Duke of Wellington (one of Mudie's series of "National Medals") 1815

This is Nicholas Guy Antoine Brenet’s bronze medal portraying the Duke of Wellington. Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, was a complicated figure whose military successes in the Napoleonic Wars secured his place in British history. Yet, the politics of empire and war are never without their costs. Wellington, an Anglo-Irishman, presents a challenging figure when we consider class, colonialism, and the construction of British identity. This medal, part of a series of “national medals,” exists to commemorate and celebrate Wellington’s legacy, but the very idea of a "national medal" raises questions of who is included and excluded from the narrative of a nation. Whose stories are elevated, and whose are suppressed? While the medal commemorates a specific historical narrative, it invites us to reflect on the nuances and forgotten perspectives of history.