Dr Noel Cox, the Chairman of the New Zealand Monarchist League, who addressed one of our annual conferences, has drawn our attention to a most apropriate move to honour the memory of The Queen Mother, who was so loved in New Zealand, Australia,throughout the Commonwealth and beyond.
Dr Cox advises that a new monument to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother is to be be sited off The Mall, in London, near the existing statue of King George VI.
Designers, architects and artists throughout the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and worldwide are invited to submit expressions of interest by 31st January for an appropriate memorial. The budget for the project is set at £2 million and it is expected to be completed in the summer of 2007.
Expressions of interest will be assessed by a panel on criteria including the quality of previous work, relevant previous experience, fee and references.
The selection panel will put together a shortlist of designers who will be invited to prepare costed proposals. The shortlisted designers will submit designs for consideration by the selection panel and by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.
Further details about the project, including downloadable site photographs and plans, are available at a dedicated web site: http://www.qmmemorial.gov.uk which has been launched today.
The site for the memorial to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother is on the north side of The Mall in London between Marlborough Road and Admiralty Arch.
The existing statue of King George VI in this location was created in 1955 and shows the king dressed in naval uniform.
It is envisaged that the existing site will be modified to include a memorial to Queen Elizabeth. The site lies within an area managed by the Royal Parks, which will maintain the memorial on completion.
The initial selection panel will comprise the Keeper of the Privy Purse, The Director of the Royal Collection, The Principal Private Secretary to The Prince of Wales, and The Director of the Property Section, Buckingham Palace.
The memorial project will be managed by the Royal Household, in association with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
A special £5 coin produced by the Royal Mint to celebrate The Queen’s 80th birthday this year will be sold to raise funds for a memorial to the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. Further information on this coin can be obtained through http://www.royalmint.gov.uk
We are indebted to Dr Cox for passing on this information.
It is, incidentally, most reassuring that Prince Charles, and his Principal Private Secretary, Sir Michael Peat, are to be involved in the selection. The Prince’s views on architecture and art will no doubt ensure that the monument is of a quality and dignity appropriate to the memory of the greatly loved Queen Mother.
Until next time,
David Flint