Hello, my name is Mr. Groom and you've made a great choice to learn history with me today.

We're going to have such a brilliant time learning together in this lesson all about the way that the Victorians view their empire in the late 19th century.

So if you're ready, let's get started.

Today's lesson is called The Great Exhibition and the British Empire and it's from the unit interpreting the British Empire.

How has it been commemorated and contested? By the end of today's lesson, we'll be able to explain what the Great Exhibition is able to tell us about British attitudes towards empire.

There are keywords for the lesson.

An empire is a group of countries or provinces ruled from the centre by another person or group of people.

Gunboat diplomacy is foreign policy that is supported by the threat of military force.

Supremacy is the state or condition of being superior.

An exhibition is a public display of works of art or items of interest.

So let's start today's lesson about the Great Exhibition in the British Empire by looking at the Don Pacifico affair.

In 1847, the house of a Portuguese Jewish merchant and diplomat named Don Pacifico was attacked and looted by an antisemitic mob.

The local police did nothing to protect him or his property.

Pacifico tried to claim compensation from the Greek government for the loss of his property but his claim was denied.

As Pacifico was born in Gibraltar, an area that was part of the British Empire, he was officially a British subject and knew that he could ask the British government for help.

Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston took up Pacifico's case in 1850, arguing that it was the duty of their empire to protect British subjects abroad regardless of their origin or the legitimacy of their claims. When negotiations and requests in writing from Palmerston to the Greek government failed to resolve the issue, Palmerston used gunboat diplomacy.

He ordered the dispatch of a squadron of the Royal Navy to the coast of Greece to enforce demands for compensation.

This show of naval strength led to a naval blockade of the Port of Piraeus, Greece, pressuring the Greek government to settle the dispute on terms favourable to Britain.

The blockade, which lasted two months, worked and the Greek government bowed to the supremacy of the British Empire, and settled Pacifico's claim.

This event became known as the Don Pacifico affair.

Let's check that you've understood what we've heard about Don Pacifico and the Pacifico affair.

So I want you to consider this question.

Where did Don Pacifico live? Pause the video, think about your answer, and press play when you want to see if you are right.

That's right, Don Pacifico lived in Greece.

I also want to check, can you remember where was Don Pacifico born? Pause the video, think about your answer, and press play when you're ready to see if you are correct.

That's right, he was born in Gibraltar.

Let's check one more thing to see if you understand about examples of gunboat diplomacy.

So which of the following actions is an example of gunboat diplomacy? Was it the letters from Palmerston to the government of Greece? Was it Palmerston's use of a naval blockade of Greece? Was it the sacking and looting of Don Pacifico's house? Have a think about your answer.

Pause the video.

Press play when you're ready to see if you are right.

That's right, Palmerston's use of a naval blockade of Greece is an example of gunboat diplomacy.

Remember, his letters to the government of Greece hadn't been successful, whereas when he used a naval blockade, an example of gunboat diplomacy, this allowed the matter to be resolved on terms that were favourable to the British.

Now, the response from Lord Palmerston reinforced the public's positive attitude towards the empire.

It demonstrated the empire's ability to protect its citizens anywhere in the world, as well as highlighting the empire's power and supremacy.

It also reinforced the Victorian belief in the civilising mission of the British Empire, that Britain had both the right and the responsibility to intervene in other countries to ensure the proper treatment of individuals.

So let's check that you understand those ideas.

We've got two pupils here, Aisha and Lucas.

What I want you to do is I want you to think about which of them is describing what the Don Pacifico affair tells historians about British attitudes towards empire in 1850.

So Aisha says that, "Victorian society were unhappy about the use of gunboat diplomacy and thought that the government should not involve itself in other parts of its empire." Whereas Lucas has a different view.

He thinks that, "The British had a positive attitude towards empire.

They believe the use of gunboat diplomacy indicated that the government would do anything to protect its subjects." So which of those two students do you think is describing correctly what the Don Pacifico affair tells historians about British attitudes towards empire in 1850? Pause the video while you think about your answer and when you're ready to hear whether you were correct, press play.

That's right, it was Lucas who was correct.

The British had a positive attitude towards Empire.

They believed that the use of gunboat diplomacy indicated that the government would do anything to protect its subjects and that is shown by the Don Pacifico affair and Lord Palmerston's use of gunboat diplomacy.

So let's bring our learning from the lesson so far together and answer this task all about the Don Pacifico affair.

There's a statement on the screen.

The Don Pacifico affair made Victorian society less supportive of their empire.

Now that statement, as we've just seen, is incorrect.

So what I'd like you to do is I'd like you to correct this statement using evidence to support your answer and I'd like you to try and use the following words: gunboat diplomacy, Lord Palmerston, and supremacy.

While you're attempting this, pause the video and press play when you want to see how well you did.

So, your answer might have included the following: the Don Pacifico affair made Victorian society more supportive of the British Empire in 1850.

The public supported Lord Palmerston's use of gunboat diplomacy in the naval blockade of Greece, seeing it as evidence of the empire's supremacy and ability to protect its citizens anywhere in the world.

It also contributed to their belief in the empire's civilising mission that Britain had the right and responsibility to intervene to ensure the proper treatment of individuals.

Now that we've heard about the Don Pacifico affair and Britain's use of gunboat diplomacy, let's move on to look at the Great Exhibition.

Whilst the Don Pacifico affair highlighted Britain's willingness to use its naval power to protect its citizens and assert its national interest abroad, there was also a strong focus on cementing the view of the British Empire as both peaceful and inclusive.

As such, in 1851, a landmark event was held in London.

It was the first in a series of world's fairs, exhibitions designed to showcase the achievements of nations across the globe.

The event was known as the Great Exhibition and it was held in Hyde Park in a building called the Crystal Palace which have been designed specifically for the event.

I want you to think about what you can see in this image of the Crystal Palace.

I want you to think about what view of the British Empire might the Crystal Palace be trying to convey.

Pause the video while you think.

Press play when you're ready to hear some suggestions.

So, the Crystal Palace was an impressive structure designed to show the power of the empire.

At over 563 metres long and 124 metres wide, it was an impressive sight.

It was also made from a complex network of iron rods supporting walls of clear glass and could be seen glittering in the sunlight from miles around.

You might also have noticed a British flag flying to show that empire's importance.

So let's check your understanding of what we've just heard.

Which of the following was not a feature of the Crystal Palace? It was 563 metres long and 124 metres wide.

It was built in Hyde Park.

It was made of iron and glass.

It was built in Crystal Palace.

Pause the video while you think about the answer and press play when you're ready to hear if you are right.

That's right, it's not correct that it was built in Crystal Palace, okay? The Crystal Palace was built in Hyde Park.

It was called the Crystal Palace but it was not built in Crystal Palace.

Now the British government and monarch saw the Great Exhibition as an opportunity to showcase Britain's latest technological developments and successes.

For example, housed in one of the most popular sections of the exhibition were the very latest steam engines, automated spinning machines and water pumps, as well as a printing press that could produce 5,000 copies of a newspaper in an hour.

A very impressive feat at the time.

The Great Exhibition was also home to some of the first public flushing toilets, which visitors could use for a small fee.

Showcasing these achievements further reinforce British pride both in the country and in the Empire.

The Great Exhibition also proudly exhibited beautiful goods from Britain's colonies in the wider world, highlighting its global reach, and showing the opportunities and shared achievements afforded by the Empire.

Among some of the most elaborate items on display included the Koh-i-Noor diamond from India believed in the 19th century to be the largest and most valuable in the world.

As well as a throne carved from Ivory, along with a howdah, a covered seat that sat on an elephant's back that you can see in the image on the screen.

The howdah was displayed on an elephant borrowed from a museum of taxidermied animals.

The Canadian exhibit showcased other impressive objects including a canoe, sleighs, and a fire engine.

A double grand piano and numerous dental appliances were notable features of the American exhibit.

Showcasing these achievements emphasised progress, prosperity, and opportunity cementing the supremacy of the British Empire in the minds of Victorian society.

So let's check your understanding of the Great Exhibition and some of its exhibits.

Can you remember what was featured in the British exhibit? Was it a, steam engines and automated spinning machines? Was it b, a double grand piano and dental appliances? Or was it c, a howdah displayed on a taxidermy elephant? Pause the video while you think about your answer and press play when you're ready to see if you were correct.

That's right, in the British exhibit, steam engines and automated spinning machines were displayed.

These were things that had been produced in Britain.

They were a big part of the industrial revolution that had been taking place at that time and for some time previous.

They were showing off the best of British industry and the ability of British engineers.

The Great Exhibition was a huge success.

A British businessman known as Thomas Cook, organised special trains to bring visitors from all over Britain with many visitors returning multiple times.

People travelled for miles to experience the awe and wonder of the exhibits.

When the Great Exhibition finally closed its doors, over 6 million visitors had marvelled at the exhibits across five months.

, an astonishing 1/3 of the population of Britain at the time.

The exhibit showcased and celebrated the British Empire with Britain at the forefront.

It displayed in all its wonder the technological advancements and industrial achievements of all nations reflecting the Victorian view of the glory, power, and supremacy of the British Empire.

So let's check that you understand how the Great Exhibition was viewed by Victorian society.

I want you to look at these three options.

They saw all the opportunities afforded by the empire.

The size and design of the building showed the supremacy of the empire.

They saw that the empire was very costly for British people.

I want you to think about which of those two answers are correct.

Which of those two are the correct ways in which Victorian society viewed the Great Exhibition? Pause the video and press play when you're ready to see if you were correct.

That's right.

The Victorians saw all the opportunities afforded by the empire in the Great Exhibition and the size and design of the building, the Crystal Palace, showed the supremacy of the empire in Victorian society's mind.

Okay.

So for our final task today, we're going to look at a conversation between Laura and Andeep.

Now, Laura is not sure what the Great Exhibition is able to tell historians about British attitudes towards empire in the Victorian period.

Andeep tells her that the exhibits attempted to showcase a positive British view of the empire displaying items like the Koh-i-Noor diamond.

As this was one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, it helped to symbolise the empire's glory, dominance, and power.

Now, Andeep has done a pretty good job there but what I want you to do is I want you to write one paragraph developing Andeep's ideas to explain what else the Great Exhibition is able to tell historians about British attitudes towards Empire.

So, while you're attempting to do this, pause the video, then when you're ready to see how you did, press play.

So, you might have helped Andeep develop his ideas by saying something along the lines of the following.

The Great Exhibition showed how the British had a positive view towards empire in the Victorian period.

They saw exciting exhibits such as the double grand piano from America and taxidermy elephant with the howdah from India as evidence of the opportunity and growth afforded by the British Empire.

The British wanted to show off the supremacy of their technological innovations such as spinning machines and water pumps, while the size and the design of the Crystal Palace itself emphasised their belief in the glory, power, and success of the Empire.

So hopefully you can see how we've developed Andeep's ideas by referring to some of the more specific exhibits within the Great Exhibition.

But also we've been able to explain how the building itself, the magnificence of the Crystal Palace, also emphasised the Victorian society's belief in the glory, power, and success of their empire.

Well done.

I'm sure your answer have many of the same features that ours did on the screen.

So, in summary, for our lesson on the Great Exhibition and the British Empire.

Gunboat diplomacy in the Don Pacifico affair increased British support of the British Empire.

The Great Exhibition of 1851 showcased the latest technological advancement and opportunities from Britain, its colonies and the wider world.

And the Great Exhibition reinforced the positive interpretation of empire held by the British as they saw their self-perceived supremacy and glory.

It's been great having you here with me today for this lesson.

Looking forward to the next one.

Well done on all your hard work and I'll see you again soon.