Richmond removes its last remaining Confederate statue

Richmond, Virginia, was once the capital of the Confederacy. On Monday, the city removed its last Confederate monument.

Workers lifted a bronze statue of Confederate General A.P. Hill from its base and placed it on a truck. Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney tweeted photos and a video of the removal – more than two years after the city started taking down Confederate monuments. 

 “Over two years ago, Richmond was home to more Confederate statues than any city in the United States. Collectively, we have closed that chapter,” Stoney said. “We now continue the work of being a more inclusive and welcoming place where ALL belong.”

The removal came after a legal battle over whether the city could move the statue or the remains of Hill, which were buried underneath the monument. Ultimately, a Virginia circuit court ruled in October that the city could continue. 

Hill, one of General Robert E. Lee’s lieutenant generals, was killed during the Third Battle of Petersburg in 1865. 

In 2020, the Richmond City Council approved an ordinance that allowed the city to remove Confederate statues from its property. Since then, and in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, eight Confederate statues have been taken down.