The George Davis Monument is a monument to attorney and Confederate politician George Davis that was erected in Wilmington, North Carolina by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. It was removed by the City of Wilmington in August 2021. Davis, a railroad attorney and minor local figure before the war, was a pro-Union member of the Whig Party. After secession, he accepted appointments to the Confederate senate and as attorney general. He was a skilled orator who spoke publicly in March 1861 that North Carolina should secede from the United States of America principally to preserve the economic interest in chattel slavery. The statue was unveiled on April 20, 1911 — 46 years after the defeat of the Confederacy. In the early morning hours of June 25, 2020, the City of Wilmington removed the statue of Davis "in order to protect the public safety and to preserve important historical artifacts." The dismantling was coincident with the firing of three city police officers following the discovery of their "brutally racist" discussions on official police recording equipment. The pedestal, with its false Lost Cause inscriptions, was covered with a shroud. By June 30, the pedestal was covered with a black shroud, which obscured the inscriptions. On August 2, 2021, the City Council voted to permanently remove the monument from public property. The city recognized ownership by Cape Fear 3, United Daughters of the Confederacy. The city will store away the statue and pedestal until the UDC is ready to take possession. In a statement, the government said it considered the matter of the disposition of the statue closed. History Davis Remembered for Oratory When the monument project was conceived, Davis was well-remembered among the city's white elite as a skilled orator. The statue depicts Davis, hand on lectern, giving a speech. March 1861 Speech: Secession to Preserve Slavery In his political life before 1861, Davis was not a member of the regionally dominant Democratic Party, but a Whig. Until March 1861, he opposed secession. During the election of 1860, he supported a pro-Union, third-party candidate for president. However, his position changed during his attendance at the failed Washington Peace Conference in February 1861. On March 2, 1861, Davis gave a public speech in Wilmington on secession. In it, he declared himself a secessionist. He argued that North Carolina should secede in order to preserve slavery: "The division must be made on the