The Brunswick Monument stands on the Quai du Mont-Blanc overlooking the lake, a neo-Gothic mausoleum built between 1874 and 1879 and inspired by the Scaligeri tombs in Verona. It was commissioned by Charles II, Duke of Brunswick, who bequeathed his fortune to Geneva in exchange for a suitably impressive memorial. The result is a covered stone canopy supported on marble columns, decorated with carved reliefs and heraldic symbols, protecting a sarcophagus beneath.
It sits in a small landscaped setting on the lakeside promenade and is one of the more unexpected monuments in a city otherwise given to institutional grandeur. The duke's equestrian statue on top, added decades after his death, completes the ensemble. It is usually passed without much attention by the joggers and tourists on the quay — worth pausing at for the story.