Monuments to the Duke of Wellington in nineteenth-century Ireland: forging British and imperial identities

Abstract

During the nineteenth century, the first Duke of Wellington's renown was such that the inhabitants of Britain and Ireland funded a number of public monuments to celebrate his life and achievements. Three examples of these works were raised in Ireland, his native country. They were located in Dublin, Meath and Tipperary, respectively. Through unravelling the history of these monuments in the nineteenth century, this article explores how concepts of identity found form and expression, were shaped and reshaped, in and through the Irish landscape. The political and geographic context, combined with the personal associations of the commemorative subject, offer particular opportunity for the exploration of British and imperial identities, their composition and their relative strength and prevalence in the cultural landscapes of nineteenth-century Ireland. The nature and significance of Protestant Ascendancy and Roman Catholic interactions with the monuments are also considered.

Keywords:

• Duke of Wellington
• monument
• nineteenth-century Ireland
• British identity
• empire
• landscape

Acknowledgements

The author would like to gratefully acknowledge the funding of the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences and Trinity College Dublin, as well as the invaluable support and guidance of Dr Mark Hennessy. Thanks also to Dr Edward McParland and Noel French at Meath Heritage Centre for highlighting the availability of some primary source material and to Paul Ferguson, Trinity College Map Library, for advice and assistance with maps.