Past Event

Queen Victoria Through American Eyes

A Road Scholar program by Walter Arnstein

During her long reign (1837-1901), Queen Victoria never crossed the Atlantic Ocean, and yet no woman came to be better known in the “Victorian” United States. In this illustrated talk, Walter Arnstein focuses on a relatively unexplored subject: How, and what, did Americans learn about the queen and how did they become familiar with pictures of her? Why did the granddaughter of King George III, the quintessential “tyrant” of 19th century American textbooks, become a heroine in the eyes of most Americans and the object of the most elaborate funeral ceremonial ever devoted to a foreigner?

For more information contact Mary Futrell, 847.492.4630.