The surrounding gates celebrate the countries that once made up the British Empire, while the central monument commemorates the death of Queen Victoria. The gate you are standing next to is Canada gate, leading on to Green Park. On the other side of the memorial is Australia gate, which you probably walked through before arriving at Buckingham Palace. The last gate represents South and West Africa, with the top plinth depicting African wildlife, forming the entrance to The Mall. Britain first established its colonies in the 16th century, and by the 18th century, the empire had 18 colonies in the Americas. By the 1920s, almost 400 million people and 10 million square miles of land were added, with Britain controlling a fifth of the world. The sun famously 'never set' in the British Empire which spanned the entire globe!