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| Queen Elizabeth II, Dorothy Wilding, 1952. |
When Elizabeth acceded to the
British throne in 1952 there was talk of a “new Elizabethan age,” associating
the new Queen with the past glory of Elizabeth I, and hoping for a national
revival for a country still recovering from the trauma of World War II.[1]
The images of the Queen in the early years of her reign focused on her youth
and beauty. The Queen posed for photographer Dorothy Wilding 59 times to mark
her accession.[2]
In the images she is dressed in evening gowns and jewels. Wilding’s photographs
were sent to embassies and were made into the images on banknotes and stamps. Still young at 26 years old, the Queen was made into a symbol of hope
and renewal. Her coronation on June 2nd 1953 was a huge event, which
aimed for public visibility. For the first time ever the coronation ceremony
was broadcast globally by the BBC with an estimated 27 million viewers.[3] The
broadcasting of the ceremony brought the public into the event, connecting them
with a historic moment and instilling a sense of national pride.
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Queen
Elizabeth II, Cecil
Beaton, 1953
|
Following
the coronation ceremony, the Queen sat for photographer Cecil Beaton in the
Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace. As per tradition, in this
coronation portrait, she is dressed in the coronation robes and is wearing the
Imperial State Crown.[4]
Her coronation gown was designed by Norman Hartnel and is embroidered with the
emblems of the United Kingdon and the Commonwealth. She holds the orb and
scepter and the coronation ring is visible. All of these motifs are symbols
that have been carried through the coronation portrait type in Britain for
hundreds of years. However, the extreme similarities of the gown to coronation
portraits of Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, and as well the similar focus on
the female monarchs’ youth and beauty, suggests a conscious effort to convey to
Britons that Queen Elizabeth II would usher in another golden age, like those
Elizabethan and Victorian eras. In the coronation portrait for Queen Elizabeth
II, Beaton used a blown up photograph of the Chapel of Henry VII at Westminster
as a backdrop, which further heightens the sense of grandeur of the image.[5] The
portrait draws heavily on traditional imagery of the Queen, acting as
propaganda to increase nationalism. These images of the new Queen were well
received by the public and she was generally the subject of adoration, however
some criticized the event of the coronation as a form of escapism for Britons.[6]
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Queen Elizabeth I, Unknown, c. 1600
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Queen Victoria, Franz Xaver
Winterhalter, 185959
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Queen
Elizabeth II, Pietro
Annigoni,
1954-
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The
idealized depiction of the young Queen Elizabeth II is also evident in Pietro
Annigoni’s celebrated portrait from 1954-55, commissioned by the Fishmonger’s
Company.[7] Her figure is set in front of a romantic winter landscape. The image
is regal, dignified and traditional, although once again conveys a sense of
glamour. This effect is partly created by the dramatic contrast between the
figure of the Queen wearing the dark garter mantle, set against the cool winter
background, a technique which recalls Renaissance painting. Annigoni claims to
have drawn his inspiration for the composition from something Queen Elizabeth
said during a prepatory sketch, “When I was a little child, it always delighted
me to look out of the window and see the people and traffic going by.”[8]
The distant gaze of the Queen, and the cool landscape setting suggest that the
Queen, because of her exalted position, observes the world from a place of
isolation.[9] Later
artists will draw upon this idea of the Queen’s duty and sacrifice for her
nation.
However, at this
time, the symbolism of Queen Elizabeth II’s role was already becoming more
complex than representing duty and sacrifice. The Times wrote in 1955 that,
“Now in the twentieth- century conception of the monarchy the Queen has come to
be the symbol of every side of life of this society, its universal
representative in whom her people see their better selves ideally reflected.”[10]
Thus images of the Queen must attempt to represent this complex symbolism,
setting her above and apart from her people, whilst still showing her to
represent broader social values of Britain.
After this period, portraits of Queen Elizabeth II took a significant shift away from these formalized images. The coronation portraits of Queen Elizabeth II, were created for a post- war nation standing on shaky legs and looking for a symbol of hope and renewal.
As the 1950s progressed, it became clear that
the hope for a “new Elizabethan age” had been false and people abandoned the
term.[1]
The British Empire was rapidly downsizing, and the post World War II new world
order was decidedly American dominated. In 1956, the Suez Crisis was a national
embarrassment for Britain, and further highlighted the loss of their imperial
power.[2]
Along with Britain’s changing role on the global stage, the institution of the
British monarchy was the subject of increasing criticism. It is thus particularly fascinating that in 2012, 60 years since Queen Elizabeth's accession, the British Monarchy has attained increasing popularity since the event of the royal wedding and throughout the jubilee celebrations. A level of support for the monarchy, which has perhaps not been seen since the 1950s and suggesting an increasing nostalgia and perhaps once again a desire for a revival of past British glory.
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Queen
Elizabeth II, Cecil
Beaton, 1953
|
Very interesting, Angela. The last observation is also intriguing.
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