Westminster
Palace
Pictures
Houses of Parliament
- London Photo Gallery
The Burghers of Calais statue
in Victoria Tower Gardens. During the Hundred Years
War, Calais had been taken by Edward III after a fierce resistance.
The
King agreed to spare the city if six prominent townspeople
surrendered keys to the city and offered their lives. Dressed
in sacks
and wearing nooses, six volunteers presented themselves to
Edward. Edward's queen pleaded and the six hostages were spared.
Rodin
made the statue at the request of the mayor of Calais, and
it shows the burghers as they set out to the English camp to
confront
the King. There is one version in Calais, but the one shown
here is a second statue the National Art Collections Fund bought
from Rodin in 1911 as a gift to the nation. Rodin chose
Victoria Gardens for his work because of the backdrop
of the soaring Gothic towers of Parliament |
