Lord High Admiral, Great Britain, from the Naval Flags series (N17) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands 1886 - 1891

This is "Lord High Admiral, Great Britain," a chromolithograph card, was part of Allen & Ginter's "Naval Flags" series, produced for cigarette brands. These cards reflect the late 19th century's cultural fascination with nationalism and imperial power, illustrating the flags and symbols of global military might. Allen and Ginter, based in Richmond, Virginia, was deeply embedded in the post-Civil War American South, a region grappling with its identity amidst industrialization and lingering racial tensions. The choice to depict naval flags, specifically that of Great Britain, speaks to the era’s power dynamics and perhaps to a longing for connection with established European powers. Though seemingly innocuous, the card served to subtly reinforce notions of national pride and hierarchies of power at a time of immense social and political change. What is not pictured here, however, is the immense human cost of building and maintaining empires.