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Uncover the rich history of Elmbridge with our latest online exhibitions
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Explore the latest news and find out what's on this month
Explore our learning offer for schools, families and community groups
Uncover the rich history of Elmbridge with our latest online exhibitions
Want to discover more about your local area?
Back in October 2020, Elmbridge Museum launched its ‘Objects of Empire’ project, which saw items from the museum collection with previously unexplored links to the former British Empire displayed at Walton Library. It was accompanied by an online exhibition to document these hidden links, along with a range of other resources which explored the theme across the museum sector.
Now, a year since the project first launched, we’re continuing its legacy. After delving into the collection once more, we’ve published a list of 11 extra items in our care which are linked to the British Empire. This research will be reflected permanently in our collections database, diversifying the range of terms used to categorise each item and ensuring the link to Empire is not hidden for future users. In this blog post, we’ve investigated the background of each item.
We aim to carry on building on the project’s legacy year-on-year, and gradually improve our understanding of how the Empire is reflected across our whole collection.
Amy Swainston, Exhibitions & Interpretation Officer
Matt Williams, Collections Project Officer
“The feeling in the colonies that the various members of the British Empire form one nation, that all are Britons of one family, separated only by distance, was strikingly shown during the late war in Egypt.”
Quote and image of ‘General Graham welcoming the Australian Contingent at Suakim’, in The Century Geographical Readers No. 6
Sixty Years a Queen Magazine, Part 3
During the first half of the 20th century, Empire Day was an important date in the British calendar. Empire Day was made an annual event in 1916, a time when the British Empire was at its zenith. The purpose of the day was to instil certain values in children such as patriotism, duty and self-sacrifice. Celebrated on the 2nd May, it was mainly celebrated in schools where children who would take part in patriotic events such as singing, parties and parades. Empire Day continued until 1958; by this point the Empire had started to crumble and the day was renamed British Commonwealth Day. These items are a reminder of a time when patriotism was more overtly encouraged and the concept of what Britain consisted of was much larger than it is today.