Macdonald Monument

The Macdonald Monument is a monument to Sir John A. Macdonald, first Prime Minister of Canada, by sculptor George Edward Wade (1853-1933), located at Place du Canada in the Montreal's Dominion Square.

Macdonald Monument
Coordinates45°29′55.5864″N 73°34′10.578″W
LocationMontreal, Quebec, Canada
DesignerGeorge Edward Wade
Materialbronze, stone
Opening date6 June 1895
Dedicated toJohn A. Macdonald

Work

At the top, an allegorical female figure carrying a horn of plenty represents Canada. Below, the children symbolize the seven provinces that made up Canada at the time. The bronze is housed under a stone baldachin replete with copper bas reliefs of industrial and agricultural trades practised in the Dominion he first commanded. While the plaza is arranged along the skewed cardinality characteristic of Montreal, Macdonald looks west-northwest, under a canopy created by trades, at the vast expanse awaiting the command coming from Montreal. Also, he faces off against the tribute to Sir Wilfrid Laurier, across the street in what is now Dorchester Square.

The two cannons flanking the monument were used at Sevastopol in the Crimean War and were a gift from Queen Victoria to the City of Montreal in 1892, to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the city.

History

The monument was unveiled by John Hamilton-Gordon, Earl of Aberdeen, Governor General of Canada on 6 June 1895.

Vandalism and calls for removal

Reassessments of Macondald's role in Canadian history, particularly his assimilationist policies toward Indigenous Canadians and racist views of Asian immigrants,[1] led to statues of Macdonald being removed and sometimes vandalized in other cities in the first decades of the 21st century.[2] Since 2017, the Monument has itself been subjected to repeated vandalism, and was painted blue during an Extinction Rebellion protest.[3]

Renewed calls for removal amid anti-racism protests in 2020
Main article: George Floyd protests in Canada

In the midst of the anti-racism protests of 2020, which took place worldwide in solidarity with those following the death of George Floyd while in police custody, and the removal of Confederate Army statues in the United States, Canadian cities have seen a rise in calls to remove Macdonald statues, and those of others linked to Canada's colonial legacy.[4] Early in June, it was reported that the Monument was on a list of fifteen statues across Canada subject to petition for removal,[5] with a Change.org petition begun in Montreal calling for the Monument's removal having garnered 2100 signatures as of 8 June.[6] Several sculptures and monuments depicting historical figures across Canada "with ties to racist elements of Canada's past" were defaced, including a park bench statue of Macdonald covered in red paint in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.[7]

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References
  1. White-Crummey, Arthur (10 August 2018). "Regina mayor has no desire to follow Victoria's lead on Sir John A. Macdonald statue". Regina Leader-Post. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  2. Postey, Drew (22 August 2018). "Despite recent controversy Mayor Fougere disappointed to see MacDonald statue vandalized". 620 CKRM. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  3. https://beta.ctvnews.ca/national/canada/2019/3/21/1_4346453.html
  4. "'Their time has come': Calls increase for removal of statues linked to colonial legacy". CTV News. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  5. Brimacombe, Jody (12 June 2020). "15 racist statues in Canada that people want removed". Fresh Daily. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  6. Elliot, Teddy (8 June 2020). "Montrealers Are Demanding The Sir John A. Macdonald Statue Come Down Now". MTL Blog. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
  7. Wright, Teresa (20 June 2020). "John A. Macdonald statue in Charlottetown covered with red paint". Winnipeg Free Press. The Canadian Press. p. A16.
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