25. John Knox Monument Designed by T.Hamilton 1825
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Born in Gifford near Haddington in East Lothian in 1505, John Knox took holy orders whilst attending St Andrews University. He later became a disciple of George Wishart, thereby rejecting the Roman Catholic Church.
Knox had to flee Scotland because of religious persecution and arrived in Geneva where he studied and became a convert to the teachings and doctrine of Calvin. John Knox returned to preach at St Andrews and played a significant part in the Reformation and its aftermath.
Rightly acknowledged as one of the most significant figures in Scottish history, Knox died peacefully in Edinburgh on 24th November 1572 and his remains interred in St Giles Kirkyard. |
This imposing 70-foot monument - comprising a 58 ft high Doric column, surmounted with a 12 ft statue of Knox in his Geneva gown, clutching a bible in his right hand - was erected by James Carmichael in 1825. The Geneva gown is still proudly worn by Presbyterian ministers today.
This stunning monument predates the Necropolis Cemetery and was originally intended as the centrepiece of the Fir Park. The haunting image of John Knox overlooking the cathedral has deep religious and political connotations and the monument has become an iconic image of Glasgow. Among many inscriptions on the base reads the following: "When laid in the ground, the regent said, `There lieth he, who never feared the face of man, who was often threatened with dab and dagger, yet hath ended his days in peace and honor."'
Thomas Hamilton (1785-1858) was the architect and Robert Forrest the sculptor of John Knox’s statue.
26. Charles Tennant of St.Rollox Monument Designed by P.Park 1838
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Born in Ochiltree, Ayrshire 1768 and trained as a weaver, Tennant went on to become a bleacher in Darnley. Bleaching at that time involved exposing the cloth to rain, wind and sun. In 1797 Tennant - with no formal chemical training - discovered that mixing chlorine and lime produced a controllable bleaching agent.
Tennant established his St Rollox Chemical Works in 1799 which became the largest chemical plant in Europe. The factory chimney at a height of 455 ft was a famous landmark in Glasgow, known as ‘ Tennant’s Stack’. Many of his workers suffered perforated septums and blindness due to continued exposure to toxic chemicals and were colloquially known as ‘Tennant’s White Mice’. |
Charles Tennant died suddenly at his home in Abercrombie Place, Glasgow in 1838 aged 71.Contemporary newspaper articles of the time criticised this Carrara marble sculptured by Patrick Park (1811-1855) claiming that the slumped figure made Tennant look rather ‘like a casualty of the product that made his family fortune’.
27. William Rae Wilson Mausoleum Designed by J.A.Bell 1849
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Doctor William Rae Wilson L.L.D., sometime of Kelvinbanke, was born in Paisley 7th June 1772. Wilson practised as a solicitor. Unfortunately his first wife died 18 months after they were married and he went travelling in the Middle East, subsequently writing ‘Travels in the holy land’ and other books.
Eventually he married ‘An English lady of good family’ from London. When Wilson died she had this domed octagonal Moorish kiosk built, in the style of Sepulchre monuments from his beloved Palestine. No wood, iron or lead has been used in its construction, all joints are concealed. The family arms of Rae and Wilson are depicted in white marble inside. Wilson adopted the middle name of Rae when he inherited money from an uncle of the same name. |
28. John Houldsworth of Cranston Hill Mausoleum Designed by J.Thomas 1845
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This Graeco-Egyptian style monument is in marble with two statues at the entrance. On the left stands Hope with an anchor, on the right stands Charity carrying a child and inside Faith clasping a bible with an angel on either side.
The sculptor John Thomas later went on to work on the Houses of Parliament. John Houldsworth 1807-1859 was the last Lord Provost of Anderson before it was incorporated into Glasgow, a Senior Baillie of Glasgow and founder of the Anderston Foundry and Machine Works.
The son of a Nottingham cotton-spinner who moved to Cranston Hill and worked in Kelvinbridge, Houldsworth was educated in Glasgow, Geneva and Heidelberg. |
Houldsworth's leisure time was devoted to art and to sailing. He was also an accomplished musician and had a piano on his yacht. With friends, he cruised the Firth of Clyde and sailed to the Western Isles.
He married Eliza Muir in 1836.
Two years before his death Houldsworth bought the prestigious No. 1 Park Terrace address in Kelvingrove, and resolved to have it furnished and decorated in the most artistic way known at the time. With this view he employed the aforementioned John Thomas, London sculptor, to design the furniture and an opulent scheme of decoration. The magnificence of the furniture was so much talked about that Queen Victoria and Prince Albert paid Mr. Thomas' studio a visit to see them. On leaving Her Majesty said, "You say the gentleman's name is Houldsworth. It ought to be Goldsworth." These designs were never carried out, for unfortunately John Houldsworth died before the house was finished.
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