Status Quo

Major Dick Dowling Plaque in Tuam, Ireland
#440

Major Dick Dowling Plaque in Tuam

Ireland

By Contested Histories Initiative

Richard ‘Dick’ Dowling was an Irish-born emigrant to the United States who became famous forhis military exploits for the Confederacy in the American Civil War. In 1998, his Americandescendants unveiled a plaque on the wall of Tuam town hall to commemorate him in his place ofbirth. In 2017, following increased… Read More

Jean Baptiste Colbert Satue in Paris in France
#56

Jean Baptiste Colbert Statue in Paris

France

By Contested Histories Initiative

For many years, Jean-Baptiste Colbert was praised for his involvement in creating a strong French state. In recent years, however, this status has been called into question, notably concerning his involvement in laying the foundation of the Code Noir, a legal text which legitimised slavery in the French colonies. In… Read More

#85

Rodolfo Graziani Monument in Affile

Italy

By Contested Histories Initiative

A mausoleum inaugurated in August 2012 in the town of Affile, located in metropolitan Rome, has been subject to vandalism and protests by various anti-fascist groups. While the local right-wing mayor, Ercole Viri, claims that the publicly funded mausoleum was commissioned to honour Italian war veterans, the structure appears to… Read More

#50

Columbus Lighthouse in Santo Domingo

Dominican Republic

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Columbus Lighthouse of Santo Domingo is an enormous mausoleum which is said to contain Christopher Columbus’ remains. The first plans to build a monument to Columbus date back to the mid-nineteenth century, and a competition to decide the design of the project was launched in 1928. The final project… Read More

#65

Carl Hagenbeck Zoo in Hamburg

Germany

By Contested Histories Initiative

The zoo Tierpark Hagenbeck in Hamburg, Germany, was founded in 1907 by Carl Hagenbeck, a trader of wild animals who was notable for his exhibitions of people of colour in Völkerschauen or ‘human zoos’. Since 2020, petitioners and protestors have been demanding a critical reexamination of Hagenbeck’s legacy, calling for… Read More

#104

The Marine Memorial in Swakopmund

Namibia

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Marine Denkmal (Marine Memorial) in Swakopmund, Namibia, commemorates the German imperial soldiers who fought against Indigenous Namibians in the Herero Wars (1904-1908). Amid fraught Namibian-Germany relations and contested national memory politics, this monument has become a reminder of unresolved colonial legacies and traumas. Indigenous Namibian groups have pursued legal… Read More

#514

Mussolini’s Birthplace in Predappio

Italy

By Contested Histories Initiative

The small Italian town of Predappio has developed a controversial reputation as a site of neo-fascist ‘pilgrimage’ by virtue of its historical affiliation with the fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini. The town retains the peculiar distinction as both the birthplace of Mussolini and the location where he was eventually interred in… Read More

Mary Seacole Statue in front of St. Thomas Hospital in London
#174

Mary Seacole Statue in London, England

United Kingdom

By Contested Histories Initiative

The 2016 statue commemorating Mary Seacole at St. Thomas Hospital in London is the first statue in the United Kingdom dedicated to a named black woman. Mary Seacole is remembered for her involvement as a nurse in the Crimean War. However, some argue that her figure has been mythologised and… 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

Statue plint empty in Blantyre
#98

Gandhi Statue in Blantyre

Malawi

By Contested Histories Initiative

In 2018, a statue of Gandhi was proposed to be built in Blantyre, Malawi’s second-largest city. The Statue formed part of a USD 10 million investment from the Indian Government to construct a convention centre named after Gandhi. However, given Gandhi’s controversial writings on race, a ‘Gandhi Must Fall’ protest… 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