Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is the most famous square in London, England. It was built to commemorate the Battle of Trafalgar Head in the 19th century. The tall column monument in the center of the square was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, the famous British naval commander who died heroically in the naval battle. In May 1804, Napoleon forced Spain to cross the sea with him to attack Britain. On October 20, a combined fleet of 18 French warships and 15 Spanish warships launched a fierce attack on British ships off the coast of Cape Trafalgar, Spain. Admiral Nelson, the commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, used his intelligence and wisdom to propose a unique battle plan: the fleet would be divided into two columns to advance towards the French and Spanish fleets, and adopt a strategy of defeating each. He replaced the navy's traditional straight-line snake formation with a "new and unique" simple "tactic" that people called the original "Nelson style" tactics. At dawn on October 21, at Cape Trafalgar, Admiral Nelson divided the British ships into two columns, led by himself and Admiral Linwood respectively, and launched a fierce battle with the combined fleets of France and Spain. In a situation where the enemy was strong and we were weak, we defeated more with less and annihilated 15 enemy ships. The British fleet won a complete victory. After the combined fleets of France and Spain suffered a disastrous defeat, Napoleon finally gave up his attempt to land in Britain. Unfortunately, at the end of this naval battle, General Nelson died of a stray bullet in the chest at the age of 47. The British government and the British people have great respect for this national hero who died in the line of duty. In memory of him, a monument was built in Trafalgar Square from 1840 to 1843.
The main body of the monument is a 56-meter-high circular stone pillar. On the top of the stone pillar stands a more than 5-meter-tall bronze statue of Nelson in full military uniform. It is said that this bronze statue was cast from bronze cannon captured during the Battle of Trafalgar Head. The lower part of the stone pillar is a square stone base and multi-level steps. The four walls of the stone base are inlaid with bronze sculptures of the four famous battles commanded by the admiral. Under the four corners of the bottom step are four large bronze lions. The exquisite design and grand scale of this monument are unique in the UK. This shows the position of the Battle of Trafalgar Head in British history. Every year on October 21st, many people come to Trafalgar Point Square to hold the Battle of Trafalgar Point commemoration ceremony to commemorate General Nelson and soldiers who died in the naval battle and educate future generations not to forget this period of history.
Trafalgar Square is also very famous for the large number of pigeons, so Trafalgar Square is also called "Pigeon Square". Every day, many residents and tourists bring bread and rice to the square to feed the pigeons. Not only are the pigeons here not afraid of people, they often fly to tourists to look for food and get close to them. Those who carry food are often chased and surrounded by pigeons. Visitors on the square are attracted by this scenery and often take photos among the pigeons.
Trafalgar Square is one of London's famous attractions. Adjacent to the north of the square is the famous National Gallery, which was built between 1832 and 1838 and is the largest gallery in the UK. There are many art galleries in the gallery building, which contain more than 2,000 famous paintings from European dynasties. These oil paintings with characters, landscapes, and religious stories as themes reflect the life style of ancient European people and are art treasures of the European people.
In the northeast corner of the square is the famous Martin Church built in the 1820s. The church's beautiful spire is 56 meters high. The First International led by Marx held its founding meeting in this church in the autumn of 1864.
Every Christmas night, the square is filled with Christmas trees decorated with colored lights, and the fountain is illuminated with colorful lights, adding luster to the festive square. Londoners will be singing and dancing in the square all night long. At the same time, the square is also the center of London's civic political activities.