kids encyclopedia robot

Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (Washington, D.C.) facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Mahatma Gandhi Memorial
Embassy of India, Washington, D.C..jpg
Artist Gautam Pal
Year 2000
Type Bronze
Location Washington, D.C., United States


The Mahatma Gandhi Memorial is a public statue of Mahatma Gandhi, installed on a triangular island along Massachusetts Avenue, in front of the Embassy of India, Washington, D.C., in the United States. A gift from the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, it was dedicated on September 16, 2000 during a state visit of Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in the presence of US President Bill Clinton.

Sparked to action in the wake of the 50th anniversary of Indian independence in 1947, the US Congress passed a bill in 1998 authorising the Government of India to establish a memorial to Gandhi on US federal land in the District of Columbia.

The 8 ft 8 in (2.64 m) bronze statue depicts Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in ascetic garb, in reference to his 1930 march against the salt tax in India. It was designed by Gautam Pal, a sculptor from Kolkata. The statue is mounted on a 16 ton plinth of ruby granite from Ilkal, Karnataka, standing in a circular plaza of gray granite pavers. Behind it are three slabs of Karnataka red granite with inscriptions honoring Gandhi's memory, and in front of it is a seat also of red granite. The statue bears an inscription with Gandhi's answer to a journalist who asked for his message to the world: "My life is my message."

The Mahatma Gandhi Memorial unveiled in Milwaukee in 2002 includes a similar statue by Gautam Pal, also mounted on a red granite plinth.

The statue was defaced and vandalized and during a Khalistani separatist rally on 12 December 2020.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Monumento conmemorativo a Mahatma Gandhi (Washington D. C.) para niños

kids search engine
Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (Washington, D.C.) Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.