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| Photograph of Queen Victoria portrait slashed by rebels in 1916. |
During Heritage Week the College had large numbers of people walk through it's buildings hearing of the history contained within. A photograph featured in the Heritage Collections display caught the attention of Michael Parsons, author of the Fine Arts and Antiques column in the Irish Times. The photograph in question showed a life-size portrait of Queen Victoria after it had been slashed by the rebels to make puttees. The reason it caught Michael's eye was because a piece of this portrait was up for auction in Whyte's auctioneers on Saturday 14th September
http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/homes-and-property/fine-art-antiques/who-knifed-queen-victoria-s-portrait-in-dublin-in-1916-1.1518465
Countess Markievicz, Commander Mallin and over one hundred men, women and children took control of the College during the rising in Easter Week of 1916. One of these women was Margaret Skinnider a native of Scotland who was not only a female sniper during the Rising but also the only female wounded during the action in the College. In her autobiography 'Doing My Bit for Ireland' which was published in 1917 while on exile in New York Margaret clearly states what happened to the painting
'At the College of Surgeons we destroyed nothing except a portrait of Queen Victoria. We took that down and made puttees out of it. We did not feel that we were doing anything wrong.'
Puttees are a bandage or strip of cloth used to cover the lower part of the leg from the ankle to the knee. The material was wound tightly and spirally round the leg and gave support and extra protection. A newspaper cutting held within the Heritage Collections confirms the destruction of the Queen Victoria portrait. But it also mentions a number of other paintings that were damaged by bullets. These underwent repairs and still hang in the College today.
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| Newspaper cutting referring to destruction of portraits within the College during the 1916 Rising. |
A photograph taken of the Board Room before the Rising shows the portrait intact with a gilt frame.One can see just how large the portrait was.
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| Photograph of the Board Room featuring the Queen Victoria portrait intact before the 1916 Rising. |
With the majority of the painting having, literally, walked out of the College on the day the rebels surrendered, will more pieces be discovered in people's attics, drawers, under the floor boards? We can only hope that some day these Royal puttees walk back through the door of the College.
- Researched and written by Meadhbh Murphy