Wellington Monument - Wellington, Somerset, UK - Wikipedia Entries on Waymarking.com

"Standing high on the Blackdown Hills, the Wellington Monument, at 175ft, is the tallest three-sided obelisk in the world. An ambitious construction, it commemorates a modern yet classical hero. The story of its origins, and shambolic construction, repeats itself in the story of its conservation and repair up to the present day.
Early beginnings

The idea to erect a monument to the Duke of Wellington was first proposed in 1815 following the Duke's victory at the Battle of Waterloo. Following an architectural competition, Thomas Lee Jnr was appointed to design the monument. He proposed a triangular pillar supported on a plinth and surmounted by a massive cast iron statue of the Duke himself. The whole structure was intended to be 140 feet (43m) high.

Building work halted -

Funds ran out in a matter of months and building work ceased, by which time the pillar was only 45 feet (14m). When construction eventually resumed it continued in fits and starts for a number of years. By this time public interest in the project had waned and as a result the original design was pared down considerably. It was finished in the 1820s with the pillar the proposed height. The cast iron statue was never commissioned however and so in effect the monument became an obelisk rather than a plinth and statue as originally intended.

Lightning strikes twice -

Lightning strikes in 1846 and possibly again in the early 1850s caused serious structural damage. Charles Giles, a local architect, declared it a public danger. Giles was instructed to prepare a scheme for the repair and completion of the monument. These events coincided with the death of the Duke of Wellington.

A new design -

Giles came up with something very different from the original plan. He set out to transform the monument from a statue bearing pillar into the tallest obelisk in Britain.

However by 1892 the monument had again fallen into disrepair. The top of the plinth was rebuilt and the shaft extended to the height we see today. Thereafter it has been subjected to repeated restoration work of a major nature but its character has remained unchanged.

The current situation -

We took over management responsibility in 1934. Since that time it has needed careful renovation every 10 to 15 years, an expensive and unsustainable process given its height. At present a fence has been erected to protect the public from the risk of falling stone debris.

We are dedicated to looking after the monument and have coordinated a lot of survey work to help us better understand why Wellington Monument is deteriorating. We are now in a better position to understand what needs to be done.


Our preferred solution is full repair of the Monument. We are confident this will result in securing its long-term future. and reduce the need for further large scale expenditure in the foreseeable future."

SOURCE - (visit link)

Wikipedia Url: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
To post a visit log to this waymark you need to visit and write about the actual physical location. Any pictures you take at the location would be great, as well.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.