US historic place in Washington, D.C.
Ulysses S. Grant Memorial
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![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Monument_to_Grant.JPG/220px-Monument_to_Grant.JPG) |
Artist
| Henry Shrady
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Year
| begun 1902
completed 1924
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Type
| Bronze
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Dimensions
| 5.2 m × 5.0 m × 1.2 m (206 in × 196 in × 48 in)
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Location
| West side of the U.S. Capitol
Washington, D.C.
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Owner
| Architect of the Capitol
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United States historic place
The
Ulysses S. Grant Memorial
is a
presidential memorial
in
Washington, D.C.
, honoring
American Civil War
general
and 18th
president of the United States
,
Ulysses S. Grant
. It sits at the base of
Capitol Hill
(Union Square, the Mall, 1st Street NW/SW, between
Pennsylvania Avenue
and Maryland Avenue), below the west front of the
United States Capitol
.
[3]
Its central sculpture of Grant on horseback faces west, overlooking the
Capitol Reflecting Pool
and facing toward the
Lincoln Memorial
, which honors Grant's wartime president,
Abraham Lincoln
. Grant's statue is raised on a pedestal decorated with bronze reliefs of the infantry; flanking pedestals hold statues of protective lions and bronze representations of the Union cavalry and artillery. The whole is connected with marble covered platforms, balustrades, and stairs. The Grant and Lincoln memorials define the eastern and western ends, respectively, of the
National Mall
.
The Grant Memorial is a contributor to the
Civil War Monuments in Washington, D.C.
, of the
National Register of Historic Places
. James M. Goode's authoritative
The Grant Memorial in Washington, D.C.
(1974) called it "one of the most important sculptures in Washington."
[4]
It includes the largest
equestrian statue
in the United States and the fifth-largest in the world.
[5]
Description
[
edit
]
The central, equestrian statue of Grant with one of the four lions (2017)
The Grant Memorial is in
Union Square
, which also encompasses the
Capitol Reflecting Pool
. The platform for the Monument, made of Vermont
marble
, is 252 feet (77 m) long and 71 feet (22 m) wide and is divided into three sections. The tall, middle section features a 10,700-pound, 17-foot-2-inch (5.23 m) high equestrian statue depicting Grant astride his war horse
Cincinnati
on a 22½-foot high marble pedestal.
[6]
A striking feature of the central statue is Grant's calm (almost disaffected) attitude amidst the raging fighting going on around him. This is not surprising because Grant was known for his calmness and coolheadedness during battle. In sharp contrast to Grant are the sculpture groups on either side,
Cavalry Charge
and
Artillery
, which
... possess more dramatic interest and suspense than any sculpture in the city and, indeed, in the Nation.
[7]
Surrounding the main pedestal are four shorter pedestals, each supporting a bronze lion in repose guarding both the United States flag and the flags of the Army. The memorial was the largest bronze sculpture cast in the United States at that time.
[4]
The Artillery Group to the south shows a caisson carrying three artillerymen and pulled by three horses. Astride the horse on the left is the
guidon
(flag) carrier who is signaling a sharp right wheel. Despite the impending course change the horse on the right is able to continue lunging forward due to a broken strap on the right bridle bit. To the north the Cavalry Group depicts a color squad consisting of seven cavalrymen charging into battle. The horse on the right has fallen and the rider, modeled after Shrady himself, is moments from being trampled by the onrushing horses.
[7]
History
[
edit
]
The drive to erect a monument to Grant was begun in the 1890s by the Society of the
Army of the Tennessee
.
[8]
[9]
Work on the memorial was begun in 1902 as the largest ever commissioned by Congress at the time,
[4]
was created by sculptor
Henry Merwin Shrady
and architect
Edward Pearce Casey
.
[10]
Sculptor
Edmond Amateis
assisted Shrady as the monument neared completion in 1921.
[11]
Shrady spent 20 years of his life working on the memorial and died, stressed and overworked, two weeks before its dedication in 1922.
[6]
The sculptures were cast in bronze at the
Roman Bronze Works
in New York.
[12]
Construction on the site of the memorial began in 1909 when the marble superstructure and the four bronze lions were installed. The Artillery Group was installed in 1912, the Cavalry Group in 1916, and the bronze equestrian statue of Grant in 1920. The memorial was dedicated on the 100th anniversary of Grant's birth, April 27, 1922. Shrady having died, the infantry panels on the base of Grant's pedestal were completed by sculptor
Sherry Fry
based on Shrady's sketches and installed in 1924.
[13]
The Grant Memorial composes the center of a three-part sculptural group including the
James A. Garfield Monument
to the south and the
Peace Monument
to the north.
During 2015 and 2016 a cleaning and restoration program was carried out on the memorial. This included the replacement of 150 elements of the work, such as swords and scabbards, that had gone missing or been stolen over the years. The layer of green corrosion on the memorial's bronze was removed to return it to its original brown color.
[14]
Gallery
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
"National Register Information System"
.
National Register of Historic Places
.
National Park Service
. July 9, 2010.
- ^
"American Revolution Statuary"
. National Park Service. September 20, 1978
. Retrieved
August 10,
2011
.
- ^
"General Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, (sculpture)"
. Siris-artinventories.si.edu
. Retrieved
2014-08-12
.
- ^
a
b
c
Goode 1974
, p.244.
- ^
Larger ones include the statue of
Genghis Khan Equestrian Statue
; the
monument
to Italy's
King Victor Emanuel
in Rome and the
monument
of
Jan ?i?ka
in Prague.
- ^
a
b
Goode 1974
, p.245.
- ^
a
b
Goode 1974
, p.246.
- ^
"The Grand Army Of The Republic"
. Civilwarhome.com. 2014-03-24
. Retrieved
2014-08-12
.
- ^
Sherrill 1924
, p. 18.
- ^
Goode 1974
, p.243.
- ^
Montagna 1987
, p.55.
- ^
"General Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, (sculpture)"
.
CollectionsSearchCenter
. Smithsonian Institution
. Retrieved
2012-08-15
.
- ^
Montagna 1987
, p.59.
- ^
Ruane, Michael; Ruane, Michael E. (2015-08-27).
"Grant Memorial gets a facelift as story of its tormented sculptor is retold"
.
The Washington Post
.
ISSN
0190-8286
. Retrieved
2017-08-17
.
References
[
edit
]
- Sherrill U.S.A., Lt. Col. Clarence O.; James William Bryan (1924).
The Grant Memorial in Washington
. Government Printing Office. p. 77 pages.
ISBN
0-295-95520-1
. idSherrill1924.
- Montagna, Dennis Robert Ph.D. (1987).
Henry Merwin Shrady's Ulysses S. Grant Grant Memorial in Washington, D.C.: A study in iconography, content and patronage (Doctoral dissertation)
. University Microfilms International Dissertation Services. p. 355 pages. idMontagna1987.
- Goode, James M. (1974).
The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C.: A Comprehensive Historical Guide (pages 243?248)
. Smithsonian International Press. p. 512 pages.
ISBN
0-87474-138-6
. idGoode1974.
- Michael F. Bishop,
"A Great Bronze Tarnished by Neglect,"
The Wall Street Journal
, January 7, 2011.
External links
[
edit
]
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Other works
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sculpture
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Fountains
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