The story of the statue of King Henry VII in Pembroke

The magnificent castle where Henry Tudor was born has dominated the town of Pembroke for centuries. Inside, visitors will find a ‘recreation’ of Henry Tudor’s mother, the fourteen-year-old Lady Margaret Beaufort, cradling her new born son—but they could be forgiven for driving past without realising the importance of our first Tudor king.

A small group of Pembrokeshire residents met to discuss raising funds to address this. The vision was to unveil a life-sized statue of Henry Tudor on the Mill bridge approaching Pembroke Castle. We wanted it to provide visitors with a great photo opportunity - and turn the area at the side of the Mill Bridge into an attractive public space with improved seating and flowers.

It seemed an ambitious challenge when we began. Led by Pembroke Town Councillor Linda Asman, we commissioned a talented local sculptor, Harriet Addyman, to develop small maquettes to show what the statue might look like. Local people and important local employer Valero, operators of the nearby oil refinery, donated £20,000 towards the cost of the statue, with Pembrokeshire County Council’s town centre support programme contributing match funding. One of the painted versions of the maquette found fame on TV with historian Lucy Worsley.

Lucy Worsley talking to Nathen Amin, Author of Tudor Wales

After many meetings and fundraising activities we were ready to progress to a full-size sculpture in clay. The result was one of the most impressive representations of Henry Tudor yet made, eight feet high, with his loyal greyhound at his side.

At last after many hours of work, the statue was cast in bronze by foundry specialist Martin Bellwood in nearby Clunderwen – so this statue of a King born in Pembroke has been entirely made in Pembrokeshire.

Casting the new statue at MB Fine Arts Foundry

Henry Tudor is assembled!

...and finally returns to Pembroke Castle

Unveiled on June 10^th 2017  by Sara Edwards, Lord Lieutenant of Dyfed, the statute is already a focal point for the town.

A feasibility study is now being developed to create a Henry VII visitor centre, to tell the story of how he secured a victory at the battle of Bosworth Field to become our first Tudor king.

Mill Bridge in Pembroke today