Marble Arch is a white Carrara-marble monument at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England. Standing alone on a traffic island in the midst of swirling traffic, the arch is accessible only by exiting the nearby Marble Arch tube station.
The name Marble Arch also refers to the locality in west London where the arch is situated, particularly, the northern portion of Edgware Road. Historically, only members of the royal family and the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, have been allowed to pass through the arch in ceremonial procession.
There are three small rooms inside the arch that were used as a police station until 1950, first for the royal constables of the Park and later the Metropolitan Police. One policeman stationed there during the early 1860s was Samuel Parkes, who won the Victoria Cross in the Charge of the Light Brigade in 1854, during the Crimean War.
Due to Nash's financial problems, some sculptures intended for the arch ended up on the façade of the National Gallery. In particular are those high up on the east façade, opposite the Edith Cavell memorial, Britannia, and above the old main entrance, under the portico. The statues missing from under the portico were originally intended to represent the campaigns of the Duke of Wellington. These sculptures include reclining personfications of Europe and Asia/India, with a blank roundel between them. Had the arch been completed as planned, the Duke of Wellington's face would have been depicted in the roundel.
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