Trafalgar Square in London

7 June 2017 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, London Reading Time:  10 minutes

© flickr.com - Vibin/cc-by-2.0

© flickr.com – Vibin/cc-by-2.0

Trafalgar Square is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, built around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. Its name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, a British naval victory in the Napoleonic Wars with France and Spain that took place on 21 October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar. The site of Trafalgar Square had been a significant landmark since the 13th century and originally contained the King’s Mews. After George IV moved the mews to Buckingham Palace, the area was redeveloped by John Nash, but progress was slow after his death, and the square did not open until 1844. The 169-foot (52 m) Nelson’s Column at its centre is guarded by four lion statues. A number of commemorative statues and sculptures occupy the square, but the Fourth Plinth, left empty since 1840, has been host to contemporary art since 1999. The square has been used for community gatherings and political demonstrations, including Bloody Sunday, the first Aldermaston March, anti-war protests, and campaigns against climate change. A Christmas tree has been donated to the square by Norway since 1947 and is erected for twelve days before and after Christmas Day. The square is a centre of annual celebrations on New Year’s Eve. It was well known for its feral pigeons until their removal in the early 21st century.   read more…

Cape Trafalgar in Spain

19 September 2013 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Cape Trafalgar © JMSE

Cape Trafalgar © JMSE

Cape Trafalgar (Spanish: Cabo Trafalgar) is a headland in the Province of Cádiz in the south-west of Spain, approximately 40 km southeast of the provincial capital Cádiz. It lies on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the Strait of Gibraltar. The International Hydrographic Organization defines the Western limit of the strait as a line that joins Cape Trafalgar to the North to Cape Spartel to the South. The name is of Arabic origin, with the modern pronunciation being a modification of “Tarf al-Gharb” meaning “Western Cape” or “Cape of the West”.   read more…

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