Fodor's Expert Review George Square

The focal point of Glasgow is lined with an impressive collection of statues: Queen Victoria; Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns (1759–96); the inventor and developer of the steam engine, James Watt (1736–1819); Prime Minister William Gladstone (1809–98); and, towering above them all atop a column, Scotland's great historical novelist, Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). That column was originally intended for George III (1738–1820), after whom the square is named, but when he was found to be insane toward the end of his reign, a statue of him was never erected. On the square's east side stands the magnificent Italian Renaissance–style City Chambers; the handsome Merchants' House fills the corner of West George Street, crowned by a globe and a sailing ship. The fine old Post Office building, now converted into flats, occupies the northern side. There are plenty of benches in the center of the square where you can pause and contemplate. Glasgow's Queen Street Station is on the western corner.