Sir, – John Naughton refers to the statue of Prince Albert at Leinster Lawn, as revealed in David McCullagh’s recent book From Crown to Harp (Letters, February 12th).
Its presence was also “revealed” in my earlier book, Crown and Shamrock, published in 2009, and in many other published sources before that – most notably Christine Casey’s peerless The Buildings of Dublin, published by Yale University Press in 2005. Casey informs us that the monument was by John Henry Foley, the renowned Irish sculptor.
Whether the statue of Queen Victoria’s consort should be removed – it is discreetly hidden by foliage – has long been a matter for debate. It seems to me the question should be whether we agree to acknowledge all aspects of our history – in an expression of inclusion and diversity – or whether we believe only one tradition should be allowed to stand. This question is quite relevant in light of discourse around a united Ireland.
Albert was a German who encouraged what we would call infrastructure – engineering, transport and industry. He was also a supporter of the revival of the Celtic languages. – Yours, etc,
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MARY KENNY,
Deal,
Kent.
Sir, – Regarding the recent exchange about the statue of Prince Albert, I would encourage anyone interested to read the excellent, publicly available overview produced by Charlotte Cousins of the Oireachtas Library and Research Service.
This engaging account details the attempts to locate the statue, first in St Stephen’s Green (scuppered by residents’ objections to opening the park to the public) and later on College Green (where the proposal ran foul not only of nationalist objectors who sought the site for a monument to Henry Grattan, but of royal supporters who considered the location insufficiently dignified).
Leinster House, then the home of the RDS, was selected as a suitably discreet location, but controversy was hardly avoided: in 1872 an attempt was made to blow it up.
While it is hardly surprising that eyebrows have been raised about the statue’s continued presence in the grounds of the Irish Parliament, the nation surely has more pressing issues to address.
Rather than waste time and money removing it, it would be appropriate to invest more in the Library and Research Services of the Oireachtas to support their important work and foster informed debate on the issues that matter to the nation and its representatives. – Yours, etc,
BRENDAN O’CONNELL,
Crumlin,
Dublin 12.
