Statue of Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

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This is a bronze sculpture depicting Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz standing proudly, pointing to a cushioned pillar at her left side. She wears court dress, with an emphasis on her royal status through what appears to be a sculpted pattern of ermine on her robe. A coronet and two necklaces, possibly ropes of pearls, adorn her royal figure. The point of one of her shoes is visible, emerging from underneath her heavy robes, while the tassels holding these robes in place are paralleled in the tassels on the pillar's cushion. Unfortunately, the sculptor's name remains unknown. Queen Charlotte, born as Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and queen consort to King George III, has a lead statue in Queen Square, Bloomsbury. Although initially thought to be a representation of Britain's last Stuart monarch, Queen Anne, general opinion now holds that this statue is indeed of Queen Charlotte. This statue stands at the north end of Queen Square, surrounded by Victorian and modern buildings, including several original 18th-century houses like the Mary Ward Centre. According to London Remembers, this statue was erected for Queen Charlotte in April 1775. If true, this would place the statue within Queen Charlotte's own lifetime, when she was thirty-one years old. A painting executed by Edward Dayes in 1786 shows Queen Square and the Church of St George the Martyr to the south, with the statue visible at the north end. A typical English pub from the 1710s, No. 1 "The Queen's Larder," promotes a legend that Queen Charlotte rented a small space beneath the pub where special supplies could be kept for George III during one of his illnesses. Although the truth behind this legend is unclear, Queen Square has a strong living legacy for medical research and healthcare, with several buildings still existing today for this purpose. Queen Charlotte's Keeper of the Robes, Fanny Burney, Madame D'Arblay, also lived on Queen Square at some point in time. Burney was appointed to her royal post at Court in 1786, nearly ten years after Queen Charlotte's statue was supposedly erected.