The Death of Queen Victoria: the Politics of Mourning for the British in the Gulf

Abstract

• Upon the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, instructions sent to the Native Agent at Sharjah on how to visibly mourn her death reveal aspects of the construction of empire via ritual mourning practices. Although Queen Victoria never set foot on the soil of the empire over which she was proclaimed Empress of India in 1877, her presence was felt in many ways. Her face could be found on currency and postage stamps, while portraits and statues of the monarch were present in administrative buildings throughout the empire.