The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain is a memorial in London dedicated to

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, who died in a car crash in 1997. It was designed to express Diana's spirit and love of children. The fountain is located in the southwest corner of

Hyde Park Hyde Park may refer to: Places England * Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London * Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds * Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield * Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester Austra ...

, just south of the Serpentine lake and east of the

Serpentine Gallery The Serpentine Galleries are two contemporary art galleries in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Central London. Recently rebranded to just Serpentine, the organisation is split across Serpentine South, previously known as the Serpentine Gallery, ...

. Its cornerstone was laid in September 2003 and it was officially opened on 6 July 2004 by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

. Also present were Diana's younger brother Charles Spencer, her ex-husband Prince Charles (the future

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

), her sons

Prince William William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. Born in London, William was educat ...

and Prince Harry, her ex–father-in-law Prince Philip and her two sisters Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale.Queen unveils new Diana fountain
''BBC'', Retrieved 30 October 2007 The opening ceremony brought the Windsors and the Spencers together for the first time in seven years.

Design

Work on the project began in 2001. The fountain was designed by Gustafson Porter, and cost £3.6 million. Kathryn Gustafson, an American landscape artist, said that she had wanted the fountain to be accessible and to reflect Diana's "inclusive" personality. Gustafson said: "Above all I hope that it provides a fitting memorial for the princess and does credit to the amazing person that she was."

Construction

The 545 individual pieces of Cornish

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

were cut using sophisticated computer-guided cutting machines by S. McConnell & Sons, in

Kilkeel Kilkeel () is a small town, civil parish and townland (of 554 acres and 6521inh) in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is the southernmost town in Northern Ireland. It lies within the historic barony of Mourne. Kilkeel town is the main fishing ...

, Northern Ireland, then transferred to England by sea. Although described as an oval stone fountain, the memorial has the form of a large, oval stream bed measuring about 50 by 80 m (165 by 260 ft); it surrounds, and is surrounded by, a lush grassy field. The granite stream bed is from 3 to 6 m (10 to 20 ft) wide, is quite shallow and is laid out on a gently sloping portion of the park, so that water pumped to the top of the oval flows down either side. One side of the stream bed descends fairly smoothly to the downhill end of the oval with gentle ripples; the other side consists of a variety of steps, rills, curves, and other shapes so that the water plays in interesting ways as it flows to the tranquil pool at the bottom. The two sides were intended to show two sides of Diana's life: happy times, and turmoil.

Safety and drainage

Diana was seen as a contemporary and accessible princess, so the goal of the memorial fountain was to allow people to access the structure and the water for quiet wading and contemplation. However, shortly after its opening, and after three hospitalisations caused by people slipping in the water, the fountain was closed. It reopened in August 2004, surrounded by a new fence, and people were prevented from walking or running in the water by six wardens. Now, however, entering the water is once again permitted. Even though the fountain was only open for a part of the 2004 season, and the weather was not particularly wet, the grass adjacent to part of the fountain was badly damaged, and it appeared that it would turn to a

quagmire A mire, peatland, or quagmire is a wetland area dominated by living peat-forming plants. Mires arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, due to water-logging and subsequent anoxia. All types ...

if heavy rain ever fell during the main visiting season. Thus, in December 2004, another alteration project was started. This involved work on the drainage, together with laying new hard surfaces on some of the most frequently walked areas of the site and the planting of a special hard-wearing rye grass mix in others.

References

External links

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Aerial view
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain 2004 sculptures Buildings and structures completed in 2004 Buildings and structures in Hyde Park, London Memorials to Diana, Princess of Wales Fountains in the United Kingdom Monuments and memorials in London Stone sculptures in the United Kingdom Tourist attractions in the City of Westminster Granite sculptures in the United Kingdom

Design

Construction

Safety and drainage

See also

Further reading

References

External links