See Oliver Cromwell

One of London's more controversial statues stands outside the Houses of Parliament where it was installed in 1899 to a design by Hamo Thornycroft. Cromwell is


Disliked by the Irish and monarchists due to his roles in the English Civil War and the conquest of 17th century Ireland, Cromwell was a controversial figure for a statue even before he was installed, and as recently as 2004 MPs were calling for him to be melted down, but for now he remains, holding a sword and bible and gazing pensively down into Abingdon Street from his plinth.

For more, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Oliver_Cromwell,_Westminster

_{^Picture © ell brown used under a Creative Commons license^}