Confederate-era statues in Baltimore, Maryland have been torn down in the middle of the night after the city council voted unanimously to remove them.

Four monuments that paid tribute to leading members of Confederate were toppled, including the Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument and the Confederate Women’s Monument, as well as statues commemorating Confederate Army generals Robert E Lee and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and pro-slavery Supreme Court judge Roger B Taney.

It follows violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, that centred on the city’s plans to remove a statue of Robert E Lee, who led the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.

Confederate statues have been the subject of controversy across the US, with critics saying they inappropriately honour a racist era of US history and those responsible for it. The Confederacy of Southern states supported slavery and split from the rest of the United States in opposition to attempts to restrict the practice.

Defenders of the monuments, however, say those they commemorate were killed while fighting to protect their way of life and the right of their individual states’ to decide on matters such as slavery. They believe removing the statues amounts to destruction of the US’s history and heritage.

Video posted on social media showed cranes removing the Baltimore statues from their perches and lorries taking them away. The city’s Mayor, Catherine Pugh, said some would be taken to Confederate cemeteries.

Baltimore City Council decided on Monday to remove the statues after the violent clashes between white supremacist groups and anti-racism campaigners in Charlottesville, in which a 32-year-old woman, Heather Heyer, was killed when a car rammed into protesters.

Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Show all 9 1 /9 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Protesters clash and several are injured White nationalist demonstrators clash with counter demonstrators at the entrance to Lee Park in Charlottesville, Virginia. A state of emergency is declared, August 12 2017 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Trump supporters at the protest A white nationalist demonstrator walks into Lee Park in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. Hundreds of people chanted, threw punches, hurled water bottles and unleashed chemical sprays on each other Saturday after violence erupted at a white nationalist rally in Virginia. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville State police stand ready in riot gear Virginia State Police cordon off an area around the site where a car ran into a group of protesters after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Militia armed with assault rifles White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' with body armor and combat weapons evacuate comrades who were pepper sprayed after the 'Unite the Right' rally was declared a unlawful gathering by Virginia State Police. Militia members marched through the city earlier in the day, armed with assault rifles. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee The statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee stands behind a crowd of hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' during the 'Unite the Right' rally 12 August 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. They are protesting the removal of the statue from Emancipation Park in the city. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Racial tensions sparked the violence White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' exchange insults with counter-protesters as they attempt to guard the entrance to Lee Park during the 'Unite the Right' rally Getty Violence on the streets of Charlottesville A car plows through protesters A vehicle drives into a group of protesters demonstrating against a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The incident resulted in multiple injuries, some life-threatening, and one death. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Rescue personnel help injured people after a car ran into a large group of protesters after an white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville President Donald Trump speaks about the ongoing situation in Charlottesville, Virginia from his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. He spoke about "loyalty" and "healing wounds" left by decades of racism.

There are estimated to be 718 Confederate statues and monuments across the US, of which around 300 are in the southern states of Georgia, Virginia and North Carolina.