George VI and Queen Elizabeth Memorial

The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Memorial stands between The Mall and Carlton Gardens in central London. It honours King George VI and his wife, later known as the Queen Mother. The present memorial was completed in 2009 and includes earlier work by William McMillan. A statue of George VI in naval uniform was unveiled by his daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1955. The redesign added a statue of the Queen Mother by Philip Jackson and relief panels by Paul Day. The memorial is notable for its Grade II listed statue of George VI, which stands on Portland stone. Queen Elizabeth’s statue shows her at fifty-one, the age she became a widow. Two bronze reliefs depict their life together and her later years alone. The setting was modified by Donald Buttress and Donald Insall to fit the new statue. A second casting of the Queen Mother’s statue was placed in Poundbury, Dorset, in 2016. Visitors find two bronze figures in a landscaped space between The Mall and Carlton Gardens. The earlier statue of George VI remains at the centre of the memorial. The relief panels show scenes from their shared life and her widowhood. The architectural setting frames the statues within a carefully designed area. The contrast between the older and newer parts of the memorial can be seen in the stonework and bronze details.