Victoria Square, Birmingham
Encyclopedia
Victoria Square is a pedestrianised public square
in Birmingham
, England
. It is home to both the Town Hall
and the Council House
, and directly adjacent to Chamberlain Square
.
The square is often considered to be the centre of Birmingham, and is the point from where local road sign distances are measured. It is a short walk from St. Philip's Cathedral
on Colmore Row
and is on the main pedestrian route between the Bull Ring and Brindleyplace
areas. Three major roads, Colmore Row
, New Street
and Paradise Street
meet there.
Part of the square was once occupied by Christ Church (built 1805-13), but the church was demolished in 1899. The font
, bell and foundation stone were moved to the new St Agatha's
, Sparkbrook
, which was built with the proceeds when the site was sold to developers. The 600 bodies, which included John Baskerville
, housed in the catacombs beneath the church were moved to Warstone Lane Cemetery
. The site was the used for an office and retail block, the Christ Church Buildings, themselves demolished 1970 and replaced with a grassed slope.
During the 1950s, plans were made to widen Colmore Row for it to become part of the Birmingham Inner Ring Road
, with a major road junction to be constructed at Victoria Square. These plans were dropped, however a lot of the Inner Ring Road plan was carried through to construction.
. Construction commenced in 1992 and was completed in 1994, when it was officially opened by Diana, Princess of Wales
. During the redevelopment of the square, Iron: Man
, a sculpture by Antony Gormley
was installed and unveiled in 1993. It is rumoured that the statue was hidden from the Princess's view when she opened the square. A plaque is located on the southwestern side of the square to commemorate the opening.
Work is currently underway installing the new Television Screen. The giant screen was going to show the 2010 World Cup, but on police advice, the idea was scrapped. The work around the screen is expected to be completed at the end of October 2010.
Mistry's fountain The River
is the largest sculptural piece in the square
Additionally, there are other pieces not commissioned for the 1992 redevelopment of the square. One of these is Antony Gormley's
Iron: Man
which was donated to the city in March 1993 by the Trustee Savings Bank
, the headquarters of which was located alongside the square. It is 6 m (20 ft) in height, and has been subject to mixed reaction. It was suggested that the statue be moved to the bank's headquarters in Bristol
when it merged with Lloyds
.
There are also statues that existed prior to the redevelopment of the square. Of two statues that were originally located in the square, only one remains. That is the statue of Queen Victoria, which was originally created in 1901 by Thomas Brock
, but recast in bronze by William Bloye
in 1951, though the sceptre capital has been missing for some years and is due to be replaced in 2010, that to the research and assistance of The Victorian Society
. The plinth was also been replaced in composite Cornish marble in 1951.
The other statue that no longer stands in the square is a statue of King Edward VII
, which was moved to Highgate Park when Victoria Square was remodelled in 1951. Following restoration, it was re-erected, on a new plinth, outside Baskerville House
in Centenary Square
, in November 2010.
There were also statues of Robert Peel
, which is now located at the police's training centre Tally Ho!, and Joseph Priestley
, which is now in Chamberlain Square.
, Victoria Square forms the centrepiece for the Frankfurt
Christmas Market and Craft Fair which also extends into New Street and abuts onto a craft fair in Chamberlain Square, with the city's official Christmas tree
, donated each year by Sandvik
, also standing in the square. The market's wooden huts sell items such as jewellery, artwork, ornaments, clothing and German food.
The Birmingham Big Screen
is currently standing in the square following its removal from Chamberlain Square, but since its assembly in September 2007, it has not been used due to a dispute over the planning process for it. After the dispute over the first planning application, which was approved by the council, another was submitted in December 2008. However, the consultation process has stalled following an overwhelming number of objections. The dispute over the 27 ft (8 m) wide screen has cost million.
Town square
A town square is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town used for community gatherings. Other names for town square are civic center, city square, urban square, market square, public square, and town green.Most town squares are hardscapes suitable for open markets,...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is home to both the Town Hall
Birmingham Town Hall
Birmingham Town Hall is a Grade I listed concert and meeting venue in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. It was created as a home for the Birmingham Triennial Music Festival established in 1784, the purpose of which was to raise funds for the General Hospital, after St Philip's Church became...
and the Council House
Council House, Birmingham
Birmingham City Council House in Birmingham, England is the home of Birmingham City Council. It provides office accommodation for both employed council officers, including the Chief Executive, and elected council members, plus the council chamber, Lord Mayor's Suite, committee rooms and a large and...
, and directly adjacent to Chamberlain Square
Chamberlain Square
Chamberlain Square or Chamberlain Place is a public square in central Birmingham, England , named after Joseph Chamberlain.Its features include:*Birmingham Central Library*Paradise Forum...
.
The square is often considered to be the centre of Birmingham, and is the point from where local road sign distances are measured. It is a short walk from St. Philip's Cathedral
St Philip's Cathedral, Birmingham
The Cathedral Church of Saint Philip is the Church of England cathedral and the seat of the Bishop of Birmingham. Built as a parish church and consecrated in 1715, St Philip's became the cathedral of the newly formed Diocese of Birmingham in the West Midlands in 1905...
on Colmore Row
Colmore Row
Colmore Row is a street in the centre of Birmingham, England, running from Victoria Square to just beyond Snow Hill station. It is traditionally the city's most prestigious business address....
and is on the main pedestrian route between the Bull Ring and Brindleyplace
Brindleyplace
Brindleyplace is a large mixed-use canalside development, in the Westside district of Birmingham, England. It is often written erroneously as Brindley Place, the name of the street around which it is built...
areas. Three major roads, Colmore Row
Colmore Row
Colmore Row is a street in the centre of Birmingham, England, running from Victoria Square to just beyond Snow Hill station. It is traditionally the city's most prestigious business address....
, New Street
New Street, Birmingham
New Street is a street in central Birmingham, England . It is one of the city's principal thoroughfares and shopping streets. Named after it is Birmingham New Street Station, although that does not have an entrance on New Street except through the Pallasades Shopping Centre.-History:New Street is...
and Paradise Street
Paradise Street
Paradise Street is a short street in the Core area of Birmingham City Centre in England. Paradise Street runs roughly from Victoria Square to Suffolk Street and Broad Street...
meet there.
History
The square was formerly known as Council House Square, and had a tramway running through it. It was renamed on 10 January 1901, to honour Queen Victoria, and a statue of her was erected and unveiled. She died just 12 days later.Part of the square was once occupied by Christ Church (built 1805-13), but the church was demolished in 1899. The font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
, bell and foundation stone were moved to the new St Agatha's
St Agatha's Church, Sparkbrook
The Church of St Agatha is a parish church in the Church of England in Sparkbrook in Birmingham, England.-Background:It was designed by W. H. Bidlake. It is now a Grade I listed building....
, Sparkbrook
Sparkbrook
Sparkbrook is an inner-city area in south-east Birmingham, England. It is one of the four wards forming the Hall Green formal district within Birmingham City Council.-Etymology:...
, which was built with the proceeds when the site was sold to developers. The 600 bodies, which included John Baskerville
John Baskerville
John Baskerville was an English businessman, in areas including japanning and papier-mâché, but he is best remembered as a printer and typographer.-Life:...
, housed in the catacombs beneath the church were moved to Warstone Lane Cemetery
Warstone Lane Cemetery
Warstone Lane Cemetery, , also called Brookfields Cemetery, Church of England Cemetery, or Mint Cemetery, is a cemetery dating from 1847 in Birmingham, England. It is one of two cemeteries located in the city's Jewellery Quarter, in Hockley...
. The site was the used for an office and retail block, the Christ Church Buildings, themselves demolished 1970 and replaced with a grassed slope.
During the 1950s, plans were made to widen Colmore Row for it to become part of the Birmingham Inner Ring Road
A4400 road
The A4400 was a main road in Birmingham, United Kingdom which previously formed a ring around the city centre. Junctions on the road were largely grade separated, with pedestrians kept physically separate from vehicular traffic and most junctions allowing vehicles staying on the road to pass over...
, with a major road junction to be constructed at Victoria Square. These plans were dropped, however a lot of the Inner Ring Road plan was carried through to construction.
Redevelopment
During the late 20th century the square was a busy traffic junction. Plans were made to pedestrianise the area and to create a public focal point. An international design competition was held for a central water feature in the square, which was won by Dhruva MistryDhruva Mistry
Dhruva Mistry CBE RA is a sculptor, born in Kanjari, Gujarat, India in b 1957.-Early life and education:Dhruva Mistry , having worked in Great Britain between 1981 and 1997, returned to Vadodara...
. Construction commenced in 1992 and was completed in 1994, when it was officially opened by Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
. During the redevelopment of the square, Iron: Man
Iron: Man
Iron: Man is a statue by Antony Gormley, in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. The statue is tall, including the feet which are buried beneath the pavement, and weighs . The statue leans 7.5° backwards and 5° to its left...
, a sculpture by Antony Gormley
Antony Gormley
Antony Mark David Gormley OBE RA is a British sculptor. His best known works include the Angel of the North, a public sculpture in the North of England, commissioned in 1995 and erected in February 1998, Another Place on Crosby Beach near Liverpool, and Event Horizon, a multi-part site...
was installed and unveiled in 1993. It is rumoured that the statue was hidden from the Princess's view when she opened the square. A plaque is located on the southwestern side of the square to commemorate the opening.
Work is currently underway installing the new Television Screen. The giant screen was going to show the 2010 World Cup, but on police advice, the idea was scrapped. The work around the screen is expected to be completed at the end of October 2010.
Artwork
The River (artwork)
The River, locally known as The Floozie in the Jacuzzi is an artwork in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England.An international design competition was held for a central water feature in the square, which was won by Dhruva Mistry...
is the largest sculptural piece in the square
Antony Gormley
Antony Mark David Gormley OBE RA is a British sculptor. His best known works include the Angel of the North, a public sculpture in the North of England, commissioned in 1995 and erected in February 1998, Another Place on Crosby Beach near Liverpool, and Event Horizon, a multi-part site...
Iron: Man
Iron: Man
Iron: Man is a statue by Antony Gormley, in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. The statue is tall, including the feet which are buried beneath the pavement, and weighs . The statue leans 7.5° backwards and 5° to its left...
which was donated to the city in March 1993 by the Trustee Savings Bank
Trustee Savings Bank
The Trustee Savings Bank was a British financial institution which specialised in accepting savings deposits from the poor. They did not trade their shares on the stock market and, unlike mutually held building societies, depositors had no voting rights nor the ability to direct the financial and...
, the headquarters of which was located alongside the square. It is 6 m (20 ft) in height, and has been subject to mixed reaction. It was suggested that the statue be moved to the bank's headquarters in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
when it merged with Lloyds
Lloyds TSB
Lloyds TSB Bank Plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1995 by the merger of Lloyds Bank, established in Birmingham, England in 1765 and traditionally considered one of the Big Four clearing banks, with the TSB Group which traces its origins to 1810...
.
There are also statues that existed prior to the redevelopment of the square. Of two statues that were originally located in the square, only one remains. That is the statue of Queen Victoria, which was originally created in 1901 by Thomas Brock
Thomas Brock
Sir Thomas Brock KCB RA was an English sculptor.- Life :Brock was born in Worcester, attended the School of Design in Worcester and then undertook an apprenticeship in modelling at the Worcester Royal Porcelain Works. In 1866 he became a pupil of the sculptor John Henry Foley. He married in 1869,...
, but recast in bronze by William Bloye
William Bloye
William James Bloye was an English sculptor, active in Birmingham either side of World War II.He studied, and later, taught at the Birmingham School of Art , where his pupils included Gordon Herickx, Raymond Mason and Ian Walters...
in 1951, though the sceptre capital has been missing for some years and is due to be replaced in 2010, that to the research and assistance of The Victorian Society
The Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is the national charity responsible for the study and protection of Victorian and Edwardian architecture and other arts in Britain....
. The plinth was also been replaced in composite Cornish marble in 1951.
The other statue that no longer stands in the square is a statue of King Edward VII
King Edward VII Memorial
The King Edward VII Memorial is a sculpture in memory of King Edward VII, located in Centenary Square, Birmingham, England.In 1910, the Birmingham Mail launched an appeal to erect a statue to Edward VII, in order to commemorate his reign...
, which was moved to Highgate Park when Victoria Square was remodelled in 1951. Following restoration, it was re-erected, on a new plinth, outside Baskerville House
Baskerville House
Baskerville House, previously called the Civic Centre, is a former civic building in Centenary Square, Birmingham, England.-History:The site was originally occupied by the home of John Baskerville. He was buried nearby in the area which was known as Easy Hill...
in Centenary Square
Centenary Square
Centenary Square is a public square on Broad Street in central Birmingham, England, named in 1989 in celebration of the centenary of Birmingham achieving city status in 1889....
, in November 2010.
There were also statues of Robert Peel
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 December 1834 to 8 April 1835, and again from 30 August 1841 to 29 June 1846...
, which is now located at the police's training centre Tally Ho!, and Joseph Priestley
Joseph Priestley
Joseph Priestley, FRS was an 18th-century English theologian, Dissenting clergyman, natural philosopher, chemist, educator, and political theorist who published over 150 works...
, which is now in Chamberlain Square.
Events
Every ChristmasChristmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
, Victoria Square forms the centrepiece for the Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
Christmas Market and Craft Fair which also extends into New Street and abuts onto a craft fair in Chamberlain Square, with the city's official Christmas tree
Christmas tree
The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
, donated each year by Sandvik
Sandvik
Sandvik is a Swedish company founded in 1862 by Göran Fredrik Göransson in Sandviken. It is a high-technology engineering group and a world-leader in tooling, stainless steel alloys and materials technology, mining and construction...
, also standing in the square. The market's wooden huts sell items such as jewellery, artwork, ornaments, clothing and German food.
The Birmingham Big Screen
BBC Big Screen
The Big Screens are a project involving the BBC, LOCOG , and local councils. 25m LED screens with sound systems are situated in prominent locations in city centres...
is currently standing in the square following its removal from Chamberlain Square, but since its assembly in September 2007, it has not been used due to a dispute over the planning process for it. After the dispute over the first planning application, which was approved by the council, another was submitted in December 2008. However, the consultation process has stalled following an overwhelming number of objections. The dispute over the 27 ft (8 m) wide screen has cost million.
Sources
External links
- Birmingham City Council page on Victoria Square
- Picture of New Street joining Victoria Square The image includes the Christchurch buildings (now demolished) on the left and Victoria House (formerly the Post Office) on the right.
- Emporis entry of the Town Hall in Victoria Square
- Emporis entry of the Council House with the River Fountain and Fountain of the Youth in Victoria Square