The monument features George Armitstead with his wife Cecile Pychlau and the Chow-Chow dog. The monument is located in the center of Riga near the Opera Bridge.
A bronze plaque on the sculpture with the inscription: "George Armitstead, Mayor of the City of Riga (1901-1912) with his spouse Cecile Pychlau. Unveiled by Her Majesty Queen Elisabeth II on October 18, 2006. Commissioned by Eugene Gomberg and Rodney Radcliffe”.
George Armitstead (Latvian: Georgs Armitsteds, October 27, 1847 – November 17, 1912) was an engineer, entrepreneur and the fourth Mayor of Riga.
Life
George Armitstead was born in Riga, Latvia (then: Russian Empire) into a British merchant family; his uncle was George Armitstead, 1st Baron Armitstead.
In 1869, Armitstead graduated from the Riga Polytechnical Institute with excellence, and was one of the founders of the Fraternitas Baltica fraternity. He improved his knowledge at Zurich and Oxford universities. Later, Armitstead worked as an engineer in Russia. After working in Russia, he came back to Riga, where his family owned many properties and factories, and became a significant social figure of the city life.
In May 7, 1901, the Riga City Council elected Armitstead to be the Mayor of Riga. He transformed Riga rapidly: he built many of today's buildings in Riga, 13 schools, 3 hospitals, the National Museum, the Zoo, libraries and cafés. Industry and commerce developed significantly. During the period when he was mayor, Riga turned from a small city into a major European city.
Emperor Nicholas II of Russia appreciated Armitstead's work and titled him a Laird of Russian Empire, while offering him to become the Mayor of St Petersburg, but Armitstead refused.