Hardy Monument

The Hardy Monument stands on an exposed location above the village of  Portesham in Dorset. It was built in 1844 in memory of Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy, Flag Captain of HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar. Amongst other things, Hardy became famous as it was in his arms that Nelson died, saying the immortal words 'Kiss me Hardy'. We became owners of the site in 1938 and have maintained it ever since.

The future of the monument has been safeguarded thanks to a £150,000 restoration project carried out during 2011. The project involved re-pointing nearly 80% of the monument and replacing over a hundred badly eroded stones. The memorial plaque on the outside of the monument was also restored.

We hope that the monument will be re-opened for you to visit in the near future, but problems with access arrangements are delaying this. We're currently working with partners to secure more suitable parking.