BUSINESS & PHILANTHROPY
Not all statues celebrate conquerors or kings. This penultimate group reflects a different kind of power: money, enterprise, and - at least in part - the impulse to give something back.
As usual, the accompanying portraits are courtesy of The National Portrait Gallery: For use in non-commercial projects (e.g. online in scholarly and non-profit publications and websites, blogs, local society newsletters and family history).
Founder of
the Royal Exchange, Thomas Gresham was the archetypal Tudor financier -royal
agent, currency fixer, and unapologetic operator. His Exchange, opened in 1571,
formalised London’s role as a trading hub to rival Antwerp. Gresham’s name
lives on in economics via 'Gresham’s Law' (bad money drives out good), though
he never actually wrote it down. He is also commemorated among the allegorical
merchant worthies on Holborn Viaduct, linking commerce, infrastructure, and
civic pride in Victorian London. Gresham left his house to found what
became Gresham College - still delivering free public lectures nearly 450 years
later.
Royal Exchange
On top of the Royal Exchange is a gilded grasshopper weather-vane - Gresham's personal emblem.
Holborn Viaduct
Holborn Viaduct’s statues create a kind of civic roll-call. Henry Fitz Eylwin, London’s first recorded mayor, represents the city’s medieval governance. Sir William Walworth, another Lord Mayor, earned his place by killing Wat Tyler during the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 -decisive, if controversial. Sir Hugh Myddleton brings us back to enterprise. As the driving force behind the New River, he helped solve London’s chronic water shortages in the early 17th century. The project nearly bankrupted him, saved only when James I agreed to share the costs (and profits).
American-born banker George Peabody made his fortune in London and gave much of it away there. His housing for the working poor set new standards for cleanliness and dignity, earning him the title 'father of modern philanthropy'. His statue near the Royal Exchange places him firmly within the city he helped reshape socially rather than financially. Peabody declined burial in Westminster Abbey; instead his body was returned to the United States aboard a specially commissioned Royal Navy warship.
Royal Exchange
On the plinth he is described as the 'Great benefactor of the London poor'.
Royal School of Mines, Prince Consort Road
(Wernher on the left, Beit on the right)
Julius Wernher Alfred Biet
Founder of the Reuters news agency, Julius Reuter revolutionised the speed of information - first using carrier pigeons to bridge telegraph gaps, then building a global news network. His statue fittingly stands at the Royal Exchange, where timely information was (and remains) as valuable as money.
Royal Exchange
The first offices of Reuters were in the Royal Exchange and the founder's bust stands at the rear of the building. I fancy the young lady on her smart phone - maybe updating the world on what she had for lunch - is blissfully ignorant she is standing next to one of the great pioneers of electronic communication. Sugar
magnate Henry Tate transformed industrial success into cultural legacy. His funding
created the original Tate Gallery (now Tate Britain), bringing British art to a
wider public. Like several figures here, he embodied the Victorian belief
that wealth carried a duty to improve society. Tate's fortune was built, in part, on popularising
the sugar cube - small, neat, and immensely profitable.
Tate Britain
This bust commemorates the opening in 1897 of the National Gallery of British Art founded by Henry Tate. Now Tate Britain, it is part of the Tate network of galleries in England - Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. The sculptor was Thomas Brock whose crowning achievement was the Queen Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace.
QUINTIN HOGG (1845-1903)
Philanthropist
and educator, Quintin Hogg founded the Regent Street Polytechnic to improve opportunities for working men through education and recreation. That
institution evolved into the University of Westminster, making his legacy one
of social mobility rather than commerce.
Langham Place
Langham Place
THOMAS JOHN BARNARDO (1845-1905)
Dr Barnardo
devoted his life to vulnerable children, founding homes that eventually cared
for tens of thousands. He claimed he never turned a child away - an ideal that drove constant
expansion (and constant fundraising). Barnardo's was founded in 1866. In the following years Barnardo, who never actually completed his medical training, appeared in court 88 times, mainly on charges of kidnapping children without parental consent. But he was never found guilty, arguing it was 'philanthropic abduction' of deprived children and the ends justified the means.
Barnardo's Village Green, Barkingside
He opened his first girls' home in Barkingside and his ashes were scattered here on the picturesque Village Green. The spot is marked by this memorial designed by Sir George Frampton, best known for his statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.Barkingside
Barnardo's headquarters are still in Barkingside.
Barnardo's headquarters are still in Barkingside.
Scottish-American
industrialist Andrew Carnegie is best remembered for giving away the bulk of
his fortune - especially through libraries. His London commemoration is modest but appropriate: a plaque on a former Carnegie library in Manor Park,
representing knowledge as the ultimate public good. Carnegie funded over 2,500 libraries
worldwide, insisting they be free to use.
Rabbits Road wall of former Carnegie Library, Manor Park
Not to be confused with the textile designer, William Morris - later Lord Nuffield - built Morris Motors into one of Britain’s great industrial successes. His philanthropy - especially
in medicine - was immense, with major donations to hospitals including Guy’s, where
his statue stands. Morris once gave away so much money
in a single year that he had to reorganise his finances simply to keep pace.
Guy's Hospital
Banker and long-time chairman of Barclays, Sir Frederick Goodenough combined financial leadership with a commitment to education. Goodenough College, founded in the 1930s, was designed to foster international understanding among postgraduate students - a philanthropic vision shaped by the aftermath of the First World War.
Goodenough College, Mecklenburgh Square
I imagine Mr Goodenough had to cheerfully endure many jokes about his surname, having heard them all before. Despite sharing the surname, I know of no family connection. Should there be one, I can assure you none of Frederick Goodenough's wealth has trickled downwards - so no begging letters, please.
Before moving on, it’s worth noting who has largely been left out. London’s public spaces are full of generals and admirals, but this series has mostly steered around them. Partly that’s a question of numbers; partly it reflects the more complicated - and sometimes contentious -nature of their legacies. And a few have already appeared along the way, notably Wellington (in his political role as one of Britain’s prime ministers) and Drake (as a pioneer).
Some other figures are simply too prominent to ignore - like Horatio Nelson. He - and a small number of others - will take their place in my final instalment, imaginatively entitled The Rest, alongside an eclectic mix of characters and misfits who don’t lend themselves neatly to any one category, but all have a claim to fame.
william morris/wallace?! accuracy over speed always! but wish reuters was not owned by an individual.
ReplyDeleteThanks Paul, fixed
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