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The Confederate Memorial Monument is a monument installed outside the
The Confederate Memorial Monument is a monument installed outside the Alabama State Capitol
The Alabama State Capitol, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the First Confederate Capitol, is the state capitol building for Alabama. Located on Capitol Hill, originally Goat Hill, in Montgomery, it was declared a National ...
.
Description and history
On the north side of Capitol Hill there is a monument dedicated to Alabama's more than 122,000 Confederate veterans of the Civil War, known as the Confederate Memorial Monument. The tall monument was dedicated on December 7, 1898, although it had been planned as early as November 1865. Funding for the monument included $20,000 in the form of two grants from the state legislature, $10,000 contributed by theLadies Memorial Association
A Ladies' Memorial Association (LMA) is a type of organization for women that sprang up all over the American South in the years after the American Civil War. Typically, these were organizations by and for women, whose goal was to raise monuments ...
of Alabama, $6,755 from the Historical and Monumental Association of Alabama that was formed in 1865 to support the erection of this monument, and $5,000 from politicians.
Design of the monument was done by Gorda C. Doud and executed by sculptor Alexander Doyle
Alexander Doyle (1857–1922) was an American sculptor.
Doyle was born in Steubenville, Ohio, and spent his youth in Louisville (Kentucky) and St. Louis (Missouri) before going to Italy to study sculpture in Bergamo, Rome, and Florence, studying ...
of New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. The design features a stepped base surmounted by statuary representing the four branches of the military. Centered on top of this is a monumental bronze and limestone column, topped with a bronze figure by Doyle representing "Patriotism." The cornerstone was laid by Jefferson Davis
Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...
on April 29, 1886.
The base was built with Alabama limestone from Russellville, but problems occurred with the limestone for the column being found to be faulty. Although records are not complete, recent analysis has indicated that the column was eventually built using stone from Bedford, Indiana
Bedford is a city in Shawswick Township and the county seat of Lawrence County, Indiana, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 13,792. That is up from 13,413 in 2010. Bedford is the principal city of the Bedford, IN Micropo ...
. Relations between Doyle and his monument clients had soured by the late 1880s. The remaining granite figures for the base, representing the military branches, were contracted from Barnicoat Monuments in Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy ( ) is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county. Quincy is part of the Greater Boston area as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in ...
.
Critics have repeatedly called for the monument's removal, stating that it promotes white supremacy
White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
. These removal attempts have met with considerable resistance from preservationists and others. The monument was vandalized in 2007, with black paint sprayed on the granite and limestone.
On the morning of June 24, 2015, the flagpoles containing the Flags of the Confederate States of America
The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
, along with the Confederate Battle Flag, were removed on the orders of Governor Robert J. Bentley
Robert Julian Bentley (born February 3, 1943) is an American former politician and physician who served as the 53rd governor of Alabama from 2011 until 2017 upon his resignation following his arrest after a sex scandal involving a political aide ...
. This act was done in the wake of the Charleston church shooting
An Anti-Black racism, anti-black mass shooting and hate crime occurred on June 17, 2015, in Charleston, South Carolina. Nine people were killed, and one was injured, during a Bible study (Christianity), Bible study at Emanuel African Methodist ...
of June 17, 2015, after which many states responded to calls to prohibit Confederate flags from being displayed on public property. Bentley stated he found no laws or policies requiring the flags to stay up, and wanted to prevent any distractions from state legislative work.
See also
* List of Confederate monuments and memorials in AlabamaReferences
External links
* {{Commons category-inline, Confederate Memorial Monument 1898 establishments in Alabama 1898 sculptures Allegorical sculptures in the United States Bronze sculptures in the United States Confederate States of America monuments and memorials in Alabama Limestone sculptures in the United States Outdoor sculptures in Alabama Statues in Alabama Vandalized works of art in Alabama