On this page:
- Albert Memorial
- Coalbrookdale Gates
- Elfin Oak
- King William III statue
- Peter Pan statue
- Physical Energy statue
- Queen Anne's Alcove
- Queen Caroline's Temple
- Queen Victoria statue
- Speke Monument
Albert Memorial
| Name of monument | Albert Memorial | |
| Description | One of London's most ornate monuments. Includes: a gilded statue of Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria; groups of sculptures representing industrial arts and sciences and the continents of Europe, Asia, African and America; and a frieze of 169 leading musicians, poets, painters, sculptors and architects. | |
| Location | Albert Memorial Road, opposite the Royal Albert Hall. | |
| History\background | Commemorates the death of Prince Albert in 1861 from typhoid. | |
| Designer | George Gilbert Scott. | |
| Dates | Unveiled 1872. | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | Funded by public subscription. The memorial shows Albert holding the catalogue of the Great Exhibition, which he inspired and helped to organise. Tours of the Memorial at 2pm and 3pm on the first Sunday of the month March-December. |
Coalbrookdale Gates
| Name of monument | Coalbrookdale Gates | |
| Description | Bronze-painted cast iron gates. | |
| Location | South Carriage Drive. | |
| History\background | Made by the Coalbrookdale Company for the 1851 Great Exhibition. Installed at the entrance to Lancaster Walk in 1852 and moved to present location during construction of the Albert Memorial. | |
| Designer | Design by Charles Crookes; sculpture by John Bell. | |
| Dates | Installed in present position in 1871. | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | Damaged by a bomb in World War II. |
Elfin Oak
| Name of monument | Elfin Oak | |
| Description | Sculpture made from the hollow trunk of an oak tree and carved with figures of fairies, elves and animals. | |
| Location | Alongside the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Playground. | |
| History\background | Made from the trunk of an ancient oak tree growing in Richmond Park. Given by Lady Fortescue in response to an appeal to improve facilities in the Royal Parks. | |
| Designer | Ivor Innes. | |
| Dates | 1930 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | The inside cover of Pink Floyd's 1969 album Ummagumma has a picture of David Gilmour in front of the Elfin Oak. Spike Milligan raised money for its restoration in 1996. Declared a Grade II listed structure in 1997. |
King William III statue
| Name of monument | King William III statue | |
| Description | Bronze statue of King William III. | |
| Location | South Gate to Kensington Palace. | |
| History\background | Presented to King Edward VII for the British nation by his nephew, the German Kaiser Wilhelm II. | |
| Designer | H Bauke. | |
| Dates | Installed 1907. | |
| Maintenance\care | Historic Royal Palaces. | |
| Interesting facts | King William III chose to live at Kensington Palace because the air was cleaner than at Whitehall and better for his asthma. The statue's pedestal was designed by Sir Aston Webb, who designed the Queen Victoria Memorial outside Buckingham Palace. |
Peter Pan statue
| Name of monument | Peter Pan statue | |
| Description | Bronze sculpture of Peter Pan, playing his pipe and surrounded by fairies and woodland animals. | |
| Location | Next to the Long Water, between the Italian Gardens and the Serpentine Bridge. | |
| History\background | Paid for and installed secretly by J M Barrie, the creator of the Peter Pan story. | |
| Designer | George Frampton. | |
| Dates | 1912 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | J M Barrie chose the location for the statue saying it was Peter's landing point in the story when he arrived in Kensington Gardens. Some MPs disliked the statue because they thought it was advertising for the Peter Pan story. |
Physical Energy statue
| Name of monument | Physical Energy statue | |
| Description | Huge bronze of a man on horseback. | |
| Location | Junction of Lancaster Walk and Inverness Walk, between the Round Pond and the Long Water. | |
| History\background | Based on an equestrian monument that Watts made in 1870 of Hugh Lupus, an ancestor of the Duke of Westminster. In 1902 Watts made a cast for the memorial to Cecil Rhodes in Cape Town and another for Kensington Gardens. | |
| Designer | George Frederick Watts. | |
| Dates | 1907 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | Watts described the sculpture: "This is a symbol of something done for the time, while the rider looks out for the next ting to do." |
Queen Anne's Alcove
| Name of monument | Queen Anne's Alcove | |
| Description | Classical-style covered seating area. | |
| Location | At the end of the Italian Gardens between Marlborough Gate and Buckhill Lodge. | |
| History\background | Designed for the boundary of Queen Anne's formal garden at Kensington Palace. Queen Anne's coat of arms is just below the roof. | |
| Designer | Sir Christopher Wren. | |
| Dates | 1705 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | A London builder paid for it to be moved to its present position in 1867. It was once used as a gardeners' storeroom. |
Queen Caroline's Temple
| Name of monument | Queen Caroline's Temple | |
| Description | Classical style summer house. | |
| Location | Overlooking the Long Water, east of Lancaster Walk. | |
| History\background | Built for Queen Caroline, for whom the Long Water was created. | |
| Designer | Attributed to William Kent. | |
| Dates | c1734 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | Some of the graffiti inside dates back to 1821 when the park was first open every day to visitors. It was converted into a park keeper's home but restored in 1976. |
Queen Victoria statue
| Name of monument | Queen Victoria statue | |
| Description | Marble sculpture of Queen Victoria. | |
| Location | Overlooking The Broad Walk, outside Kensington Palace Garden. | |
| History\background | Presented by the Kensington Golden Jubilee Memorial Executive Committee. | |
| Designer | Princess Louise, Queen Victoria's daughter. | |
| Dates | 1893 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | Shows the Queen, aged 18, in her coronation robes in 1837. |
Speke Monument
| Name of monument | Speke Monument | |
| Description | Granite obelisk. | |
| Location | Near the junction of Lancaster Walk and Budges Walk. | |
| History\background | Installed by the Speke Memorial Committee in memory of John Hanning Speke, the explorer who was the first Eurpean to discover Lake Victoria and led expeditions to the source of the Nile. | |
| Designer | Philip Hardwick. | |
| Dates | 1866 | |
| Maintenance\care | The Royal Parks. | |
| Interesting facts | The monument was paid for by public subscription and sponsored by the President of the Royal Geographical Society, which had paid for two of Speke's expeditions. |
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