Queen Elizabeth Memorial reveals final design

Sean Coughlan

Royal correspondent

The award-winning monument will be built in St James' Park in London

The government reveals a final list of five proposed designs for the Memorial of Queen Elizabeth II.

The longest life of the British monarch who died in September 2022 will be built in St James' Park in central London.

The Cabinet Office is placing illustrations of design concepts online and will invite the public to comment on the idea of the main new monument.

Three of the five proposed designs featured horse riding, reflecting her lifelong passion for equestrianism.

The idea is that the late queen is riding on a horse surrounded by horses

Heatherwick Studio's proposed statue of late queen surrounded by lily pads on horseback — The idea is that the late queen is riding on a horse surrounded by horses

Competing other features proposed by the team of artists and architects, such as incorporating recordings of the late queen's voice into the memorial hall, as well as large sculptures around the late queen's figure.

One of the proposed designs uses oak trees to represent Queen Elizabeth’s strength and resilience. Another suggests a symbolic pathway and a bridge over the park’s lake.

The winning entry will be selected later this year, but the memorial will not be determined when it will be unveiled. The Cabinet Office said the construction budget would be between £23 million and £46 million based on the selected design.

The Oaks in Windsor Grand Park are the inspiration for the proposal

TSS JFA Oak as a proposed memorial for Queen Elizabeth II — The Oaks in Windsor Grand Park are the inspiration for the proposal

The public will have the opportunity to say whether they want a more traditional representation of the late queen or a more experimental representation, which will become an important landmark in London.

The new memorial will be not far from the statues of the late Queen’s parents, King George VI, and Queen’s mother, Queen Elizabeth.

Nearby is also the memorial hall of Queen Victoria outside Buckingham Palace.

Interwoven bridges are used in one of the proposed designs

Wilkinson Eyre Bridge Through St James's Park — Interwoven bridges are used in one of the proposed designs

The monument's location will be part of St James's Park, close to the mall, and cross the bridge over the park lake. The entry includes landscape and plans to redesign the area, and the construction process is expected to mean the replacement of the current bridge.

The memorial program will also provide community projects and facilities across the country.

This will rely on traditional plans of traditions, such as King George V v. Competition Field, a scene commemorating the monarch who died in 1936 and opening nearly 500 stadiums.

Many of these sports fields are still in use, embellishing around the country.

The late queen's figure is part of the park's design

JLL Gibbons is the proposed memorial of the late Queen Elizabeth, showing her statue on horseback — The late queen's figure is part of the park's design

The public is encouraged to make ideas for the memorial and feedback on the shortlisted design.

“We want public participation, and we want the public to comment on these suggestions because we want them to feel part of it,” said Baroness Amos, a member of the committee, which will choose to build the design.

“Most of the late Queen is meeting people and interacting with them,” she said.

Baroness Amos, former leader of the House of Lords, said the memorial should be a tribute to the late queen, who died seventy years after the throne at the age of 96.

"It's about an extraordinary woman and an extraordinary rule, her commitment to public service, obligations, to the community, to the country and to the Commonwealth," she said.