Images Dated 14th May 2006

William Ewart Gladstone, British Liberal Party statesman and Prime Minister, 1893.Artist: George J Stodart

William Ewart Gladstone, (1809-1898), British Liberal Party statesman and Prime Minister, 1893. William Gladstone (1809-1898) was born in Liverpool and educated at Oxford from where in 1832 he embarked on his political career. He became Prime Minister in 1868, and then a further two times in 1880 and 1886. Whilst in power Gladstone brought in major reforms to Ireland and established a system of national education in England. An engraving from James Taylor's The Age We Live In: A History of the Nineteenth Century, From the Peace of 1815 to the Present Time, William Mackenzie, (London, 1893)

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Giuseppe Garibaldi, Italian patriot and soldier of the Risorgimento, (1893).Artist: W Holl

Giuseppe Garibaldi, Italian patriot and soldier of the Risorgimento, (1893). Garibaldi (1807-1882) was involved in the Young Italy movement and after a failed uprising in Piedmont in 1834 he fled first to France and from there to South America, where he learned techniques of guerrilla warfare. He returned to Italy in 1848 at the head of a band of Red Shirts, fighting against the Austrians and French in Italy's wars of independence, during which he became a popular hero. In 1860 Garibaldi invaded Sicily at the head of a force of 1000 men, which had increased to 30, 000 by the time he captured Naples. He then handed the territory he had captured in southern Italy over to Victor Emmanuel II, declaring him king of a united Italy. An engraving from James Taylor's The Age We Live In: A History of the Nineteenth Century, From the Peace of 1815 to the Present Time, William Mackenzie, (London, 1893)

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Opening of the Great Exhibition by Queen Victoria, Hyde Park, London, 1 May 1851, (1899)

Opening of the Great Exhibition by Queen Victoria, Hyde Park, London, 1 May 1851, (1899). Conceived by Prince Albert, the Great Exhibition was intended to showcase the Works of the Industry of all Nations'. It was housed in the purpose-built Crystal Palace, the first large-scale prefabricated ferrovitreous (iron and glass) structure, designed by the landscape designer, Joseph Paxton. The prefabricated design made the construction, and later dismantling of the building, easier and quicker. The exhibition remained open until 15 October. An engraving from James Taylor's The Victorian Empire, William Mackenzie, (London, 1899)

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