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Title
Monument to John Knox (c.1514–1572)
Date
1825
Medium
yellow sandstone
Measurements
H 360 x W (?) x D (?) cm;
Plinth: H 1700 x W (?) x D (?) cm
Accession number
G4_GB_S022
Acquisition method
purchased by public subscription
Work type
Statue
Owner
Glasgow City Council
Work status
extant
Listing status
A (Scotland)
Listing date
15/12/70
Inscription description
on the western side of the pedestal: To testify Gratitude for inestimable Services / in the Cause of Religion, Education, and Civil Liberty; / To awaken Admiration / Of that Integrity, Disinterestedness, and Courage, / Which stood unshaken in the midst of Trials, / And in the Maintenance of the highest Objects; / Finally, / To Cherish unceasing Reverence for the Principles and / Blessings of that Great Reformation, / By the influence of which our Country, through the / Midst of Difficulties, / Has risen to Honour, Prosperity, and Happiness. / This Monument is Erected by Voluntary Contribution / To the memory of JOHN KNOX; / The Chief instrument under God, of the Reformation / in Scotland, on the 22nd day of September 1825. / He died - rejoicing in the faith of the Gospel - at Edinburgh, / on the 24th November A.D. 1572, in the 67th year of his age; on the southern side of the pedestal: "The Reformation produced a revolution in the sentiments of mankind, / the greatest, as well as the most beneficial that has happened since the / publication of Christianity." / In 1547 and in the city where his Friend George Wishart had suffered, / John Knox, surrounded with dangers, first preached the doctrines of the / Reformation. In 1559 on the 24th of August, the Parliament of Scotland / adopted the Confession of Faith presented by the Reformed / Ministers, and declared popery to be no longer the religion / of this kingdom. John Knox became then a Minister of Edinburgh, where he continued to / his death, the incorruptible guardian of our best interests. / "I can take God to witness, he declared, that I never preached in con- / tempt of any man - and Wise men will consider, that a true friend cannot / flatter; especially in a case that involves the salvation of the bodies and / souls, not of a few persons, but of a whole Realm." When laid in the / grave, the Regent said, "There lieth He who never feared the face of man; / who was often threatened with dag and dagger, yet hath ended his days / in peace and honour."; on the eastern side of the pedestal: Among the early and distinguished friends of the Reformation / should be especially remembered, Sir James Sandilands / of Calder, Alexander Earl of Glencairn, Archibald Earl of / Argyll, and Lord James Stewart, afterwards known by the name / of "the Good Regent" - / John Erskine of Dun, and John Row, who were distinguished among / the Reformed Ministers for their cultivation of ancient and modern / literature - / Christopher Goodman and John Willock, who came from England / to preach the gospel in Scotland- / And John Winram John Spottiswood, and John Douglas, who with / John Row, and John Knox, compiled the first Confession of Faith, / which was presented to the Parliament of Scotland: And also the / first Book of Discipline.; on the northern side of the pedestal: Patrick Hamilton, a youth of high rank and distinguished attainments / was the first Martyr in Scotland for the cause of the Reformation. / He was condemned to the flames at St Andrews in 1528, in the / twenty-fourth year of his age. / From 1530 to 1540, persecution raged in every quarter: many suffered / the most cruel deaths, and many fled to England and the Continent. / Among these early Martyrs, were Jerome Russel and Alexander Kennedy, / two young men of great piety and talents, who suffered at Glasgow, / in 1538. / In 1544 George Wishart returned to Scotland from which he had / been banished, and preached the gospel in various quarters. In 1546, / this heavenly-minded man, the friend and Instructor of Knox, was also / committed to the flames at St Andrews.