Colonialism

#49

I am Queen Mary Statue in Copenhagen

Denmark

By Contested Histories Initiative

In 2018, artists La Vaughn Belle and Jeannette Ehlers created the ‘I Am Queen Mary’ Statue. The monument honours Mary Thomas, one of the three female leaders of the 1878 ‘Fireburn’ Rebellion, a revolt against Danish colonial rule on the Caribbean island of St. Croix. The monument was unveiled during… Read More

Columbus Gateway Monument in Galway
#441

Columbus Monument in Galway

Ireland

By Contested Histories Initiative

Christopher Columbus was a famed Genoese explorer whose 1492 expedition across the Atlantic is famous for his ‘discovery’ of America. Having visited Galway in 1477, a monument commemorating this visit was unveiled in 1992, having been donated by the city of Genoa to mark the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ famous… Read More

de Lessep Statue in Suez Canal
#37

De Lesseps Statue in Port Said

Egypt

By Contested Histories Initiative

In 1899, a statue of the engineer of the Suez Canal, Ferdinand De Lesseps, was erected at its northern entrance, where it stood until 1956 when it was moved into a warehouse. In 2014 an announcement that the statue would be reinstalled sparked controversy due to De Lesseps’s colonial legacy… Read More

Curt von François Statue with military attire in windhoek
#246

Curt von François Statue in Windhoek

Namibia

By Contested Histories Initiative

Curt von François (1852-1931) was a German military officer and colonialist, most well known in Namibia for his role in the genocide of the Namaqua and Herero peoples. A statue of him was erected in 1965 in Windhoek, Namibia, to mark the 75th anniversary of his supposed ‘founding’ of the… Read More

Salazar Statue in Maputo's Library
#321

Salazar Statue in Maputo

Mozambique

By Contested Histories Initiative

A life-sized bronze statue of Portuguese dictator António de Oliveira Salazar (b. 1889-1970) currently stands in the courtyard of the National Library in Maputo, Mozambique. Its move to this location in 2002 is part of an eventful prior itinerary, charted below by drawing on various sources while acknowledging the presence… Read More

Statue Columbus
#143

Columbus Statue in Barcelona

Spain

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Columbus Monument in Barcelona, located at the intersection of the city’s port and the main street of Las Ramblas, was built during the Columbus-mania of the 19th century and was the largest monument dedicated to the so-called discoverer of the Americas. Several social and political groups have called for… Read More

Memorial Plaque Comfort Women Palisades
#226

Comfort Women Memorial in New Jersey

USA

By Contested Histories Initiative

A ‘Comfort Women’ Memorial was unveiled outside Palisades Public Library in New Jersey in 2010. The monument paid homage to the more than 200,000 South Korean women who were victims of sexual exploitation (also termed ‘sexual slavery’) by Imperial Japanese forces before and during World War II. Though the Korean-American… Read More

Colonel Nixo Statue in South Auckland
#116

Nixon Memorial in South Auckland

New Zealand

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Colonel Marmaduke George Nixon statue (‘Nixon memorial’) stands at the intersection of Mangere and Great South roads in Otahuhu, a suburb of South Auckland, New Zealand. A contentious figure in New Zealand colonial history, the suitability of the public-nature of the memorial was called into question in 2017 after… Read More

King Leopold II equestrian monument in Brussels
#13

Leopold II Statue in Brussels

Belgium

By Contested Histories Initiative

The June 2020 global Black Lives Matter protests and the 60th anniversary of Congo’s independence on June 30th brought increased scrutiny of Belgium’s colonial past under the leadership of King Leopold II to the forefront of public consciousness. During this period, the Brussels monument of King Leopold was defaced as… Read More

Khala Goda Statue in Mumbai, India
#282

Khala Goda Statue in Mumbai

India

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Kala Ghoda (Black Horse) statue is a 16.7-foot-tall bronze statue in Mumbai, India, and a prominent relic of the country’s colonial era. The equestrian statue of King Edward VII became contentious during a period of rising nationalistic sentiments opposing symbols of imperial power in newly independent India. It was… Read More