The Battle Monument, located on Calvert Street between Fayette and Lexington Streets in Baltimore, Maryland, commemorates the Battle of Baltimore

Battle of Baltimore

The Battle of Baltimore was a combined sea/land battle fought between British and American forces in the War of 1812. It was one of the turning points of the war as American forces repulsed sea and land invasions of the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland, and killed the commander of the invading...

 and honors those who died during the month of September 1814 during the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

. The monument lies in the middle of the street and is between the two Baltimore City Circuit Courthouses

Baltimore City Circuit Courthouses

The Baltimore City Circuit Courthouses are located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. Facing each other in the 100 block of North Calvert Street, the Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr, Courthouse and Courthouse East house the 30 judges of the 8th judicial circuit for the state of Maryland...

 that are located on the opposite sides of Calvert Street.

The monument, designed by Baltimore architect Maximilian Godefroy

Maximilian Godefroy

Maximilian Godefroy was an architect born about 1770 in France. During the French Revolution he fought on the Royalist side, was imprisoned in the fortress of Bellegarde, then released about 1805 and allowed to come to the United States. He later relocated to Baltimore, Maryland, where became an...

 and built in 1815-25, is 39 feet tall and is unusual in having an Egyptian Revival cenotaph

Cenotaph

A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been interred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek κενοτάφιον = kenotaphion...

 base which suggests a tomb. The eighteen layers of the marble

Marble

Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...

 base represent the eighteen states that made up the United States at the time of the war. A griffin

Griffin

The griffin, griffon, or gryphon is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle...

 is at each corner of the base. The column, carved as a Roman fasces

Fasces

Fasces are a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe blade emerging from the center, which is an image that traditionally symbolizes summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity"...

, is bound with cords listing the names of soldiers who died during the battle, while the names of officers who died are at the top.

The monument is topped by a marble statue by Antonio Capellano of a female figure representing Baltimore that wears a crown of victory and holds in one hand a laurel wreath

Laurel wreath

A laurel wreath is a circular wreath made of interlocking branches and leaves of the bay laurel , an aromatic broadleaf evergreen. In Greek mythology, Apollo is represented wearing a laurel wreath on his head...

 and in the other a ship's rudder

Rudder

A rudder is a device used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft or other conveyance that moves through a medium . On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw and p-factor and is not the primary control used to turn the airplane...

.

The monument is depicted on the seal of the City of Baltimore

Seal of Baltimore, Maryland

The Seal of Baltimore is the official government emblem of the City of Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. The current seal was adopted for use in 1827. The seal is in the shape of an ellipse with the image of the Battle Monument featured in its centre...

 that was adopted in 1827 and the city's flag

Flag of Baltimore, Maryland

The flag of the city of Baltimore features the Battle Monument, a local monument to veterans of the War of 1812 which is also the central motif on the city's seal...

 adopted in the early 20th century.

The monument is erroneously depicted as being in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 in the film Live Free or Die Hard

Live Free or Die Hard

Live Free or Die Hard , is a 2007 American action film, and the fourth installment in the Die Hard series. The film was directed by Len Wiseman and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane. The name was adapted from the state motto of New Hampshire, "Live Free or Die"...

.

See also

• Egyptian revival
• Washington Monument (Baltimore)
  Washington Monument (Baltimore)
  The Washington Monument in the elegant Mount Vernon neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland was the first architectural monument planned to honor George Washington.-History:...
  
  
• List of public art in Baltimore

External links

• Battle Monument, Baltimore, including photo in 1985, at Maryland Historical Trust website
• Monument Square, North Calvert Street between Fayette & Lexington S, Baltimore, Independent City, MD: 12 photos, 29 data pages, 2 photo caption pages, and 3 color transparencies at Historic American Building Survey
• Battle Monument, Calvert Street, Baltimore, Independent City, MD: 5 photos and 12 data pages at Historic American Building Survey
• Battle Monument: On Monument City