Charles Dickens statue to be erected against his dying wishes

London: Charles Dickens` first statue will be unveiled in the city where he was born, defying wishes in his will for one not to be created.

The 118,000 pounds monument was commissioned by the Dickens Fellowship and will be erected in Portsmouth, thanks to an anonymous benefactor who donated the last 25,000 pounds needed, reported The Telegraph. It is the second time his wishes have been ignored. He had asked to be buried at Rochester Cathedral in an inexpensive and private ceremony but was laid to rest in the Poets` Corner at Westminster Abbey. He died in 1870 after suffering a stroke. He had asked that no memorial be erected in his honour yet a life-sized bronze statue was cast in 1891 and stands in Philadelphia, in America. PTI