Now I am not precious about statues in public places.
Most of the ones I pass are of people I have little knowledge of, and belong to a specific time and outlook frozen in the past.
And I am reminded that the Romans were never over bothered about their own great and good, to the point where some statues of dead emperors were melted down for coinage or to start the process of commemorating another live emperor.
Which of course brings me to the current debate on those past public figures connected with our Imperialist past and in particular Britain’s involvement in the slave trade and in slavery.
I have listened carefully to the case against Edward Colston the Bristol slave trader, Robert Milligan who owned two sugar plantations and 526 slaves and Cecil Rhodes, and the arguments against them and others like them are very powerful.
After all, as one Liverpool activist reflected yesterday, we wouldn’t tolerate statues of Adolf Hitler on our streets.
But I also paid attention to the comments of those who expressed concern about “air brushing out of history” the exponents of slavery, which in their words runs the danger of actually contributing to a dilution of Britain’s involvement in both the slave trade and slavery.
This was an involvement which permeated many aspects of our economy in ways we might not at first realize, and was central to the economic activity of cities like Bristol, Liverpool and London.
So it is possible to trace the links back from the plantations to the sugar, tobacco and textile industries of Britain, as well as the ship builders who built ships, the bakers and cake makers and of course those who worked in the cotton mills and refineries.
But then Manchester, which directly benefited from the production of cheap cotton grown by slave labour, came out in the late 18th century and organized a petition for the abolition of the trade, and again in the 1860s, supported the war against the Confederacy in the American Civil War.*
All of which makes history messy. The current campaign to take down the statues of Sir Robert Peel and William Gladstone in Manchester are predicated on their family involvement in slavery and in the case of Gladstone some very iffy comments about why slavery should not be abolished.
And yet Peel supported Catholic emancipation, abolished the Corn Laws, argued for Parliamentary reform having at first opposed it, and established the Metropolitan Police Force.
That doesn’t vindicate his earlier position on some issues, only to point out the contradictions in the outlook of those we have come to commemorate, and how some of them moved politically and came to embrace different ideas.
Personally, I think the statues of men, and they are almost always men, who supported and profited from the slave trade have had their day, but perhaps we should retain them with very prominent descriptions of what they did as a reminder of what collectively we did in the past.
Or perhaps they should re-appear in museums with those appropriate descriptions of their activities, and why some individuals or groups in certain communities felt the need to erect a statue in the first place.
In that way the mature debate on issues like slavery, and its legacy along with the historic and present-day inequalities experienced by ethnic groups can go on with out celebrating people whose actions are a challenge to the concepts of humanity and equality.
It may be that it is time to evaluate all those public statues of the “great and good”.
This is already underway in cities and towns and perhaps even villages across the country, with calls for local debates on the merits of what stands in our squares and buildings.
And that in turn requires some careful balancing of the “good and bad” actions of individuals.
So, Oliver Cromwell has been rightly condemned for his actions in Ireland, but celebrated as an important factor in the defeat of King Charles and the defence of Parliament, despite his later actions as “Lord Protector”.
Emmeline Pankhurst came out in support of the continued prosecution of the Great War, when fellow women suffrage campaigners argued against it, and Nye Bevan instrumental in the formation of the NHS, opposed calls for Britain to abandon its nuclear deterrent.**
Added to which some have had more public recognition than others, so while Mrs Pankhurst is is up there in the text books, the media and of course on plinths, Annie Kenney remains a less well known figure from the campaign for female suffrafge.
Of course, there is also another thought, which is not mine, but my friend Eric who on more than one occasion has pondered on why we need statues of the good and great in public places anyway.
Perhaps such things have had their day, and on every plinth in every city there should just be a piece of artwork, commissioned by the public, displaying the work of everyone from the “renowned" to those of the local art college and community centre.
Or if we must have people, why not a celebration of the men and women history usually ignores like Annot Robinson, the Sheffield Steel Women,*** or the actors and comedians who have made us laugh.
Now that’s a thought.
Location; Manchester, Rome, Naples
Pictures; Manchester statues, Sir Robert Peel, James Watt and Prince Albert, 2018/2020, and Totò in Naples, 2017 from the collection of Andrew Simpson, the unveiling of Annie Kenney's statue in Oldham, courtesy of Matthew Benham, 2018, Women of Street statute, Sheffield, 2016 courtesy of Sheffield City Council
*Sugar Lane, an industry and a campaign, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2012/04/sugar-lane-industry-and-campaign.html
**Annot Robinson, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Manchester%20Women
***Women of Steel, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_of_Steel
 |
| Manchester statues, Sir Robert Peel, Piccadilly, 2018 |
 |
| Augustus, one that survived, Rome, 2008 |
And I am reminded that the Romans were never over bothered about their own great and good, to the point where some statues of dead emperors were melted down for coinage or to start the process of commemorating another live emperor.
Which of course brings me to the current debate on those past public figures connected with our Imperialist past and in particular Britain’s involvement in the slave trade and in slavery.
I have listened carefully to the case against Edward Colston the Bristol slave trader, Robert Milligan who owned two sugar plantations and 526 slaves and Cecil Rhodes, and the arguments against them and others like them are very powerful.
After all, as one Liverpool activist reflected yesterday, we wouldn’t tolerate statues of Adolf Hitler on our streets.
 |
| Manchester statues, James Watt, Piccadilly, 2018 |
This was an involvement which permeated many aspects of our economy in ways we might not at first realize, and was central to the economic activity of cities like Bristol, Liverpool and London.
So it is possible to trace the links back from the plantations to the sugar, tobacco and textile industries of Britain, as well as the ship builders who built ships, the bakers and cake makers and of course those who worked in the cotton mills and refineries.
But then Manchester, which directly benefited from the production of cheap cotton grown by slave labour, came out in the late 18th century and organized a petition for the abolition of the trade, and again in the 1860s, supported the war against the Confederacy in the American Civil War.*
All of which makes history messy. The current campaign to take down the statues of Sir Robert Peel and William Gladstone in Manchester are predicated on their family involvement in slavery and in the case of Gladstone some very iffy comments about why slavery should not be abolished.
 |
| Annie Kenney, Oldham, 2018 |
That doesn’t vindicate his earlier position on some issues, only to point out the contradictions in the outlook of those we have come to commemorate, and how some of them moved politically and came to embrace different ideas.
Personally, I think the statues of men, and they are almost always men, who supported and profited from the slave trade have had their day, but perhaps we should retain them with very prominent descriptions of what they did as a reminder of what collectively we did in the past.
Or perhaps they should re-appear in museums with those appropriate descriptions of their activities, and why some individuals or groups in certain communities felt the need to erect a statue in the first place.
 |
| Women of Streel, Sheffield, 2016 |
It may be that it is time to evaluate all those public statues of the “great and good”.
This is already underway in cities and towns and perhaps even villages across the country, with calls for local debates on the merits of what stands in our squares and buildings.
 |
| Prince Albert, Albert Square, 2020 |
So, Oliver Cromwell has been rightly condemned for his actions in Ireland, but celebrated as an important factor in the defeat of King Charles and the defence of Parliament, despite his later actions as “Lord Protector”.
Emmeline Pankhurst came out in support of the continued prosecution of the Great War, when fellow women suffrage campaigners argued against it, and Nye Bevan instrumental in the formation of the NHS, opposed calls for Britain to abandon its nuclear deterrent.**
 |
| Totò, who makes me laugh, Naples, 2017 |
Of course, there is also another thought, which is not mine, but my friend Eric who on more than one occasion has pondered on why we need statues of the good and great in public places anyway.
Perhaps such things have had their day, and on every plinth in every city there should just be a piece of artwork, commissioned by the public, displaying the work of everyone from the “renowned" to those of the local art college and community centre.
Or if we must have people, why not a celebration of the men and women history usually ignores like Annot Robinson, the Sheffield Steel Women,*** or the actors and comedians who have made us laugh.
Now that’s a thought.
Location; Manchester, Rome, Naples
Pictures; Manchester statues, Sir Robert Peel, James Watt and Prince Albert, 2018/2020, and Totò in Naples, 2017 from the collection of Andrew Simpson, the unveiling of Annie Kenney's statue in Oldham, courtesy of Matthew Benham, 2018, Women of Street statute, Sheffield, 2016 courtesy of Sheffield City Council
*Sugar Lane, an industry and a campaign, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2012/04/sugar-lane-industry-and-campaign.html
**Annot Robinson, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Manchester%20Women
***Women of Steel, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_of_Steel
A good well balanced article, Well written and informative.
ReplyDeleteThank you Eric
DeleteAs usual you hit many nails right on the head, and as usual, thanks! xx
ReplyDeleteThanks Lo
DeleteWell done Andrew - Its good to read a sensible, well considered article on this emotive subject.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Delete