Town Mouse on memorials
Monuments usual are a spur to urban regeneration in the USA but our own efforts have been mixed, says Clive Aslet


The Battle of Waterloo might have transformed London, turning Hyde Park Corner into what the Mechanics’ Magazine in 1830 called the capital’s ‘grand entrance’. There was to be a triumphal arch, triumphal statues, and I don’t know what, all 'triumphal'. But this wasn’t Paris, and very little got done Decimus Burton’s Wellington Arch only arrived by accident, when George IV’s megalomaniac plans for Buckingham Palace went pear-shaped. July 4 will see the unveiling of a Wellington Arch equivalent in Atlanta, Georgia, designed by Hugh Petter of Robert Adam Architects.
American planners and philanthropists have found that monuments are a spur to urban regeneration. Our own efforts have been mixed. The best of the recent examples is Liam O'Connor's Commonwealth Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill. I wish I could summon more enthusiasm for the Australian memorial (blocks of granite) and the New Zealand memorial (slabs of bronze) on Hyde Park Corner. I’ve only just realised they are memorials at all. As for the monstrous Animals in War Memorial in Park Lane, one has to ask, as one contemplates it at greaterlength than one might wish from the window of a stationary vehicle: why?
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by HRH The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.
-
The Mediterranean Magic of Malta
With historic charm, picture-perfect beaches and a welcoming approach to newcomers, Malta represents an appealing option for Mediterranean property hunters. Holly Kirkwood reports.
-
'Never willing to pardon where I had a power to revenge’: The history of the duelling class
Settling a dispute with swords, pistols and, if legend is to be believed, sausages and guitars, has long been a matter of honour even among modern-day rock stars, discovers John F. Mueller.