I am surprised that the University of
Bristol took this intolerant, politically correct renaming nonsense seriously.
If the Wills family links to the
slave trade through its tobacco interests had been reason enough to rename the
building with which they are associated where could this eventually lead
us? Would the city of Bristol itself
become a target for politically correct zealots calling for it to be renamed –
Repentanceville perhaps?
The Wills Memorial Building
commissioned in 1912 by brothers George and Henry Wills as a memorial to their
father, and designed by architect Sir George Oatley, is described by Pevsner in
his The buildings of England – North
Somerset and Bristol (Penguin Books, 1958) as:
“It
is in its way a remarkable piece, proof of its architect’s unfaltering faith in
the Gothic style and accurate knowledge of the Gothic style. The tower has established itself quickly as
one of the landmarks of Bristol, with its foursquare strength, its tall
octagonal upper part, and its four subordinate spired pinnacles.”
 |
| The tower of Bristol University's Wills Memorial Building. |
This from the Bristol Post makes interesting reading:
“It
comes as the Colston Hall has agreed to change its name and Colston’s School is
consulting parents over a similar move. But
the University of Bristol has said the prominent building at the top of Park
Street will continue with its current name.
The
university had struggled financially until 1908 when Henry Overton Wills
promised a gift of £100,000. That cash
enabled the college in 1909 to be given a charter and become a university and
he became the first Chancellor.”
Here is a link to the full article:
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