MAY IT PLEASE YOUR MAJESTY,
1,535 signatures submission—to support saving Plymouth’s famous Belvedere Monument.
During the summer months of 2026, I have been leading the campaign for the restoration of Plymouth’s historic Belvedere ‘Wedding Cake’ monument on the Hoe.
The Grade 2-listed landmark is part of the city’s history and a British iconic landmark.
Our national petition on the Change.org website has been signed by over 1,535 people from across Plymouth and around the United Kingdom.
The Colonnades are covered in cracks, moss, and graffiti and are in very poor condition, and we call on Your Majesty to support this beautiful part of our British heritage.
The Labour council says the Grade II listed monument—one of England’s finest Victorian seafront colonnades—is structurally sound but admitted in the local media it needs some vital ‘tender loving care.’
Hopefully our petition to your Majesty, a highly symbolic gesture, will be the key to unlock a much-needed facelift to a monument that is part of Plymouth’s waterfront history.
The Belvedere is a ‘beloved’ masterpiece by the people of Plymouth and part of British heritage and is known by locals as the ‘wedding cake.’
The historic monument is also home to many of the city’s war memorials in a special garden area—that is also in poor state and needs TLC care.
It has a huge sentimental value and is part of the heritage of the city and a crucial part of the city’s global image, like Smeaton’s Tower and ‘Tinside Lido,’ which I fought so hard to save in the late 1990s.
I was proud to have delivered a 70,000 petition to your late mother, Her Majesty the Queen, in 1998, and a 5-year campaign to restore Tinside Lido—that reopened in 2003 after a decade of neglect and talk of demolition.
Restoring the Belvedere is a tourist and hospitality investment in Plymouth’s cultural prosperity, boosting tourism and local pride.
Not only will it safeguard a significant piece of our Plymouth history with so much lost in the Blitz of 1941 and post-war planners, but the ‘Wedding Cake’ will also continue to inspire future generations to come.
Every visitor on Plymouth Hoe has a memory of the Wedding Cake, and whether it was a serene walk by the waterside or an exciting city event, this monument has been a silent participant in our collective history and experiences.
The Belvedere shielded Sir Winston Churchill, Sir Robert Menzies, and Lady Astor after a German air raid in 1941 while visiting the city and Hoe promenade.
Restoring the Belvedere is a step toward preserving these memories and ensuring they aren’t lost to time. I have received messages from across the country, and especially from members of the Armed Forces supporting our campaign.
I have the honour to remain, Sir, your Majesty’s humble and obedient subject.
Kevin Kelway, BCAc
