The construction of Nelson's Column in 1840-43 followed the opening of the new building to house the National Gallery.

The present building was designed by William Wilkins and in 1832 construction began on the site of the King's Mews in Charing Cross, in an area that had been transformed over the 1820s into Trafalgar Square. The location was a significant one, between the wealthy West End and poorer areas to the east. The building was completed in 1838.

In February 1838 a group of 121 peers, MPs and other gentry formed a committee to raise a monument to Lord Nelson, funded by public subscription, and the Government agreed to provide a site in Trafalgar Square, in front of the newly-completed National Gallery.