Royal Family group
4 of 16 portraits of Victoria Melita, Grand Duchess of Russia
Royal Family group
by Alexander Bassano
half-plate glass negative, 1879
Purchased, 1996
Photographs Collection
NPG x95985
Sittersback to top
- Princess Alexandra of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (1878-1942), Red Cross nurse; daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh; wife of Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Sitter associated with 17 portraits. Identify
- Prince Alfred of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1874-1899), Only son of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Sitter in 8 portraits. Identify
- Marie, Queen of Romania (1875-1938), Nurse and writer; wife of Ferdinand I, King of Romania; daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Sitter in 62 portraits. Identify
- Victoria Melita, Grand Duchess of Russia (1876-1936), Former wife of Ernest Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, and later wife of Grand-Duke Kirill of Russia; daughter of Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Sitter in 16 portraits. Identify
Artistback to top
- Alexander Bassano (1829-1913), Photographer. Artist or producer associated with 2805 portraits, Sitter in 4 portraits.
Placesback to top
- Place made: United Kingdom: England, London (photographer's studio, 25 Old Bond Street , London)
Events of 1879back to top
Current affairs
Women's education continues to grow, with the founding of women's colleges in Oxford. Somerville College took its name from the late Scottish scientific writer Mary Somerville. Lady Margaret Hall was founded by Elizabeth Wordsworth, great niece of the poet, and named after Margaret Beaufort, a medieval noblewoman and mother of Henry VII.Art and science
Edison invents the first practical electric light bulb.The first prehistoric paintings, dating back 14,000 years, are discovered in the Altamira caves in Northern Spain when a young girl notices paintings of bison on the ceilings.
The French actress Sarah Bernhardt, already acclaimed for roles in plays such as Racine's Phèdre and Victor Hugo's Hernani, celebrates a successful season at London's Gaiety Theatre.
International
Anglo-Zulu war fought between British forces and the Zulus, after disputes between the Boers and Zulu leader Cetshywayo over the Utrecht border attracted British intervention. The British victory marked the end of the independent Zulu nation, although the Zulu's initial victory at Isandhlwana was a major surprise. The Battle of Rorke's Drift was dramatised in the film Zulu, starring Michael Caine, in 1964.Comments back to top
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