This is the bronze relief on the Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) Memorial on Chelsea Embankment, London SW3, located on a corner just opposite Chelsea Bridge. The sculptor was Adrian Jones (1845-1938), and the monument, funded by public subscription, was in memory of the officers and men of the 6th Dragoon Guards who died in the Boer War (see Weinreb 523). It was unveiled in 1906.
The scene seems to be one of grave danger: we look from behind at a cavalryman holding several horses: he leans forward, watching tensely while the other Dragoon Guards scramble on hands and knees up steep hostile terrain to face the enemy. The grouping of the horses, and the ledges of slate, look so natural; all the details (uniforms, equipment) are brilliantly realised. The authenticity of the scene is never in doubt.
The relief is the centrepiece of an impressive, curved red-brick monument with contrasting white Bath stone dressings. Poignantly, it is set into the edge of the old pleasure grounds of Ranelagh Gardens, and elevated from the pavement in front of the park by two stone steps. It has its own low iron railing to protect it.
The inscription below the relief, complementing the more elaborate device above with its helmet, flags and weapons, reads, "IN MEMORY OF/ THE OFFICERS, N. C. OFFICERS AND MEN OF/ THE VI. DRAGOON GUARDS, [THE CARABINIERS]/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY IN THE/ SOUTH AFRICAN WAR. 1899 - 1902./ ERECTED BY PAST AND PRESENT CARABINIERES./ A.D. 1905.".
Related Material
- Left-hand panel listing those who "died of wounds or disease"
- Right-hand panel listing those who died in various engagements
- The Boer War
You may use these images without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]
Bibliography
"6th Dragoon Guards (the Carabiniers." War Memorials Register. Web. 6 September 2026.
Weinreb, Ben, et al., The London Encyclopaedia. 3rd ed. London: Macmillan, 2008.
Created 11 December 2010
Images and commentary added 6 September 2026