The Shelley Memorial is a memorial to the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) at University College, Oxford, England, the college that he briefly attended and from which he was expelled for writing a pamphlet on The Necessity of Atheism. A poet is some one who writes poetry. ... Percy Bysshe Shelley Percy Bysshe Shelley (August 4, 1792 – July 8, 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets and is widely considered to be among the finest lyric poets who wrote in the English language. ... University College (in full, the College of the Great Hall of the University, commonly known as University College in the University of Oxford, usually known by its derivative, Univ), is a contender for the claim to be the oldest of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the... Oxford is a city and local government district in Oxfordshire, England, with a population of 134,248 (2001 census). ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the British Isles Languages None official English de facto Capital None official London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001... The Necessity of Atheism is a treatise on atheism by Percy Bysshe Shelley, published anonymously in 1811 while he was a student at University College, Oxford. ...

The memorial consists of a white marble sculpture of a reclining nude and dead Shelley washed up on the shore at Viareggio in Italy after his drowning, sculpted by Edward Onslow Ford and supported on a decorative plinth. It is housed in a small domed late-Victorian room designed by Basil Champneys, behind ornamental railings that protect it from students. It has been the victim of a number of pranks over the years. The college's chemistry don, E. J. Bowen, had to clean paint off the statue, for example. Viareggio is a town in the province of Lucca situated on the coast of the Ligurian Sea in the north of Tuscany, Italy. ... Fords statue The Snowdrift Edward Onslow Ford (July 27, 1852 - December 23, 1901), English sculptor, was born in London. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of Great Britain is considered the height of the British industrial revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Basil Champneys (1842-1935) Champneys was the architect for Newnham College, Cambridge, Manchesters John Rylands Library and Oriel College, Oxfords Rhodes Building. ... Edmund John Bowen FRS. British Chemist (1898 - 1981). ...

The statue was commissioned by Shelley's daughter in law. It was originally intended to be located in the Protestant Cemetery in Rome where Shelley is buried, at the request of author Edward John Trelawney, a friend of Shelley who had witnessed his drowning. Trelawney wanted to have a monument of the poet next to his own. However, Trelawney's descendants thought that Ford's statue was too large and thus did not consent to his wishes. Eventually the statue ended up at University College. Shelleys Tomb in the Protestant Cemetery in Rome, an 1873 painting by Walter Crane. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,553,873 almost 4,300,000 1. ...

Although Shelley was expelled from the college, he remains one of its most famous alumni and is held in honour by the college. In 2005, the college acquired some of Shelley's letters to further enhance its connection with the poet.

The Shelley Memorial is located on the site where the scientists Robert Boyle and Robert Hooke performed experiments while they were in Oxford. A plaque on the exterior wall of the memorial in the High Street records this for passers by. Robert Boyle The Honourable Robert Boyle (January 25, 1627 - December 30, 1692) was an Irish natural philosopher, noted for his work in physics and chemistry. ... A portrait, claimed by historian Lisa Jardine to be of Robert Hooke Robert Hooke, FRS (July 18, 1635 - March 3, 1703) was an English polymath who played an important role in the scientific revolution, through both experimental and theoretical work. ... Oxford is a city and local government district in Oxfordshire, England, with a population of 134,248 (2001 census). ...

External links

• Shelley Memorial all washed up? article from Cherwell24
• Prints of University College including the Shelley Memorial
• New Shelley letters acquired by University College and the Bodleian Library, 17 October 2005.