A memorial to Queen Victoria in a West Yorkshire park has been defaced with the words 'racist' and 'slave owner'.

The monument in Woodhouse Moor, Hyde Park, Leeds has also been spray painted with the words 'educate', 'colonise', 'justice' and 'Black Lives Matter'.

The memorial - designed by Victorian sculptor George Frampton - features a large stone plinth with a sculptor of the monarch on top.

It was first erected outside Leeds Town Hall in 1905 and was later moved to another site in the city.

The incident comes days after a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down during an anti-racism protest in Bristol.

Queen Victoria became the monarch in 1837, four years after parliament passed the Slavery Abolition Act.

Her reign, which lasted until 1901, saw a huge expansion of the British Empire.

The Queen Victoria statue in Leeds has also been spray painted with the words 'educate', 'colonise', 'justice' and 'Black Lives Matter'.

Leeds City Council say they "support freedom of speech" but that the graffiti will be removed.

A number of campaigns have been set up in recent days to remove statues of historical figures with links to slavery, such as Cecil Rhodes and Sir Thomas Picton.