London, England: Parliament Square

In professional sports, the ultimate honor bestowed by a team on a player used to be a retired uniform number. The idea is that the number would always be associated with that person. Then came along a bigger tribute. You're nothing, these days, unless you get a statue.

Apparently the United Kingdom got there first. It opted to honor heroes with statues well before sports teams got the idea.

Some of the nation's greatest figures are remembered in Parliament Square, which is right across the street from the Houses of Parliament. I would have guessed that Winston Churchill probably received the most attention, and I believe that was correct based on the attention of the crowds during our visit.

The square has been around since 1868, and it featured London's first traffic signals. Twelve people are honored here . Can you name the only American to be depicted in a statue? I would have guessed Franklin Roosevelt - World War II and all that - and I would have been wrong. Abraham Lincoln is the winner. The list also included Winston Churchill, Benjamin Disraeli, David Lloyd George and Nelson Mandela. The latest came in 2018, when Millicent Fawcett joined the group. She was a leader in the campaign for women's suffrage. 

By the way, when a political cause needs a spot for a rally in London, this is the place to go.