A relic of Barbados’ colonial past is no more; the removal of the Horatio Nelson statue

BY LA SHAWNA GRIFFITH

After 207 years of Horatio Nelson standing in picturesque Hero’s Square Nelson, a relic of Barbados’ colonial past is no more.

On November 17th, 2020 around 4:18 pm, Crane and Equipment removed Nelson’s statue to loud applause from the onlookers who lined the streets of Bridgetown to witness the historical moment.

An hour later, Nelson was mounted onto a vehicle to begin its journey to the Barbados Museum and Historical Society where it will be placed in storage. During the removal of Nelson, there was a cultural showcase with performers: Cyndi Celeste, Israel Lovell Foundation, Haynesville Drummers, Pinelands Creative Workshop, The Mighty, and Nakita.

Nelson’s statue was first unveiled in 1813 to commemorate his victory over the French and Spanish Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Many historians have argued that Nelson was no hero and that he should be removed swiftly from Hero’s Square due to the fact that he was a supporter of slavery.

Barbadian historian and former lecturer at Barbados Community College, Trevor Marshall said in an article – written by Huff Post – that if Nelson remained alive, the end of slavery would have occurred many years later. “I have never been a fan of our present colonial system,” Nelson said. Two years later after his tragic death, Britain announced the end of the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

The debate on whether to move Nelson from Hero’s Square formerly Trafalgar Square is not new. As far back as 1990, activists noted that Nelson defended the slave trade upon which Barbados’ plantation economy is based and thus such a symbol of White Supremacy must be removed from the island’s capital.

In 1999 the Government of Barbados renamed Trafalgar Square to Hero’s Square to the delight of Barbadians. The call was heard that Nelson must be removed if the island was truly removing any aspects of their colonial past.

Back in June Alex Downes, a social activist and former journalist, started an online petition for the statue’s removal from the city square and gained the required 10,000 signatures. In an interview with Barbados TODAY he stated that he was asking the government to remove elements of our colonial past.

“We are essentially asking the Government to start with the low hanging fruit. Nelson is something that is visible, known, and talked about and can be easily removed. We are 95% black and even if you are not black, you live in a predominately black country and you are a part of the culture that makes us all Barbadian.”

Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley questioned why the removal of Nelson had taken so long to complete, and pledged that the square would reflect the country’s national consciousness.

“We wonder how the injustices that perpetrated and dotted this land for centuries have taken so long to be reversed. I ask us today to recognize that this Government has been very clear that national consciousness and identity come at the core of the nation-state, and if we do not know who we are, if we are not clear what we will fight for, then we are doomed to be exploited and to be colonized again. Not necessarily in the same way that led to ships coming in, but in the way that will allow the mental spaces to be dominated by stories and songs and messages that are not our own and that are not intended to be able to lift up our people to where we need to go in this world today.”

The removal of Nelson was attended by scores of Barbadians who all were eager to witness the historical moment with some of them holding their mobile phones to record the moment of history. Mottley once again declared the island would become a republic by the island’s 55th independence and noted the time has come for the President of Barbados to be a Barbadian native.