Wellington Arch, Triumphal arch at Hyde Park Corner, London, England
The Wellington Arch is a triumphal arch at Hyde Park Corner in the City of Westminster. Atop this construction sits a large bronze sculpture, a quadriga depicting the Angel of Peace on a chariot drawn by four horses.
Decimus Burton designed this monument between 1826 and 1830 to celebrate British victories in the Napoleonic Wars. The original equestrian statue of Wellington was replaced by the current quadriga in 1883.
The name honors the Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, and Londoners recognize this monument as part of their everyday cityscape. Visitors today see the balconies from which they can look out over the traffic flow and the surrounding royal parks.
The viewing terraces open from April to October on Wednesdays through Sundays and offer views across central London. Access runs through a spiral staircase that spans several floors.
Until 1992, the interior housed London's second smallest police station, a tiny room where one officer kept watch over the traffic. English Heritage then converted the space into an exhibition on the history of the monument.
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