Operation Ralegh
From Sir Duncan Oppenheim Sir: Before answering Paul Johnson's ques- tion, 'Are these the real reasons why Sir Walter Ralegh is to be removed from his pedestal?' (And another thing, 25 Novem- ber), your readers may be interested to know how he arrived there.
In the 1950s we celebrated the 350th anniversary of the landings of colonists at Jamestown, Virginia. An anglophile Ameri- can living in London thought it an appropri- ate time to instal a statue of Sir Walter, especially one sculpted by a female friend of his and financed by the tobacco companies and placed opposite the National Gallery next to George Washington. BAT and Impe- rial Tobacco agreed to finance the project but decided that there should be a competi- tion to be judged by Sir Kenneth Clark.
Several sculptors, including the lady in question, were invited to submit maquettes and duly did so. All were judged by Sir Kenneth to be unsuitable. It was decided to play safe and to commission the Royal Aca- demician William McMillan, who produced the competent but unexciting work now almost invisible in Whitehall, where it was placed because permission to site it oppo- site the National Gallery was refused.
I would think that Sir Walter would be happier to be near the spot where accord- ing to legend he received his knighthood, and where he can be seen.
Duncan Oppenheim
London W8
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