278 - July, 2018

Dogs in paintings run, play, follow the prey, take care of theirpuppies and look at us. Such paintings are indispensable forunraveling the history of dogs.

HistoRy

The fondness thatgenerations of Brit-ain’s kings and

queens have had for theirdogs can be seen inhundreds of paintings andphotographs of the royalfamily with their pets. Or,the other way around:with the dogs that ownedthe royal family.

Alix Alexandra (1844-1925),Queen of the UnitedKingdom of Britain andIreland and Empress ofIndia, had no British bloodin her veins. Her fatherChristian, Prince ofSchleswig-Holstein-Son-derburg-Glücksburg,became King of Denmark as Christian IX in 1863.Alexandra’s mother was Princess Louise of Hesse-Kassel.Both were members of the extended mid-19th-century circleof European princes and princesses. Alexandra’s brother,

George, became King ofGreece; her sister Dagmarbecame Empress of Russiain 1883 when her husbandAlexander became TsarAlexander III.

Alexandra CarolineMarie Charlotte LouiseJulia, in her family knownas Alix, was born at theYellow Palace, next toAmalienborg Palace inCopenhagen, in 1844. In1861, Crown PrincessVictoria, daughter ofQueen Victoria and PrinceAlbert, introduced herbrother. Albert Edward(1841-1910), the Prince ofWales (later King EdwardVII) to Alexandra. Thecouple married at Windsor

Castle in 1863.

Edward and Alexandra King Edward loved hunting and shooting. On some of his

text and illustrations by Ria HöRteR

Frederick Morgan’s sentimental, romantic genre paintingof a lady surrounded by children and dogs is typically Victorian.

Queen Alexandra her grandchildren and dogs (1902)by Thomas Blinks and Frederick Morgan

(The Royal Collection)

Dogs In ArtBritain’s Royalty and Their Fondness for Dogs

The Painting: Queen Alexandra, her Grandchildren and Dogs (1902)

273-288 .qxp_273-288 6/29/18 4:31 PM Page 278

royal visits abroad, heleft Alexandra and herfemale entourage behind,preferring the companyof his male friends, andhunted to his heart’scontent. Men amongstthemselves…

Despite his absences,the couple had sixchildren: Albert Victor(1864), George (1865),Louise (1867), Victoria(1868), Maud (1869) andAlexander John (1871).Albert Victor died at 28,and Alexander John livedonly a few hours.

Edward and Alex-andra chose SandringhamHouse as their privateresidence. When inLondon, they lived atMarlborough House.After her husband died

in 1910, Alexandra stayed permanently in London until her deathin 1925. During his marriage, Edward continued his affairs with otherwomen, including the famous actress Lilly Langtry, the Countessof Warwick, Alice Keppel and Jenny Jerome, the future mother ofSir Winston Churchill. Did Alexandra know? Yes, she did.Infidelity was not unusual at a time when most royal marriageswere political choices rather thanmarriages made of love. Theconjugal ethics were different;Alexandra permitted Alice Keppelto visit the king on his death bed. In 1892, Alexandra’s eldest son,Albert Victor, died of influenzaduring the pandemic of 1889-92.Alexandra never fully recoveredfrom this loss. After Albert Victor’sdeath, her second son, George,became the new Prince of Wales,later King George V, grandfather ofQueen Elizabeth II.

What do we see? Frederick Morgan’s sentimental,romantic genre painting of a ladysurrounded by children and dogs is typically Victorian. On theright in the background stands a man in riding clothes, carrying abasket that appears to be “filled with cut up bread to hand out astreats.” On the left is a dog kennel. The kennel boy has freed aCollie that runs toward the other dogs.

It is a sunny image, thedogs jostling one another tocome as close as possibleto the lady, who has treatsfor them. The boys are dressed insailor suits. One has his armaround the neck of a dog; theother boy has a little whip inhis hand. The girl on theright is holding a tri-coloredhound puppy in her arms. Thousands of dogpaintings were made duringQueen Victoria’s reign. GreatBritain could claim some ofthe best dog painters in theworld. One of them –Thomas Blinks – did thedogs in this painting. Morganwasn’t good at paintinganimals, so would enlist thehelp of artists who were.

Who do we see? The lady is Queen Alexandra, spouse of King Edward VII anddaughter-in-law of Queen Victoria. The painting dates from 1902when Alexandra was 58 years old. In the 19th century, Alexandra became known for her manypublic and charitable works. She was popular with the Britishpeople and, according to Queen Victoria, never complained abouther royal duties.

Alexandra died in 1925 and waslaid to rest beside her husband, ina tomb in St. George’s Chapel atWindsor Castle.

Upper ClassIn 1901, Alexandra’s husband

became King of the UnitedKingdom and British Dominions,and Emperor of India. Pedigreedogs were popular by thebeginning of the 20th century,especially among the upper class.The founding of The Kennel Clubin 1878, the establishment of breedstandards, the organization of dogshows and the founding of breedclubs attest to the advancement of

purebred dogs. The British royals perpetuated their dogs and themselves withpaintings by the best artists. King Edward VII shared his wife’saffection for dogs. He was the first patron of The Kennel Club,and visited and supported dog shows from as early as 1864 when

280 - July, 2018

HistoRy

Queen Alexandra and her favorite Japanese Spaniel (1893)

by Sir Samuel Lukes Fildes (The Royal Collection)

Queen Alexandra with one of her Borzoi, ca. 1890

SANDRINGHAM HOUSEKing Edward VII opened the gardens for the public in 1908.

In 1977, Queen Elizabeth II opened the house for the public, on the occasion of her Silver Jubilee.

273-288 .qxp_273-288 6/29/18 4:31 PM Page 280

he exhibited his dogs at the Royal Agricultural Hallshow. Alexandra did the same, but was also verymuch involved in the welfare of dogs. She supportedthe RSPCA, the world’s first animal-welfare charity,founded in 1824. In 1894, she became patron of theLadies’ Kennel Association (LKA) and promotedmany of its female artist members. Sandringham House in Norfolk was bought forEdward and Alexandra on the occasion of theirmarriage in 1862. The old country house wasdemolished in 1865 and Edward built a new, largerone that was finished in 1870. The family lovedSandringham House; their son King George V saidof it: “Dear old Sandringham, the place I love betterthan anywhere else in the world.” The estate hasgardens, orchards, stables and kennels. Lastmentioned were a particular delight to the childrenand grandchildren. The painting shows part of thekennel built in 1897 and designed to accommodate100 dogs.

The Grandchildren With the death of her mother-in-law, QueenVictoria, in 1901, Alexandra became queen-empressconsort to the new king. In the same year, her only surviving son,Prince George, and daughter-in-law Princess Victoria Mary (May)of Teck, left on an extensive tour of the empire, leaving their threeyoung children in the care of the children’sdoting grandparents. The boys in the painting are PrinceDavid (born in 1894) and Prince AlbertGeorge (1895). The girl is Princess Mary(1897); she and Albert were born in YorkCottage at Sandringham. The world knows David as KingEdward VIII, who became king onJanuary 20, 1936, then abdicated thethrone on December 11 the same year,because he did not want to give up hislove for American divorcee Mrs. WallisSimpson. Albert came in his place as KingGeorge VI, father of the present QueenElizabeth II.

The Dogs In 1901, Sarah Tooley, a writer for theLady’s Realm magazine, was granted atour of the Sandringham grounds. Tooleywrote: “Each kennel has an innercompartment as a bedroom, fitted with aniron bedstead and straw mattress. Theyare well ventilated, with good sanitaryarrangements, and are whitewashed oncea year. Leading from the bedroom is anopen ‘sitting-room,’ supplied with straw

and a constant supply of fresh water. Iron gates enclose eachkennel from the central yard. Good grass runs are adjacent to thekennels.” She continued: “The Queen always wore a ‘white

apron’ and carried baskets filled with cutup bread to hand out as treats. The Queenopens the door of each kennel herself, andits occupants come rushing out at thesound of her voice; indeed, the previousbarking has shown that they know who isapproaching even before she speaks. Thescene is one of tremendous animationwhen all the dogs have been liberated,and Deerhounds, Wolfhounds, terriers,Newfoundlands, Spitzes, Bassets, andCollies come jumping and barkingaround.”

In Reigning Cats and Dogs byKatharina Macdonogh (1999): “The estateat Sandringham was purchased in 1870and the kennels were built in 1879 onsimilar lines to those in the Home Park,Windsor, closed by King Edward in 1903.All his mother’s [Queen Victoria] dogs, ofwhich there remained over seventy, weretransferred to the kennels at Sandringhamwhich comprised some fifteen houses,each with a yard and every five having agrass plot in front. There was a largepaddock where the dogs exercised andseparate kennels for sick dogs andpuppies. In 1897 they were under the

282 - July, 2018

HistoRy

The Wales family in Mourning, taken after the death of Alexandra’s eldest son,Albert Victor, Prince of Wales (1892). Queen Alexandra is the second left. Nextto her is her second son, later King George V, and daughters Louise, Victoria and

Maud. The three dogs in this photo are a terrier, a Keeshond and a Chow.

Queen Alexandra and two Japanese ChinThis photo was sold as a picture postcard.

273-288 .qxp_273-288 6/29/18 4:31 PM Page 282

supervision of W. Brunsdon, whowore livery whenever in attendanceof the Prince.” These descriptions prove that thispainting is not just an impression, but“tells the whole truth and nothing butthe truth.”

Picture Postcards To get an idea of Alexandra’s royaldogs: In the Sandringham kennelswere Harriers, Bassets, setters,Pointers, Bulldogs, Wolfhounds,Dachshunds, Samoyeds, FoxTerriers, Pugs, Japanese Spaniels,Deerhounds, Collies, St. Bernards,Keeshonds, retrievers and spaniels. The Borzoi owed its popularityin England to Queen Alexandra,who was among the first to exhibitthem. Her brother-in-law, TsarAlexander III, gave her a RussianWolfhound as a gift shortly beforehis death in 1894. We know that Billie, a Pekingese,was her constant companion andslept on a cushion by her bed. TheJapanese Spaniel (or Japanese Chin)was one of her favorite breeds; an1893 painting depicts the queen witha Chin. There were also numerousphotographs of Alexandra with oneor more of her dogs. Some of the photographswere reproduced as picture postcards. Looking carefully at the painting, we seevarious breeds: a Borzoi, three Collies, aDeerhound. The small black dog that jumps upto Mary is a Schipperke (a Flemish breed); thepuppy in her arms is probably a Basset. Although a Foxhound is mentioned inliterature, I think the tri-color hounds depictedin the painting are Bassets. After 1880, QueenAlexandra acquired several Bassets for herkennels at Sandringham.

Who is the artist? To be more precise: who are the two artists?The painting is a collaboration of ThomasBlinks (1853-1910) and Fred(erick) Morgan(1856-1927), both well-known artists. ThomasBlinks was born in Kent, the son of a butcher.He exhibited for the first time in 1881, at theDudley Gallery in the West Midlands. He isknown for his oil paintings of pointers, setters,terriers, hounds, hunting scenes and horses. He

was not only wealthy but permittedhimself two houses, one in St. John’sWood (London) and a farm inHertfordshire.

Fred Morgan – born in London,the son of a painter – was mainly agenre and portrait artist. At 16, hewas already exhibiting at the RoyalAcademy. Many of his works are“idyllic,” romantic and sentimental.To be honest, this is the case with thedepiction of Alexandra and her dogs.

Morgan was not very talented atpainting dogs and other animals,which is why this painting was madeby two artists. Blinks took care of thedogs and Morgan did the people andromantic setting. It has the signatureof both.

Owner and CollectionThe official name of the painting

is Queen Alexandra her grand-children and dogs. An oil on canvas,49 x 64.5 inches, the painting is in theRoyal Collection of Queen ElizabethII. As far as I know, the painting doesnot hang at Sandringham House.

Queen Alexandra her grand-children and dogs can be admired atPinterest and Wordpress.com

A retired bookseller and publisher, Ria Hörteris a dog writer from The Netherlands. She is thecontributing editor of the leading DutchNational Dog Magazine Onze Hond (OurDogs) and is working for The Canine Chroniclein the U.S.A. She worked for the Dutch KennelClub and was one of the founders of the WelshSpringer Spaniel Club of the Netherlands ofwhich she is the editor of the club’s magazine.She was nominated twice and a finalist in the2009 Annual Writing Competition of the DogWriters Association of America, for her articlesin Dogs in Canada. On April 12, 2014 she wasawarded the Dutch Cynology Gold Emblem ofHonour. The award was presented by the DutchKennel Club.

For more information visit www.riahorter.com

Attempts were made to find the names of thephotographers. Unfortunately, we did notalways succeed.

284 - July, 2018

HistoRy

The same grandchildren in the same year (1902) as the painting: David (born 1894),

Albert (1895) and Mary (1897)

Queen Alexandra on HMY Victoriaand Albert in 1904, carrying a

Japanese Chin and Tibetan Spaniel.

273-288 .qxp_273-288 6/29/18 4:32 PM Page 284