Framed Lord Kitchener portrait and extended message to the troops

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c. 1915

Overview

Glazed, timber framed patriotic portrait of Lord Kitchener and his message to the troops, both held in a brown coloured mount.
The portrait shows Kitchener in full military dress. He has a sword attached to his belt and is holding some sort of ceremonial object. The message to the troops is titled 'Field-Marshal Viscount Kitchener, K.C.B.'.

Historical information

Horatio Herbert Kitchener (1850-1916) was a British Field Marshal and colonial administrator who played a key role in World War I.
He was born in Ireland and trained as a military engineer. He served in the Middle East and Egypt, and became commander-in-chief of the Egyptian army in 1892.
He served as chief of staff in the Second Boer War, and later became Commander-in-Chief.
Kitchener became Secretary of State for War at the start of World War One. He oversaw the rapid expansion of the British Army through the recruitment of volunteers. He became the face of the First World War when he appeared on the 'Your Country Needs You' poster.
He died in 1916 when his ship, HMS Hampshire, struck a German mine while en route to Russia on a diplomatic mission. He was the highest ranking officer to be killed during the war.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00201

Item type

Collectibles

Photographs

Souvenirs

Themes

War and Conflict
War and Conflict > World War 1

Material

Width

575 mm

Height or length

450 mm

Depth

30 mm

Inscriptions and markings

"FIELD-MARSHAL VISCOUNT KITCHENER, K.C.B."

"You are ordered abroad as a soldier of the King to help
our French comrades against the invasion of a common enemy.
You have to perform a task that will need your courage, your
energy, your patience. Remember that the honour of the British
Army depends on your individual conduct.

It will be your duty not only to set an example of discipline
and perfect steadiness under fire, but also to maintain the most
friendly relations with those whom you are helping in this struggle.
The operations in which you are engaged will, for the most part,
take place in a friendly country, and you can do your own
country no better service than in showing yourself in France and
Belgium in the true character of a British soldier.

Be invariably courteous, considerate and kind. Never do
anything likely to injure or destroy property, and always look
upon looting as a disgraceful act. You are sure to meet with a
welcome and to be trusted; your conduct must justify that
welcome and that trust.

Your duty cannot be done unless your health is sound. So
keep constantly on your guard against any excesses. In this new
experience you may find temptations both in wine and women.
You must entirely resist both temptations, and, while treating
women with perfect courtesy, you should avoid any intimacy.

Do your duty bravely,
Fear God,
Honour the King"

"KITCHENER
Field-Marshal"

Keywords

Place made

United Kingdom

Year

c. 1915