| Princeton Battle Monument | |
|---|---|
| State of New Jersey | |
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| For The Battle of Princeton, 3 January 1777 | |
| Unveiled | 1922 |
| Location | |
| Designed by | Frederick MacMonnies,Thomas Hastings |
Here memory lingers to recall the guiding mind whose daring plan outflanked the foe and turned dismay to hope when Washington, with swift resolve, marched through the night to fight at dawn and venture all in one victorious battle for our freedom. | |
Princeton Battle Monument | |
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| Coordinates | 40°20′52.1″N74°39′57.1″W / 40.347806°N 74.665861°W /40.347806; -74.665861 |
| Part of | Princeton Historic District (ID75001143[1]) |
| Added to NRHP | 27 June 1975 |
ThePrinceton Battle Monument is located inPrinceton, New Jersey, adjacent toMorven and Princeton's borough hall. The monument commemorates the January 3, 1777Battle of Princeton and depictsGeneral George Washington leading his troops to victory and the death ofGeneral Hugh Mercer. It stands 50 feet (15 m) tall and was inspired by carvings on theArc de Triomphe inParis.[2] Designed to visually anchor the western end ofNassau Street, the monument and its park are a legacy of theCity Beautiful movement.
An act ofCongress on June 8, 1906, appropriated $30,000 to be given to the Princeton Battle Monument Association for the erection of a monument commemorating the Battle of Princeton. The association, which dates back to 1887 and includes such local notables asAllan Marquand andMoses Taylor Pyne, was required to match the $30,000 with an equal sum raised independently.[3] On February 24, 1908, having raised the requisite funds, the association commissioned prominentBeaux Arts sculptorFrederick MacMonnies to build the monument.[4] The architectural design was done byThomas Hastings of the acclaimed firmCarrère and Hastings.
It was difficult to find an appropriate location for the monument, and it was first planned for the piece of land at the corner of Mercer and Nassau Streets. That triangular plot was cleared of buildings in 1913 but ultimately used for the Princeton War Memorial. In 1914, a piece of property was donated by the Princeton Inn Company. The Inn, which stood on the current location of thePrinceton Borough Hall, donated a 500 feet (150 m) stretch of land between Bayard Lane and Morven, from Stockton Street north to the row of chestnut trees in front of the inn. This property provided not only enough space for the monument and a park but also a highly visible location where the monument could stand at the end of a long vista from Nassau Street.[5]
The MacMonnies design is a light-greybas-relief with George Washington on horseback as the dominant figure. Washington is depicted sternly refusing defeat and inspiring his battle-weary troops to victory. Beneath Washington is a young woman personifyingLiberty, wearing aPhrygian cap and holding a banner to urge the soldiers onward.[6][7] She is flanked by troopers and adrummer boy of theContinental Army.[8] Beneath can be seen the death of General Mercer, after whom the localcounty would be named. The structure was originally intended to be bronze and granite, but by 1918, it was decided thatIndiana Limestone would be preferable.[9]
The monument, which was carvedin situ by thePiccirilli Brothers,[10] was completed in 1922 and dedicated byPresident Warren G. Harding. A 21-gun salute by the Princeton UniversityField ArtilleryROTC and an invocation by the Right Reverend Paul Matthews, bishop of theEpiscopal Diocese of New Jersey, marked the festivities. The President received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree fromPrinceton University on the same day.[11]
Nighttime illumination of the monument was part of the original plan for its construction, but it was only in 2007, 85 years after the completion of the monument, that the lighting work finally got underway after a successful fundraising effort by the Princeton Parks Alliance. Charles Stone of the New York firm Fischer Marantz Stone designed the lighting scheme. After years of neglect and unsuccessful restorations, the monument underwent professional conservation treatment in 2006 and 2007 as part of the State of New Jersey's historic preservation initiative. The treatment was carried out by Aegis Restauro, LLC, led by conservators Zbigniew Pietruszewski and Joanna Pietruszewski and Farewell, Mills and Gatsch Architects.[12] In September 2007, the Monument was ceremoniously rededicated when the lights were switched on for the first time.[13]
In 2023, nonprofit Sustainable Princeton raised $36,000 to begin revitalizing the garden beds surrounding the monument and park. The purpose of the project was to clear the invasive species of plants and fill them with native species of flowers, shrubs, and grasses to beautify the area and educate the public and the importance of native species. The gardens are a Certified Wildlife Habitat and a Monarch Waystation.[14]
The inscription on the rear face of the monument, composed byAndrew Fleming West, reads:
Here memory lingers to recall the guiding mind,
Whose daring plan outflanked the foe and turned dismay to hope,
When Washington, with swift resolve, marched through the night,
To fight at dawn and venture all in one victorious battle for our freedom.
ALatin phrase reads:
Saecula Praetereunt Rapimur Nos Ultro Morantes Adsis Tu Patriae Saecula Qui Dirigis
The ages pass away. We, too, though lingering, are hurried on. O Thou who guides the ages, stay to guard our land.
![The mall leading to the monument, which aligns with Nassau Street. The cherry trees are a modern addition and first bloomed in 2002.[15]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aPrinceton_Battle_Monument_Mall.jpg)
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