Colombia Wants To Remove Plaque Honoring British Soldiers After It Was Unveiled By Prince Charles, Causing Outrage

A Colombian mayor is seeking the removal of a plaque placed by Britain’s Prince Charles only a week after it was unveiled. The plaque serves to commemorate the lives of British soldiers lost when the troops attempted to take the city of Cartagena from the Spanish in 1741. The memorial was met with “very negative reactions” from locals prompting the city’s mayor, Dionisio Velez to call for its removal.

The local community has already acted out in response to the insensitive plaque, one man has already been arrested while trying to damage it according to the Cartagena police force. The Prince of Wales unveiled the plaque only on Friday and stated that the reasoning behind the memorial was to recall the "valor and suffering of all those who died in combat whilst seeking to take the city." The conflict occurred in the 18^th century when Cartagena served as one of the four major trading ports for the Spanish empire in the Caribbean.

The lucrative port was responsible for processing large amounts of gold and silver from South America back to Europe and the head of the empire. In March of 1741, the city suffered an attack by the British colonial troops led by Admiral Edward Vernon; the massive British army arrived with an impressive fleet of 186 ships and 23,600 men, including 12,000 infantry. In comparison the city of Cartagena only had 6 Spanish ships and fewer than 3,00 men. The Spanish defense was led by General Blas de Lezo and after holding the port city and defeating over 18,000 British soldiers, he was hailed as a hero. To immortalize the brave general, who tragically succumbed to an infection just four moths after Vernon’s retreat, his statue stands in front of the San Felipe de Barajas castle, which now serves as the landmark for the recently installed plaque.

Prince Charles left Colombia for Mexico and Sunday. Locals wasted no time letting their true feelings be known in regards to the plaque. In an interview with El Heraldo, a local city guide explained, “This is the biggest imprudence our mayor has committed.” He also stated that he feels bad showing the plaque to tourists who visit the historically rich port city. Gina Ruiz, the former director of the Heritage and Culture Institute of Cartagena also shared similar sentiments when discussing the plaque with El Heraldo, stating, “One of the most unfortunate things of this absurd act of the mayor is that it is happening right when we are on the verge of celebrating freedom and independence on November 11.”