Abstract
My 25 minute paper explored a huge oil painting commissioned from official British war artist Eric Kennington by Lord Beaverbrook of the Canadian War Memorials Scheme. The work, now in the collection of the Canadian War Museum, Ottawa, depicts a platoon from the 16th battalion Canadian-Scottish (Highlanders of Canada) marching across a wreckage-strewn battlefield in France in late 1918. What was particular interest to me and to my Canadian Audience was the conspicuous presence within the composition of two soldiers of Black African/West Indian descent and one Native (First Nation) Canadian. I explored how such individuals had found their way into the battalion when it was official policy of the Canadian Expeditionary Force not to accept non-white volunteers into the ranks of its units.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 16 Apr 2016 |
| Event | Crossing Borders, Crossing Boundries : 83rd Annual Meeting of the Society for Military History - Ottawa, Canada Duration: 15 Apr 2016 → 17 Apr 2016 |
Conference
| Conference | Crossing Borders, Crossing Boundries : 83rd Annual Meeting of the Society for Military History |
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| Period | 15/04/16 → 17/04/16 |
Bibliographical note
Impact: Members of staff of the Canadian War Museum were most pleased with my paper as I had provided a good deal of new information hitherto unknown about Kennington and the circumstances in which he came to paint The Conquerors/The Victims. I was also able to shed new light for them as to why Kennington changed the title of the painting to The Victims when it was exhibited in London, two months after it was first put on display in Ottawa. Finally, I added considerably to their current information as to the painting's reception in both Ottawa and London, plus the views of Lord Beaverbrook who was ta the time putting the finishing touches to the creation of a Canadian War Museum building in Ottawa.Organising Body: The Society of Military History for North America
Keywords
- Anthropology