Lord Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) has been etched in the minds of Barbadians as a great Sea fearer. His Statue almost salutes the morning sun as it rises from the east making its way over the treasury building as its warmth engulfs what is now known as Heroes Square in Bridgetown, Barbados.
As he faces the east he now gazes on the Obelisk, and the eight step path to enlightenment which also adorns the SQUARE. It is belief that Nelson might have been a Mason.
Horatio Nelson in some quarters is believed to have save Barbados from "French" invaders, and so a statue of him was erected in Barbados' Bridgetown. The statue is said to be older than the said same in Great Britain, by some 20 years. The Bridgetown statue was erected in 1813, whereas that in London was erected sometime between 1840, and 1843.
The Lord Horatio Nelson statue at this present time is some 196 years old, and once faced the west overlooking the country's main shopping area, the popular Broad Street, but was turned around to now face the cenotaph/obelisk in the east by the Barbados Labour Party in 1998.
The statue has caused much controversy over the last couple of years with heated debates being broadcast over the airwaves and the internet on the popular radio program Bras Tacks on Voice of Barbados. Many have been calling for the statue to be removed from the chief town in such a central area, and from the Heroes Square on the basis of the following points:
1. His statue is the only one in our Heroes Square, and he is
not a hero of the majority who are of African decent
2. He encouraged the enslavement of Africans, and therefore is
an embarrassment to us.
3. The statue is more appropriate for a marine environment
The other side of the coin or the debate has been the following:
1. He is part of our history, and we would be destroying what is
part of us.
2. Through his battle at Trafalgar we were saved from the
"French" and therefore has the right to remain
3. As the statue of Horatio Nelson in Bridgetown, Barbados is older than
its counterpart in Trafalgar Square, in Britain. It should be
allowed to remain as a tourist attraction.
This statue will be debated upon every around independence when we celebrate our heritage, and our national heroes, but Nelson will not be touched because he might have been a freemason and therefore is seen by some as a national hero. It is unknown if he is responsible for Masonry Flourishing in Barbados.
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