Queen Victoria, bottom of Leith Walk

I see this statue of Queen Victoria (one of many in the city!) most days and when you take time to look at it, you realise it is quite am impressive statue to an equally impressive lady!

Here is the history bit:

The Queen Victoria Statue stands at the foot of Leith Walk in what is now the entrance to the New Kirkgate Shopping Centre. Sculpted by John Rhind and unveiled by Lord Roseberry who was the Liberal Prime Minister 1894-5 and was watched by a crowd of over 20,000 people.

The Statue was to mark the reign of Queen Victoria who had died in 1901 and to commemorate her visit to Leith in 1842. It is also a War memorial to the memory of the Scots Guards from the area who had died in the Boar War.

The memorial was subsequently moved and again in 1985 and 2003 for restoration and cleaning and to accommodate modern traffic. In 1985 a glass casket was discovered containing Leith Newspapers of 1907 along with coins and other memorabilia. This was replaced again along with a 1985 ?Edinburgh Evening News?, a set of mint Coins and a tape from the BBC explaining about the redevelopments in Leith.