Albert Square, Manchester

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Albert Square is a public square in the centre of Manchester, England. It is dominated by the grand Manchester Town Hall, a large Victorian Gothic building designed by Alfred Waterhouse. Surrounding it are other historic Victorian buildings, many of which are protected as listed buildings. The square also contains several monuments, the largest being the Albert Memorial, a statue of Prince Albert set under an ornate canopy.

The square was created in the 1860s to honour Prince Albert, who died in 1861. Work on the Albert Memorial began in the early 1860s and the project helped clear a large area of old streets and buildings. It enjoyed strong public support, with brickmakers donating thousands of bricks and the public providing money when construction faced difficulties. The memorial was placed inside a Gothic canopy designed by Thomas Worthington, with the statue by Matthew Noble.

The Town Hall was built after Manchester’s old Town Hall became too small, with construction from 1868 to 1877. In the 1970s there were plans for an underground station under Albert Square as part of the Picc-Vic project, but the plan was cancelled. In 1972 the area around the square was designated a conservation area, and in 1981 Lincoln Square was added to create a pedestrian route to the Town Hall.

In 1987 the square was redesigned to be more pedestrian-friendly: the eastern side in front of the Town Hall was opened up for walking, and the paving was laid with granite setts and York stone with heritage-style street furniture. The Albert Memorial was restored in the late 1970s after years of concern for its condition, with fundraising help from a public appeal.