SHOULD IT stay or should it go? That is the question that has long been on the minds of Denbigh residents regarding the statue of Henry Morton Stanley.

A public consultation on the hotly debated future of the statue some would like to see destroyed is set to take place more than a year after it was promised.

Denbigh’s tribute to explorer Henry Morton Stanley, fashioned in bronze by North Wales artist Nick Elphick, has been a talking point for a decade but not always for positive reasons.

After a raft of protests last year, sparked by Black Lives Matter demonstrations, activists called for the effigy of arguably the town’s most famous son to be removed.

Denbigh town council, which commissioned the piece, held a meeting in June 2020 to discuss its future.

Members voted 6-5 to keep it in lieu of a public consultation on whether to retain it long-term or move it from the wider public’s gaze.

Mayor at the time of the debate, Cllr Gaynor Wood-Tickle, promised people in Denbigh a “democratic vote” and full public consultation on the matter.

Now current mayor, Cllr Rhys Thomas, has confirmed the consultation will go ahead (Covid permitting) in October.

Denbighshire Free Press readers have been sending in their opinions of the statue this week via Facebook.

One user in favour of destroying the statue wrote: "Go. Nobody’s proud of him. He didn’t even like Denbigh."

Another commenter said: "He couldn't wait to shake the dust of Denbigh off his shoes and he was not proud of coming from town. He lived most of his adult life in America, Africa and London. There must be people who are proud of coming from Denbigh who are more worthy of the honour of being remembered by the town."

However, most were seemingly in favour of keeping the statue where it currently stands near the Town library.

A resident in favour of keeping the statue said: "It's part of Denbigh's history I guess. None of us would be here if it wasn't for what happened back in the day. Things have certainly changed for the better but history cannot be changed, why censor it."

Another echoed their sentiments saying: "Leave it there, what happened in the past cannot be altered by removing statues. In fact by removing statues and memorials you could very well conceal what happened as there would be no reminder of it. Put a plaque alongside the statue as has been done in Edinburgh."

A third in agreement, wrote: "Stanley was a product of the times he lived in, so if we judge him by the standards of today, we shouldn’t really be surprised if he were a racist.

"We live in a slightly more enlightened time, but the plaque on the statue simply says “Africa’s Greatest Explorer” and doesn’t mention his connection to the brutal, exploitative regime that ruled the Congo.

"Its presence is a reminder of our colonial past – something we seem unable to come to terms with as a nation – but removing it wouldn’t ‘erase history’ because no one’s going to forget he existed if it were no longer there.

"Putting it in a museum just avoids the issue because it sweeps the controversy under the carpet.

"This is a great opportunity to be grown up and erect a prominent notice near the statue explaining the indisputable facts (instead of hysterical opinion) and acknowledge that like all of us, Denbigh’s most famous son wasn’t a perfect human being and that history isn’t straightforward."

Another commenter said: "Why should our historical statues be destroyed?"

On the other hand, others were simply fed up of hearing about the statue situation, with one commenter adding: "How many times has this got to be dragged up? Until someone gets their own way? It’s been discussed several times already."

Another suggested that if the statue was to be destroyed, then it could be replace by one of another famous Denbigh resident - such as darts star Mark Webster who won the BDO World Championship in 2008.

An official decision on the matter should be made by October.

Journalist and explorer HM Stanley is synonymous with the phrase “Dr Livingstone, I presume”, after finding the Scottish explorer who had been lost in central Africa.

Stanley, born John Rowlands, started life fatherless in Denbigh in 1841 and was put into the Asaph workhouse in nearby St Asaph.

He emigrated to the United States as a teenager, where he reinvented himself.

He fought in the American Civil war, became a journalist and then a noted explorer – finding the source of the Nile, mapping central Africa’s Great Lakes and also the borders of the present day Democratic Republic of Congo.

Stanley is controversial to some because of links with Belgian King Leopold II, for whom he worked for a time and his own alleged treatment of indigenous workers and guides.

The monarch committed acts of appalling inhumanity against the population of the Congo Free State – now the Democratic Republic of Congo.

However his supporters say Stanley was not working for the Belgian despot when the atrocities occurred and he has been unfairly tainted.

It is true to say there are differing asessments of Stanley’s treatment of African guides and workers he took with him on his expeditions.

In DR Congo Stanley is revered by many people and is known as “Bula Matadi” which means “Breaker of Rocks”.

He founded the capital Kinshasa and the country’s third largest city Kingani (formerly Stanleyville).