13 October 2008: Welcome Sweet Peace: Returning home after the Great War
Welcome Sweet Peace: Returning home after the Great War
National Library Gallery Homecoming exhibition
2 December 2008 – 14 March 2009
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 brought to a close four years of fighting in which thousands of New Zealanders served with distinction in various theatres of conflict.
While peace was not officially announced until June 1919, the November Armistice was cause for great celebration and considerable relief in New Zealand as elsewhere. The immediate post-war celebrations were tempered, however, by the devastating influenza pandemic that left 8,600 dead (almost half the number of New Zealanders killed during the war), concerns over repatriation and rehabilitation of servicemen and women, and uncertainty at what post-war society held.
'Welcome Sweet Peace', which opens at the National Library on 2 December, brings together an array of material including photographs, music, posters and cartoons from the collections of the Alexander Turnbull Library. They demonstrate not only the diverse ways in which the end of hostilities was commemorated, but also highlight how the New Zealand home front underwent a transformation during and after the Great War.
Second Lieutenant Frederic Kingsford's album provides an in-depth photographic account of his last few weeks in Britain in 1919 and his journey back to New Zealand. In a similar way, oral histories from returned servicemen provide personal reminiscences of events, including their views on Armistice, their journeys home, and post-war rehabilitation. Featured in the exhibition will be soldiers' letters to their families in New Zealand that touch on immediate post-war life in uniform and their thoughts regarding returning home. Also on display are original pen-and-ink and watercolour draft designs for certificates of service presented to New Zealand soldiers.
Other material includes letters written by Edward, Prince of Wales, as well as photographs documenting his well-received 29-day imperial visit to New Zealand in 1920. These items, acquired by the Turnbull Library in 2007, provide detailed descriptions of the tour from the Prince's own perspective.
By employing a wide range of visual and aural material, 'Welcome Sweet Peace' charts the development of the post-war settlement in New Zealand from the euphoric early days following Armistice through to the social, cultural and political upheaval imposed on all New Zealanders in the early 1920s.
Images
Download high-resolution images
Further information
Susan Bartel, Public Relations Manager
National Library Gallery
Phone 04 474 3119 or 027 223 5159
Fax 04 474 3063
Email susan.bartel@natlib.govt.nz
Interviews
Andrew Francis, Exhibition Curator
Phone 04 474 3134 x 8748
