The statue of Queen Victoria in Victoria Square

The original marble statue of Queen Victoria was unveiled in Victoria Square on the 10th January 1901 (12 days before her death). It was sculpted by Thomas Brock. The statue had to be replaced with a bronze casting in 1951 by the sculptor William Bloye. In 2011 a new bronze sceptre was installed. And the statue was conserved in 2018 by the Birmingham Civic Society.

The Statue of Queen Victoria, Victoria Square, Birmingham

In 2018 the Birmingham Civic Society gave the statue of Queen Victoria a deep clean, which saw scaffolding go up around April 2018. By May 2018 it was looking as good as new. Back in 2011 a new bronze sceptre was installed to replace the long missing one.

The PMSA has a detailed description of the history of the statue, now preserved on the Web Archive.

Mr W. H. Barber who was a Birmingham solicitor and benefactor of the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, offered to present the first outdoor statue of Queen Victoria to Birmingham in 1897, during the Diamond Jubilee year. He considered Thomas Brock to be the most suitable sculptor. Barber insisted that it be an enlarged replica of Brock's statue at Worcester Hall. The City accepted the offer on the 27th July 1897 and the completed work was unveiled 12 days before the death of Queen Victoria, on the 10th January 1901. It was in an outside space original named Council House Square, renamed to Victoria Square.

The original statue was made of white marble standing on a pedestal of dark Cornish granite. The figure of the Queen made more monumental with long state robes. The statue remained here, at one point statues of John Skirrow Wright and Joseph Priestley were here until 1913. Only to be replaced by the statue of King Edward VII.

During the VE Day celebrations on the 8th May 1945, there were men sitting on top of the statue, and the orb was badly damaged. The statue remained in place until 1950.

The square was redesigned in 1950 as a permanent work marking the Festival of Britain in 1951. The statue of King Edward VII was moved to Highgate Park, and as the marble original of Queen Victoria had weathered badly, Birmingham City Council and the Birmingham Civic Society provided a grant towards reproducing it in bronze.

The old statue was removed from Victoria Square on the 13th March 1950, and it was renovated by William Bloye who cast it in bronze. It returned on the 25th May 1951 and erected on a pedestal of light coloured Cornish granite. It was unveiled on the 9th June 1951 by the Princess Elizabeth (now our current Queen from 6th February 1952 to present).

In 1993 Victoria Square was pedestrianised and included new sculptures by Dhruva Mistry and Antony Gormley. The statue of Queen Victoria was moved slightly at the time. The square was re-opened by the Princess of Wales on the 6th May 1993.

More recently, the Birmingham Civic Society had a new bronze Sceptre made, to replace the one long since missing, this was done in February 2011. Scaffolding went up around the statue in late April 2018 for a deep clean. By the following month it was looking as good as new. New paving continues to be installed around Victoria Square, this started in 2019 as Town Hall Tram Stop was opened on Paradise Street, and continues well into 2020.

 

2009

My first photos of the statue of Queen Victoria were taken in April 2009, when I started going around Birmingham with my then Fujifilm compact camera. The brilliant blue sky going into Chamberain Square behind.

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As you can see the tip of the Sceptre was missing. It would be replaced for another two years.

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Some views of the statue taken during August 2009. By then I had my first Fujifilm bridge camera. So got some new photos of Queen Victoria.

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Close up and you still see that the tip of the Sceptre was missing.

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The statue always works quite well with the late 19th Century Council House architecture.

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During the Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market, in November 2009, you could see the statue of Queen Victoria to the left of a Helter Skelter ride.

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In this view of the statue you can see the original 103 Colmore Row which was designed by John Madin (now being replaced). It was built from 1973 and opened in 1976. It was demolished in 2016. Was known as National Westminster House.

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There was also a carrousel to the right, which returns to Victoria Square every Christmas season with the BFCM.

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2011

The tip of the Sceptre was replaced by February 2011, completing the statue as it was originally meant to look.

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But the bronze was looking a bit weathered even back in 2011.

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The Forward flag was flying on the top of the Town Hall, as you can see Queen Victoria holding her Orb.

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From the back you can hardly tell that the tip of the Sceptre was brand new!

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2013

Probably the only time I've seen the statue of Queen Victoria covered in snow was back in January 2013. This was the snowfall on the 18th January 2013. It was so cold and the snow was falling!

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In September 2013 was 4 Squares Weekender. This was held over the weekend of the 6th to 8th September 2013. Members of Nofit State Circus were standing on the roof of a caravan. There was flags and buntings all over the square at the time.

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I wonder if the Queen was amused or not? It was the weekend celebrating the opening of the Library of Birmingham.

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2015

Now onto December 2015 with the Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market again. To the right of the statue of Queen Victoria was a pair of portacabins, with the top one saying Merry Christmas! Heart 100.7.

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Behind all the huts of the BFCM was the annual Happy Christmas Birmingham lit up on the Council House. With it's line of lions above.

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2017

Seen on Remembrance Sunday in Victoria Square during November 2017. It was on the 12th November 2017 as a crowd gathered around Birmingham's Cenotaph at the time in front of the Council House. As the then Lord Mayor of Birmingham led the Service of Remembrance (this was moved to Colmore Row / Cathedral Square in 2018 and 2019).

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2018

The view from January 2018, as Queen Victoria has a new backing into Chamberlain Square with the then being built One Chamberlain Square. It was heavily raining at the time. This was around the time that Carillion went into liquidation (and would be months before BAM took over).

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In April 2018, Birmingham was celebrating the end of the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in Australia, while looking forward to the games in Birmingham in 2022. Birmingham was being broadcast live to the world at the time, as big performance took place in the square. A couple of 2022 flags to the right of the statue of Queen Victoria.

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A few weeks later, scaffolding went up around the statue for it's deep clean. The statue goes well with the columns of the Town Hall, and you can see One Chamberlain Square to the right through the columns.

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A few days after the scaffolding got a bit of a roof. The Birmingham Civic Society had the statue given a deep clean. It would look as good as new the next time I saw it.

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Wow! What a result! By May 2018 the statue of Queen Victoria was looking amazing after the conservation work that took place the month before. Crane to the left at Paradise Birmingham. BAM had taken over One Chamberlain Square and started Two Chamberlain Square by this point in time.

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It is now July 2018. New steps had been built around the base of the statue of Queen Victoria, while the hoardings of the West Midlands Metro extension were in front of her.

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I also saw this view down Pinfold Street at the time towards Birmingham New Street Station. A contrast between modern architecture and Victorian architecture. With Victoria Square House to the right.

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During August 2018, I got this view of the Town Hall, One Chamberlain Square, the Queen Victoria statue and the Council House in one shot.

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Now pink and blue adverts on the West Midlands Metro extension hoardings in October 2018. Was temporary tarmac around the new steps. Victoria Square House directly in front of the Queen and No. 1 Victoria Square to the right. The Beetham Tower is seen down Hill Street.

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In November 2018, I was in the Banqueting Suite at the Council House for the first Annual Birmingham We Are event that I attended. And got this view of the statue of Queen Victoria, facing the construction site of the West Midlands Metro extension. Lots of temporary tarmac around, as the Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market would soon be back again.

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2019

I got this view in February 2019 of the Queen Victoria statue. With the Town Hall, Chamberlain Memorial and One Chamberlain Square behind. The view behind has changed quite a lot in 10 years!

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There was a temporary guest in Victoria Square during May 2019, the Knife Angel. Queen Victoria shining to the left. While you can also see the Town Hall, Two Chamberlain Square, the Chamberlain Memorial and One Chamberlain Square. I'd previously seen the Knife Angel in Coventry in March 2019. It was by Alfie Bradley. It was still on a Nationwide tour when the pandemic and lockdown hit in 2020. (Click the link above to check out my Knife Angel post).

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2020

The Birmingham We Are annual event took place once again at the Banqueting Suite in the Council House in January 2020 (delayed from December 2019 due to the General Election). Here you can see West Midlands Metro tram 20 passing the statue of Queen Victoria.

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Town Hall Tram Stop opened in December 2019 and there was now regular tram services to Library Tram Stop in Centenary Square. Meanwhile some of the paving around Victoria Square was complete, but was a lot left to do. This is unique with a blue tram going past the statue.

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In early February 2020, I was walking around Paradise Circus Queensway, when I saw this view towards Victoria Square House down what used to be Congreve Passage, and would could be Congreve Street again in the future.

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Zooming in through the gate, I got this view of the Queen Victoria statue between Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery / The Council House and Victoria Square House. The shiny new Birmingham New Street Station is just about visible between the two Victorian buildings. Hopefully one day in the future it will be possible to walk from this direction into Chamberlain Square and Victoria Square. It's been blocked off since 2015.

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About 5 days later in Victoria Square, and the new steps with rails, which was completed by the end of 2019, when Town Hall Tram Stop opened. A safer way to head up to the statue of Queen Victoria. This was my last close up photo of the statue before the pandemic / lockdown was declared in late March 2020. I have got one photo of the Council House from early March 2020, but it's not directly at the statue.

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Photos taken by Elliott Brown.

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