Let's explore the many secrets, gruesome myths and conspiracy theories of this majestic Wellington Monument towering over the Phoenix Park.
The landmark is technically a testimonial as the Duke was alive at the time of its construction. It was erected to celebrate Dublin born "Iron Duke" Arthur Wellesley's triumph over Napoleon at Waterloo as well as other victories.
Surprisingly it was originally planned to be located in the middle of Merrion Square. However, the wealthy elite of Dublin at the time objected to their mansions being dwarfed and feared it would attract the riff-raff.
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At 62 metres it is the largest obelisk in Europe. Its imposing, domineering appearance was quite appropriate considering the man it commemorates. It was designed by Sir Robert Smirke who also designed the Greek revival façade of the British Museum.
Construction mismanagement
Construction began in 1817, paid for in part by grateful subscriptions from across the British Empire. But in 1820 the money ran out and it was left like an eerie half-finished post-apocalyptic shell for over 40 years until 1861.
Even then the original plans were not entirely executed as a larger than life statue of a triumphant Wellington on horseback was planned. But again financial mismanagement resulted in downsizing, some things in Dublin never change!
The massive high-relief plaques on each side use bronze recycled from cannons captured during the battle of Waterloo, which the monument celebrates. How’s that for rubbing it in?
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The sculptures and engraving on the plaques, now green and blacked verdigris with weathering, depict scenes from Wellington's epic military campaigns. The stylized scenes are "Civil and Religious Liberty”, “Waterloo” and “Indian Wars”. The front-facing panel bears a crown, victory laurels, the name Wellington and an inscription which reads:
"Asia and Europe, saved by thee, proclaim
Invincible in war thy deathless name,
Now round thy brow the civic oak we twine
That every earthly glory may be thine"
Mysterious secrets and gruesome legends
Unsurprisingly for a Dublin landmark, there are several myths about the structure. One is that the obelisk is hollow and has a secret staircase leading to the top, reminiscent of the monastic round towers, and the late great Nelson's Pillar. It seems the hidden staircase urban legend comes from another Wellington testimonial in Somerset.
A more gruesome legend tells of a special invitation dinner that was held in a secret vault at the base of the pillar to raise money to continue construction. The legend goes that the dinner party became quite debauched and drunken, as the era demanded, and as part of the fun the next morning the entire vault was sealed complete with dining table, chairs, decorative screens and kitchen to form a little time capsule.
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However apparently another unintended artefact was preserved. It was discovered after the vault was bricked back up that one of the butlers at the meal could not be located. Said butler was known to have a habit of partaking of the expensive wine himself whilst serving, and it's rumoured he may have passed out behind the aforementioned kitchen area screens and been left entombed.
The event would presumably have been during the 1820 financial crisis when secrets would have been kept. Whilst there is a large vault under the pillar and a bit of fancy dining in a slightly creepy location would have been quite fashionable for the elite of the time, it’s highly unlikely that anyone could be concealed in such a small space, or for a long enough duration as to be ignored by builders. It’s a great goosebump inducing story though.
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Dublin Occult Grid conspiracy
For conspiracy-minded readers there are some who place the Wellington obelisk in a grander mysterious scheme in our ancient city. Some believe its part of an array of smaller monoliths across Dublin, which are allegedly aligned for their occult geometric significance.
The so-called “Dublin Occult Grid” theory seeks to match up the Wellington testimonial with everything from the Parnell Monument to the modern pyramid memorial to armed forces and the tunnel system beneath the Casino in Marino. This is all allegedly masterminded of course by the perennial boogie man of the cranks, The Freemasons.
The theory suggests the monument is some kind of masonic twin to the Washington needle, the nexus beacon of a web of ley-lines and tunnels threaded by occultists. That rabbit hole is only slightly less credible than the bricked up alcoholic butler mummy. If anyone has a shovel and torch, I’ll meet you in the park some full moon night and we`ll find out.
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