Vemareddy at 09:01, 29 March 2026

2026-03-29T09:01:43Z

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{{Short description|Statue by Francis Leggatt Chantrey in Chennai, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2018}}
[[File:Thomas Munro classic.jpg|thumb|250px|Statue of Thomas Munro in [[The Island, Chennai]]]]
The '''statue of Thomas Munro''' is an [[Equestrianism|equestrian]] [[statue]] of [[Thomas Munro, 1st Baronet]], Major-General in the British Army and [[Governor of Madras]] from 1820 to 1827, located in the city of [[Chennai]], [[India]]. The [[bronze]] statue sculpted by [[Francis Chantrey]] in the [[United Kingdom]] in 1834 and shipped to Madras in 1839, is one of the popular landmarks in Chennai. The absence of [[stirrups]] is one of the peculiarities of the statue and for this reason, it is also referred to as '''"The Stirrupless Majesty"'''.

== Thomas Munro ==
{{Main|Thomas Munro, 1st Baronet}}
[[File:Sir Thomas Munro, 1st Bt by Sir Martin Archer Shee.jpg|thumb|upright|1819 portrait of Sir Thomas Munro]]

Thomas Munro was one of the most popular British administrators in [[South India]]. Born in [[Glasgow]] in 1761, Munro arrived in India as a soldier in 1789 and fought with distinction in the [[Anglo-Mysore Wars]].<ref name="thehindu_20100726">{{cite news|title=Unsung hero of Madras|work=[[The Hindu]]|date=26 July 2010|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/magazine/Unsung-hero-of-Madras/article16210900.ece|first=V.|last=Sriram}}</ref> At the end of the war, he served as a settlement officer in [[Kanara|Canara]] and later, [[Bellary]].<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /> He also fought in the [[Pindari War]] (1817). In 1820, Munro was appointed [[Governor of Madras]] and served till his death from [[cholera]] in 1827.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /> Munro is credited with having introduced the [[Ryotwari|Ryotwari System]] in South India and drafting an education policy for the Madras Presidency.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /> He also supported a larger share for natives in the administration of India.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /> Munro is the subject of a number of [[folklore|folk tales]] and [[ballads]] and is even worshipped by some.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /><ref name="thehindu_20080803">{{cite news|title=The temple of Munroe|first=Rukmini|last=Banerji|url=http://www.hindu.com/mag/2008/08/03/stories/2008080350280800.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080807064023/http://www.hindu.com/mag/2008/08/03/stories/2008080350280800.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 August 2008|work=[[The Hindu]]|date=3 August 2008}}</ref>

== Death of Thomas Munro ==
Munro's term as Governor of Madras came to an end in 1826. As there was a delay in appointing a new Governor, Munro decided to visit the [[Ceded Districts]] of the Madras Presidency, where he had served as a settlement officer in the early 19th century, in the meantime.<ref name="Bradshaw">{{cite book|title=Sir Thomas Munro and the British settlement of the Madras presidency|first=John|last=Bradshaw|year=1893|publisher=Oxford University Press|place=London|pages=210–212}}</ref> As he was riding through the hills of [[Cuddapah District]] along with a mixed retinue of Europeans and Indians, Munro observed a golden, thread-like glow across two hills.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> He remarked

{{quote|What a beautiful garland of flowers they have stretched across the valley!<ref name="Bradshaw" />}}

His followers were perplexed as the garland was not visible to anyone. At length, an old Indian in the retinue reportedly replied, with sorrow:

{{quote|Alas! a great and good man will soon die!<ref name="Bradshaw" />}}

After spending a few days at [[Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh|Ananthapur]], Thomas Munro and his party reached [[Gooty]] on 4 July 1827.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> At Gooty, some of his men were afflicted with [[cholera]].<ref name="Bradshaw" /> Two days later, at [[Pattikonda]], Munro caught cholera from his men and had to be nursed.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> His condition deteriorated in the evening and he died at half-past-nine on 6 July 1827.<ref name="Bradshaw" />

Munro was buried at a [[graveyard]] in Gooty.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> In April 1831, his remains were transported to Madras and interred in the St. Mary's Church, [[Fort St. George]].<ref name="Bradshaw" />

== Construction ==
[[File:Statue of Thomas Munro.jpg|thumb|200px|A three-dimensional view of the statue]]

When the news of Munro's death reached Madras, it was mourned by all classes of people in the city. The government issued a Gazette Extraordinary on 9 July 1827 with the message:

{{quote|His sound and vigorous understanding, his transcendent talents, his indefatigable application, his varied stores of knowledge, his attainments as an Oriental scholar, his intimate acquaintance with the habits and feelings of native soldiers and inhabitants generally, his patience, temper and facility of access, and kindness of manner would have ensured him distinction in any line of employment. These qualities were admirably adapted to the duties which he had to perform in organizing the resources, and establishing the tranquility of those provinces where his latest breath has been drawn, and where he has long been known with the appellation of the ''Father'' of the People<ref name="Bradshaw" />}}

A public meeting was soon held in his memory in Madras city in which was made a proposal to erect a statue to Munro through public subscription.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> The Madras government opened a memorial for Munro in the town of [[Pattikonda]] where he had died.<ref name="Bradshaw" /> A [[choultry]] called "Munro Choultry" was erected in [[Gooty]] in his honour.<ref name="Bradshaw" />

A total of nine thousand pounds (£8000, according to some sources<ref name="fraser">{{cite book|title= Fraser's magazine|volume=27|first1=Thomas|last1=Carlyle|editor=James Anthony Froude |editor2=John Tulloch|pages=676–677|year=1843|publisher=J. Fraser|chapter=Sir Francis Chantrey and Allan Cunningham}}</ref>) were collected through public subscription and the British sculptor [[Francis Chantrey]] was commissioned to make the statue.<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83">{{cite book|title=British sculpture and the Company Raj: church monuments and public statuary in Madras, Calcutta, and Bombay to 1858|page=83|publisher=University of Delaware Press|year=1995|isbn=978-0-87413-406-3|first=Barbara S.|last=Groseclose}}</ref> Chantrey completed the statue in 1834<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83" /> - one of the three equestrian statues sculpted by him.<ref name="fraser" /> According to a popular belief, the [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington|Duke of Wellington]], on seeing the completed statue, had exclaimed

{{quote|A very fine horse; a very fine statue, and a very extraordinary man<ref name="jonesp303304">[[#Jones|Jones]], pp 303-304</ref>}}

The statue, weighing six tonnes, was shipped to India in three parts<ref>{{cite news
| title = When Thomas Munro became Marilyn Munroe
| newspaper = The Hindu
| location = Chennai
| date = 22 August 2018
| url = https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/when-thomas-munro-became-marilyn-munroe/article24748067.ece
| access-date = 25 August 2018}}</ref> and erected at [[The Island, Chennai]] in 1839<ref name="Bradshaw" /> atop a [[granite]] [[plinth]] made by Ostheider & Co of [[Calcutta]].<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83" /> The statue was ceremonially opened on 23 October 1839.<ref name="Bradshaw" />

== Architecture ==
[[File:Thomas Munro statue.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Thomas Munro and his horse]]
[[File:Sir. Thomas Munro's Statue, Madras (MacLeod, p.124, 1871) - Copy.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Sir. Thomas Munro's Statue, Madras (MacLeod, p.124, 1871)<ref name=MacLeod>{{cite book|last1=MacLeod|first1=Norman|title=Peeps at the Far East: A Familiar Account of a Visit to India|date=1871|publisher=Strahan & Co.|location=London|url=http://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5QadleVqcjfjXdbL76hLpHAlKGquS182cWZd25oDvHR0IWujwaV1l7F_v1EzHArXZcnWj3BCM-XsUlMsYj7__NZpsDu5ZTBjIEa-Je4nUviK_cS0zTCcmeWuZVce-2hlBmT0VXBzakDA55LhS7Ks7poEMlLrKnXJcMpjQup_ghtwNoJh69hUdujOZGqcU2xTzda2aMzjOgJdRtY_0_PdT9-GwCL2TmJUKyQ8Txmh1vXVRqmh8Za66nRaLrcfn3r-fz3ojiUlW_9Jn7R8VCgYAeiOWENYfQYyhGtgO9GCRXWMIQNfZiPo|access-date=2 November 2015}}</ref>]]
The statue depicts Thomas Munro riding a horse. In doing so, Chantrey had opted to follow, for commemorative purposes, the prevalent Western practice of portraying authority.<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83" /> It is believed that Chantrey might have modelled the statue upon his own earlier work of [[George IV]] at [[Trafalgar Square]], [[London]].<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83" /> This might have been intended to elevate Munro above the Indians whose cause he championed.<ref name="britishsculpturerajp83" /> Chantrey was, initially, caught in a dilemma over the choice of [[riding animal|steed]].<ref name="jonesp8788">[[#Jones|Jones]], pp 87-88</ref> While some of his friends and visitors suggested a classic horse, some suggested an Arabian, others a war horse.<ref name="jonesp8788" /> Eventually, Chantrey chose an Arab, similar to the one he had sculpted for his statue of George IV.<ref name="londoncuriositiesp758">{{cite book|title=Curiosities of London: exhibiting the most rare and remarkable objects of interest in the metropolis, with nearly sixty years' personal recollections|first=John|last=Timbs|publisher=J. S. Virtue|year=1867|page=758}}</ref> One particular biography of Francis Chantrey considered the sculpture of Thomas Munro to be the finest among Chantrey's works and the horse, his worst ever.<ref name="fraser" />

The combined height of the horse and the rider is more than 15 feet.<ref name="gentlemansmagazinep405">{{cite journal|title=The Gentleman's magazine|place=London|year=1838|volume=163|publisher=F. Jefferies|page=405}}</ref> The horse gazes calmly while Munro strikes a thoughtful pose, both still, yet ready to lunge forward into motion.<ref name="gentlemansmagazinep405" />

== Peculiarity ==
The peculiarity of the statue is the absence of a [[saddle]] as well as the [[stirrups]].<ref name="muthiahp34">{{cite book | title=Madras Rediscovered| last=Muthiah| first=S.| year=2004| author-link=S. Muthiah| publisher=East West Books (Madras) Pvt Ltd| isbn=81-88661-24-4|page=34}}</ref> While some feel that the omission is due to an oversight on the part of the sculptor,<ref name="kamathp14">{{cite book|title=Chennai|first=Rina|last=Kamath|page=14|publisher=Orient Blackswan|year=2000|isbn=978-81-250-1378-5}}</ref> others feel that the saddle and the stirrups might have been deliberately excluded keeping in mind Munro's penchant for [[bareback riding]].<ref name="muthiahp34" /> Due to the absence of stirrups, the statue is also occasionally referred to as "The Stirrupless Majesty".<ref name="muthiahp34" />

==Historical references==
[[File:Munro statue 1843.jpg|thumb|right|200px|An 1843 illustration of Munro's statue]]

Captain Hervey has been credited with popularizing an anecdote connected with Munro's statue

{{quote|... I was one day driving by the monument when I saw an old man in a red coat, with three chevrons on his right arm. standing leaning on his staff, and gazing silently on the exalted statue. He was evidently an old pensioner, not only from his dress, but from a certain degree of military carriage in his ''tout ensemble'', which there was no mistaking. Out of curiosity I stopped my buggy, got out, and addressed the veteran. "What are you looking at, my fine old fellow?", enquired I. "Do you know who that is intended to represent?" "Who can have known the great Sir Thomas Munro?", replied the old man, "without remembering him? And who can have known him without loving him? And how can I, who had served under him for many years, ever forget him?"

"Then you think that is a good likeness of our Governor-you recognize the face?" asked I.

"Yes sir", said he. "It is a good likeness, but we shall never again see any like him. He was indeed the friend of the Indian, whether a sepoy or a ryot at the plough. And Madras will never again
have a Governor like him." And raising his hand to the head, he gave the old-fashioned salute, lifted up his bundle and walked off, mumbling to himself about the impropriety of crows being allowed to build nests on the top, and to dirt over the head of the greatest man of his age.<ref name="calcuttareviewp272">{{cite journal|journal=The Calcutta Review|volume=14|title=Recent Military Memoirs|page=272|year=1850|publisher=[[University of Calcutta]]}}</ref>
}}

==Proposed removal ==
During the [[World Classical Tamil Conference 2010|World Classical Tamil Conference]] held in [[Coimbatore]] in 2010, there were demands to remove the statue of Thomas Munro, evoking strong protests from conservationists.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" /><ref name="thehindu_20100621">{{cite news|title=Replace Munroe statue with Rajaraja I, says BJP|date=21 June 2010|url=http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/21/stories/2010062161060400.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626110106/http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/21/stories/2010062161060400.htm|url-status=dead|work=[[The Hindu]]|archive-date=26 June 2010}}</ref> Though the government had arrived at a decision to remove the statue, it has not yet been implemented.<ref name="thehindu_20100726" />

== References ==
{{Portal|India}}
{{reflist}}

== Sources ==
* {{cite book|title=Sir Francis Chantrey, recollections|first=George|last=Jones|year=1849|publisher=Oxford University|ref=Jones}}

{{Chennai Topics}}
{{Statues in India}}

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[[Category:Equestrian statues in India|Munro]]
[[Category:Public art in India]]
[[Category:Monuments and memorials in Chennai]]
[[Category:Outdoor sculptures in Chennai|Munro]]
[[Category:Statues of politicians|Munro]]
[[Category:Statues of military officers|Munro]]
[[Category:1839 sculptures]]
[[Category:1839 establishments in British India]]

Equestrian statue of Thomas Munro - Revision history

Vemareddy at 09:01, 29 March 2026