Tablet
attributed to Herbert Read
Category
Furniture
Date
Unknown
Materials
Oak
Order this imageCollection
Compton Castle, Devon
NT 224118
Caption
In 1583 an expedition of four ships commanded by Sir Humphrey Gilbert arrived in Newfoundland with a commission from Queen Elizabeth to sail the seas and take lands under her banner. Shortly after his arrival Gilbert set up his tent on a hill overlooking St. John's harbour, and solemnly read aloud his commission and formally took possession of the land in the name of the Queen. Newfoundland thus became England 's first possession in North America. It is said that the locals presented Gilbert with a gift of a local dog, whom he named Stella after the North Star.
Summary
Oak tablet commemorating the colonisation of Newfoundland in 1583 by Sir Humphrey Gilbert. Given by the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire to Commander Gilbert on 25th July 1959. Bequeathed by Commander Gilbert in 1977.
Full description
Commissioned by the ‘Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire’ (IODE) in 1959, the tablet strikes a commemorative note, the inscription recording the ‘taking possession of the New Found Land’ by Sir Humphrey Gilbert’. It reflects the early focus of the IODE on the celebration and expansion of British imperialism and draws on the 19th century romanticisation of Sir Humphrey Gilbert and other seafarers of his time. The inscription can be viewed in relation to early 20th century views of empire rather than as reflective of the reality of Gilberts arrival in Newfoundland. The ‘Federation of the Daughters of the Empire’ was founded by Canadian Margaret Polson Murray in the wave of patriotism and support for the British Empire that followed the outbreak of the second Boer War in 1899. Renamed in 1901 ‘Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire’ (IODE) it aimed to provide practical support for soldiers, support families and dependents and care for the war graves of those who fell overseas. The Order spread throughout Canada and generated affiliated groups in the USA. A similar order ‘The Victoria League’ was created in Britain but it remained separate from IODE to make the distinction between an association based in Britain and those in colonised lands. The IODE was an organisation founded with a mission of asserting British identity in Canada. Such an objective accordingly obscured the response of existing First Nations to the establishment of settlement in Newfoundland and subsequent colonisation. It has also been an organisation that actively sought to shape both a sense and the reality of Canadian identity and to base that on an imperialist and expansionist view of the British Empire and the arts, culture and people of Britain albeit excluding those of lower social classes (Pickles, 2002, p91). While early in establishing the IODE Margaret Polson Murray sought to encourage women of First Nations to join( https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/polson_margaret_smith_15E.html [Accessed 19/11/2024]) the organisation went on to support anti-immigration and racially ordered immigration proposals of the early 20th century and to petition against the immigration of people of colour [ https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/order-in-council-pc-1911-1324-the-proposed-ban-on-black-immigration-to-canada [Accessed 19/11/2024]. It has been described as complicit in racism and oppression, advocating for a process of assimilation of immigrants to a British model ‘https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/imperial-order-daughters-of-the-empire [Accessed 19th November 2024]. The IODE today describes itself as ‘a national women's charitable organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for individuals through education support, community service, and citizenship programs’. https://www.iode.ca/about-our-work.html [Accessed 19/11/2024] and that it maintains ‘…particular concern for immigrant and native women’ (ibid). In 1978 it was renamed ‘IODE’ in order to distance itself from earlier connections with the overt patriotism, imperialism and ‘unwelcome connotations of ‘empire’ of earlier times (Pickles, 2002, p1). The tablet was originally described as created by Herbert Read of St. Sidwell’s Art Works, later Herbert Read Ltd of Exeter. However, Herbert Edmund Read died in 1951 and so although it may be from the workshop (which continued into the 1990’s), it is unlikely that it is the work of Read himself. https://stsidwells.org.uk/heritage/herbert-read/ Katie Pickles, 2002, Female imperialism and national identity: Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire Manchester University Press
Provenance
Given by the Daughters of the Empire to Commander Gilbert on 25th July 1959. Bequeathed to the National Trust for display at Compton Castle in February 1977 by Commander Walter Raleigh Gilbert.
Makers and roles
attributed to Herbert Read, carver