485) at Leicester and modern monarchs with statues in the former colonies they ruled over, like Australia and India.
Over time, we see the depictions of the king's role change. Richard I of England (reign 1189-1199) and Edward I of England (reign 1272-1307) are depicted as warrior-kings with swords held aloft in victory. Yet, as a king became more of a figurehead and less of a warlord, they would be depicted as spreaders of peace and wisdom, as with the statue of James I of England (reign 1603-1625), standing on the walls of a library, where he wields a book, rather than a sword and above him, is the inscription, "Blessed are the peacemakers."
Some of these statues were controversial at the time of building and continue to be so today. The construction of the Oliver Cromwell (reign 1653-1658) statue outside the House of Commons was fiercely debated and opposed by many who saw it as an offence against the monarchy. In Australia, which retains the British monarch as its Head of State, a statue of George V (reign 1910-1936) was recently beheaded by anti-monarchy activists.
The sculptors who created these statues found ancient and modern inspirations for their subjects. The statues of James II of England (reign 1685-1688) and George III of Great Britain (r. 1760-1820) were constructed not to depict them as they looked but as Roman Emperors, as part of the Classical Art movement. Nor was the statue of Henry V of England (reign 1413-1422) designed to look like him, but rather like the actor Laurence Olivier, who played Henry V in a 1944 movie.
These statues are found in a wide variety of locations. From traditional sites outside churches, castles, and in town centres, some are found in unexpected places. In Hong Kong, a statue of George VI (reign 1936-1952) is to be found in a Zoo. Edward the Confessor's American statue is located on a university campus, while Edward I stands guard next to a football pitch, and Henry V observes traffic from a West Midlands roundabout.
The gallery ends with a statue of Queen Elizabeth II, made in November 2022 to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee (70 years of her reign). It is located on the walls of York Minster, which visitors can observe on their way to see the statue of Henry I of England (reign 1100-1135), which is the oldest statue in the gallery, built during the reign of Henry V, in the 1420s.
