Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TRAFALGAR SQUARE
Charing Cross.
MAP
As one of the few large public squares in London, Trafalgar Square has been a focus for
political demonstrations since it was laid out in the 1820s. Most days, however, it's scruffy
urban pigeons that you're more likely to encounter, as they wheel around the square hoping
some unsuspecting visitor will feed them (though, it is, in fact, illegal to do so). Along with
its fountains, the square's central focal point is the deeply patriotic
Nelson's Column
, which
stands 170ft high and is topped by a 17-foot statue of the one-eyed, one-armed admiral who
defeated the French (and died) at the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar. Nelson himself is actually
quite hard to see - not so the giant bronze lions at the base of the column, which provide a
popular photo opportunity. Stranded on a nearby traffic island is an equestrian statue of
Charles I, while in the square's northeastern corner is one of George IV, which he himself
originally commissioned for the top of Marble Arch. The
fourth plinth
, in the northwest
corner, was built for an equestrian statue of William IV, but remained empty until 1999,
since when it's been used to display alternating works of modern sculpture (
