Holy Emperor Maximiliano: Visual Representations in 19th-century Mexico and France
Emperor Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph's reign in Mexico, from 1864 to 1867, was brief, but it nonetheless produced a significant body of images depicting his reign, execution, and even afterlife. This study analyzes the iconography of Maximilian in nineteenth-century Mexico and France (the country which installed him on his throne) as it is found in such visual documents as official court portraiture, lithographic prints, political cartoons, and photographs. It demonstrates that Maximilian and artists sympathetic to his empire sought to connect his image to European monarchical traditions, and more particularly to Napoleonic imperial tradition, while simultaneously appealing to Mexican nationalism. Images of the Emperor's execution by those sympathetic to him further connected his fate to religious martyrdoms. By using images from Mexico which are often overlooked in the art historical scholarship surrounding Maximilian, this study aims to provide a more complete and nuanced understanding of the imagery of Maximilian in the nineteenth century.
School:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Department:
Art History
Research Advisor:
David O’Brien
Department of Research Advisor:
Art History
Year of Publication:
2005