Peterloo memorial design to be revealed
A PROVISIONAL design for a public memorial to the victims of the Peterloo Massacre in Manchester 199 years ago will be unveiled in October.
It follows a 10-year campaign for a permanent tribute in the city centre.
The news was announced as large crowds gathered for a ceremony in which the names of the dead – now said after new research to stand at 18 – were read out at the Manchester Central convention centre, the site of the massacre, by speakers including actress Maxine Peake.
Award-winning artist Jeremy Deller has been working with the council and the Peterloo Memorial Campaign on the design.
His provisional design – and the location chosen in the city centre – will be revealed at an exhibition at Manchester Central Library on October 31.
The public are being invited to attend and comment on the plans. No further details have been revealed and it’s not known exactly what format the memorial will take.
On August 16, 1819, armed cavalry charged a crowd of 60,000 people who had gathered to listen to anti-poverty and pro-democracy speeches at a peaceful rally in Manchester city centre, near where St Peter’s Square is today. Outrage at the slaughter led to political change and parliamentary reform – today the massacre is thought of as a defining moment in British democracy.
Paul Fitzgerald, chairman of the memorial campaign, said: “This is it. We will finally have a memorial in the centre of Manchester. It will be physical and it will be permanent. It is great news for Manchester. After 10 years we have finally secured a memorial.
“Hopefully the memorial will be unveiled on August 16 next year, to mark 200 years. Jeremy Deller has a long and successful track record of art with the involvement of the people.”
The artist was behind the ‘ghost soldiers’ project in 2016, which saw actors at public locations including railway stations dress as First World War soldiers to mark 100 years since the start of the Battle of the Somme.
At the ceremony on Sunday there were also calls for St Peter’s Square to be renamed Peterloo Square to mark the 200th anniversary of the massacre, which also left many hundreds injured.
Once more, as they did on the day, people marched to the site of the former G-Mex Centre from towns and villages across Greater Manchester to attend the ceremony.
Brief biographies of the victims – and the brutal circumstances of their deaths – were also were read out.
The yeomanry on horseback was sent in to the crowds as radical speaker Henry Hunt, who was at the forefront of a 19th century movement to secure votes for working people, was about to give a speech to the crowds demanding reform of the House of Commons.
Next year’s commemorations are set to be the largest held.
Manchester, meanwhile, will host the premiere of the forthcoming Mike Leigh film telling the story of the Peterloo Massacre.
Peterloo, starring Maxine Peake, will have its first UK screening at First Street cinema and arts centre HOME on Wednesday, October 17. It’s set to be attended by the Salfordborn director and members of the cast.