That statue of Charles I has an interesting history in itself. It's London's oldest bronze statue. It was originally made before the Civil War, for Charles' lord treasurer the Earl of Portland at his house in Roehampton.
From Wikipedia:
"After the Parliamentary victory in the English Civil War, the statue was sold to John Rivet, a metalsmith in the Holborn area. Rivet received instructions from Parliament to break down the statue, but instead he hid it on his premises. He produced some broken pieces of brass as evidence that he had followed his instructions, and for some time sold brass-handled cutlery to both Royalists and Parliamentarians, which he claimed was made from the remains of the statue."
That statue of Charles I has an interesting history in itself. It's London's oldest bronze statue. It was originally made before the Civil War, for Charles' lord treasurer the Earl of Portland at his house in Roehampton.
From Wikipedia:
"After the Parliamentary victory in the English Civil War, the statue was sold to John Rivet, a metalsmith in the Holborn area. Rivet received instructions from Parliament to break down the statue, but instead he hid it on his premises. He produced some broken pieces of brass as evidence that he had followed his instructions, and for some time sold brass-handled cutlery to both Royalists and Parliamentarians, which he claimed was made from the remains of the statue."
So interesting. It's almost impossible to stand at Charing Cross and imagine that it was once all fields round 'ere, my boy.