Edmund Burke | |
.jpg) Statue of Edmund Burke in 2012 | |
| Location | 11th Street, L Street, andMassachusetts Avenue NW,Washington, D.C. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 38°54′14″N77°1′38.8″W / 38.90389°N 77.027444°W /38.90389; -77.027444 |
| Built | 1894, second cast 1922 |
| Architect | James Havard Thomas (statue) Horace Peaslee (base) H.H. Martyn & Co. (founder) New England Granite Works (fabricator) |
| Part of | •American Revolution Statuary (78000256)[1] •L'Enfant Plan (97000332)[2] •Mount Vernon West Historic District (99001071)[3] |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated CP | • July 14, 1978 (American Revolution Statuary) • April 24, 1997 (L'Enfant Plan) • September 9, 1999 (Mount Vernon West Historic District) |
| Designated DCIHS | • March 3, 1979 (American Revolution Statuary) • April 24, 1997 (L'Enfant Plan) • July 22, 1999 (Mount Vernon West Historic District) |
Edmund Burke is a bronze, full-length statue of British statesman, author, orator, political theorist, and philosopherEdmund Burke, created by British artistJames Havard Thomas. The statue inWashington, D.C., is a cast of theoriginal inBristol, England. In Washington, it stands in Burke Park at the intersection of 11th Street, L Street, andMassachusetts Avenue NW, on the southern border of theShaw neighborhood. The statue was a gift fromCharles Wakefield, 1st Viscount Wakefield, on behalf of the Sulgrave Institution, an organization that promotedUnited Kingdom–United States relations by exchanging statues and busts between the two countries.
Burke was an influential philosopher and intellectual. After working as a private secretary for Prime MinisterCharles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, Burke was elected to theHouse of Commons, where he would often give powerful speeches during his 30-year tenure. During the lead-up to theAmerican Revolutionary War, he often spoke about the hardships Britain imposed on theThirteen Colonies. Burke feared if a war took place, Britain would lose. Following the British defeat, Burke attempted to mend the relationship with the newly formed United States by promoting peace treaties and trade.
The statue of Burke is 8 feet tall (2.4 m) and stands on a pedestal designed byHorace Peaslee. It was formally dedicated in October 1922. The statue is one of 14 sculptures in theAmerican Revolution Statuary in Washington, D.C., that were collectively listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1978 and theDistrict of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites the following year. The statue is acontributing property to theL'Enfant Plan and theMount Vernon West Historic District, also known as the Shaw Historic District.
Edmund Burke was born around 1729 inDublin, Ireland, and later received his education atTrinity College Dublin.[4] While at school, he established a debate group, the precursor to theCollege Historical Society. In the 1750s, Burke began writing, starting withA Vindication of Natural Society, followed byA Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful.[5] Although he had some success as a writer, Burke began dabbling in politics instead. He acted as the private secretary toWilliam Gerard Hamilton and, beginning in 1765, toCharles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, who was Prime Minister at the time.[6]
Burke was elected to theHouse of Commons later that year, which marked the start of a 30-year career inParliament.[4] He became an activePM, advocating for religious tolerance, finance reform, liberty, and the affairs of theThirteen Colonies. He adamantly opposed the heavy taxation imposed on the colonies, and often defended them while speaking in Parliament.[4][6] Although he never called for the independence of the colonies, he believed that starting a war with them would lead to a British defeat.[4]
When theAmerican Revolutionary War began, Burke continued defending the colonies. Because his political party, theWhigs, was out of power during the war, theTories and KingGeorge III were responsible for the continuation and eventual loss of the colonies. Burke tried to soften the hostility between Great Britain and the newly formed United States of America by encouraging trade and peace between the two countries. He served asPaymaster of the Forces andRector of the University of Glasgow during his later years. Burke died in 1797, leaving a legacy that has inspired manyconservatives who regard him as "one of the great philosophers of theEnlightenment".[4]
In the 1920s, theSulgrave Institution was formed to promote thebond between the United Kingdom and United States. The organization, on behalf ofCharles Wakefield, 1st Viscount Wakefield, the formerLord Mayor of London and member of the Sulgrave Institution, gifted the statue of Edmond Burke, who had advocated for better relations with the Thirteen Colonies when it was engulfed in war.[4][6] The statue they chose was a cast of the 1894statue of Edmund Burke inBristol, England. Sculpted byJames Havard Thomas, the idea behind the installation of the statue was to help strengthen the bonds between the two countries after they worked together duringWorld War I. One way to do this was by exchanging busts and statues of well-known British and American people in each other's countries. These included works depictingAlexander Hamilton,Abraham Lincoln,William Pitt the Younger, and former US ambassador to the UK,Joseph Hodges Choate.[4][7]
On April 25, 1922, anAct of Congress approved the statue's installation.[8] The architect chosen to design the statue's base wasHorace Peaslee, although it was not installed until June 1923. A temporary base was sculpted by Frederick D. Owen. The original statue wasfounded byH.H. Martyn & Co. and the stonework was completed byNew England Granite Works.[9] The statue was installed in September 1922, but the official unveiling and dedication ceremony did not take place until October 12 of that year. A few weeks before the ceremony, it was announced that children from the nearbyWebster School and Thomson School would participate by singing songs and waving flags.[7]
Reverend George C. F. Bratenahl of theWashington Cathedral delivered the invocation for the ceremony. British and American diplomats, including the UK ambassador,Auckland Geddes, 1st Baron Geddes, joined others at the event. Prominent attendees included SecretaryCharles Evans Hughes andSamuel Gompers. Both Wakefield and SecretaryJohn W. Weeks gave speeches praising Burke and the UK-US relations. Weeks accepted the statue on behalf of all Americans. Reverend John I. Barrett fromSt. Patrick's Catholic Church gave the benediction.[7][10][11]
The statue is one of 14 sculptures in theAmerican Revolution Statuary that were collectively listed on theNational Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on July 14, 1978. The statuary was added to theDistrict of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites (DCIHS) on March 3, 1979.[12] Because it is located on government-owned property, the statue is acontributing property to theL'Enfant Plan, listed on the NRHP and DCIHS on April 24, 1997. The statue is a contributing property to theMount Vernon West Historic District, also known as the Shaw Historic District, which was added to the DCIHS on July 22, 1999, followed by the NRHP a few months later on September 9, 1999.[13][14][15]
The statue is located in Reservation 68, a triangular plot of land named Burke Park. The park is located at the intersection of 11th Street, L Street, andMassachusetts Avenue NW, on the southern border of theShaw neighborhood. In 2012, several trees were planted in the park.[16] Because the park is owned by the federal government, the statue is maintained by theNational Park Service.[17]
The full length sculpture of Burke, which measures 8 feet tall (2.4 m), depicts him stepping forward with his right leg. He is waving his right hand, and in his left hand he holds athree-cornered hat at his side. He wears a long jacket, a vest, andbreeches. His hair curls up above his ears and is parted down the middle. The sculpture sits upon a rectangular granite base which measures 6 feet (1.8 m) by 7.7 feet (2.3 m). The bottom of the statue is signed: I. HAVARD THOMAS FECIT MDCCCXCIV CAST Á CIRE PERDVE H.H. MARTYN & Co. Ltd. Cheltenham 1922.[9]
The front (east) side of the base is inscribed with:[18]
BVRKE
1729–1797
"MAGNANIMITY
IN POLITICS IS
NOT SELDOM THE
TRVEST WISDOM"
The west side of the base is inscribed with:[9]
THIS STATVE
A COPY OF THE WORK
OF HAVARD THOMAS IN
THE CITY OF BRISTOL
ENGLAND WAS PRESENT-
ED THROVGH THE SVL-
GRAVE INSTITVTION TO
THE PEOPLE OF AMERICA
BY SIR CHARLES CHEERS
WAKEFIELD BARONET
FORMERLY LORD MAYOR
OF LONDON
ERECTED A.D. 1922
Media related toStatue of Edmund Burke (Washington, D.C.) at Wikimedia Commons
