Focus on Statue of James II, Trafalgar Square and explore the History.
The statue of James II is one of three of the Stuart monarchs commissioned by the royal servant Tobias Rustat from Grinling Gibbons's workshop in the 1670s and '80s, the others being of James's brother and predecessor Charles II: an equestrian statue in Windsor Castle and a standing figure at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea. The statue of James II was commissioned for the Palace of Whitehall, apparently at the same time as the standing Charles II, and the two works might have been intended as pendant pieces.  It was produced in the workshop of Grinling Gibbons at a reported cost of £300 (equivalent to about £42,000 at 2014 prices). While the work was long attributed to Gibbons himself, large-scale sculptures were not his forte. Contemporary accounts attribute it to sculptors Peter van Dievoet of Brussels who came to London to cast this statue, and Laurens van der Meulen of Mechelen.
The James II was erected at the Palace of Whitehall on 24 March 1686, as recorded by a contemporary, Sir John Bramston the Younger. George Vertue, who found an agreement and a receipt of payment for the work, wrote that it was "modelled & made by Lawrence Vandermeulen (of Brussels) [sic] ... & Devoot [i.e. Peter Van Dievoet] (of Mechlin) [sic] who was imployed [sic] by ... Gibbons", and that Thomas Benniere was involved in the casting. A series of five drawings in the British Museum, which might be for either the standing Charles II or the James II, is attributed variously to Gibbons or to Van Dievoet. Its artistic qualities were praised by J. P. Malcolm in his 1803 history, London Redivivum, in which he wrote:There is but one fault in the figure, and that is the attitude. The King seems to point with a baton at the earth, to which his eyes are directed; but why? Surely this is an egregious error. However, perhaps the artist may have been commanded to model the statue thus; and if not, his mistake is more than counter-balanced by the beautiful turns of the muscles, the excellence of the features, and the true folds of the drapery.
James II's statue has stood in several locations since it was first erected. It originally stood in the Palace of Whitehall's Pebble Court, where it was installed on New Year's Day, 1686. It was situated behind the Banqueting House and faced the river, a position which attracted much satirical comment after James' flight from London during the Glorious Revolution of 1688; it was said that the statue's location indicated his method of escape.It was taken down after the Glorious Revolution but was replaced by order of William III. In 1898 it was moved to a location in the garden of Gwydyr House. It was taken down four years later to make room for the stands for the coronation of Edward VII. It lay on its back amid grass and weeds in a state of total neglect until it was re-erected in 1903 outside the New Admiralty building. It was displaced again when the Admiralty Citadel was built in 1940. During the Second World War it was put into storage at Aldwych tube station. It was relocated to its present site in 1947. The statue is listed by Historic England as a Grade I listed building, a status which it was granted in 1970.
Royal Hospital Peter Van Dievoet Banqueting House James II John Bramston the Younger Mechlin Edward VII Laurens van der Meulen British Museum Peter van Dievoet baton George Vertue Grinling Gibbons Van Dievoet listed building Chelsea Mechelen Gwydyr House Brussels pendant New Admiralty Admiralty Citadel Aldwych tube station standing figure London Historic England William III Glorious Revolution Palace of Whitehall Second World War an equestrian statue in Windsor Castle Tobias Rustat Charles II