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Daniel Chester French's bronze statue of Georgia founder General James Edward Oglethorpe located in Chippewa Square in Savannah and unveiled on Nov. 23, 1910. The nine-foot statue stands atop a pedestal on which is carved a portion of the charter of the colony. A lion holding a shield is located on each corner of the base. On these shields are found Oglethorpe's coat of arms and the seals of the colony, the state, and the city of Savannah. New York architect Henry Bacon designed the pedestal and base. A few years later he and French team up to produce the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.

 

 

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Sculptor Daniel Chester French examined the variety of existing portraits and engravings of Oglethorpe and also studied contemporary military uniforms of Oglethorpe's era. The image he chose to portray was not Oglethorpe the colonizer but Oglethorpe the military commander. Undoubtedly, his resulting statue is the most handsome and heroic rendering of Georgia's founder, who depicted facing southerward, looking toward the Spanish threat from Florida. French accurately portrayed Oglethorpe in the military dress of the 1740s -- with a cuirass (shoulder and breast plates), sword, waistcoat, high boots, and tricorn hat.

Photos: Ed Jackson

 

© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia

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