Officier der vrijwillige Jagers van de Hooge School te Utrecht in kleine tenue 1835 - 1850

Albertus Verhoesen made this print of an officer of the Utrecht High School Volunteer Riflemen. It offers a window into the social and political currents of the Netherlands at the time. Looking at the image, we can see that the officer’s uniform is rendered with great attention to detail. The ‘Volunteer Riflemen’ speak to a specific moment in Dutch history when civic engagement in military service was encouraged. The imagery evokes a sense of national pride. Universities played a key role in shaping national identity, and the presence of volunteer corps within these institutions suggests the merging of intellectual and patriotic ideals. To truly understand the context of this work, we might delve into archival records, newspapers, and military documents. What was the precise role of these volunteer units? Did they serve a real military function, or were they primarily symbolic? The meaning of art is always dependent on its social and institutional context.